Hello from Essex, UK

[E_D]

Just joined the forum and wanted to Introduce myself.

I am a 59 year old male living in Essex, UK. I am originally from sunny Cyprus but moved to the UK a very long time ago.

I got interested in cheese making, halloumi to be exact, a couple of years ago. I tried a few times but never succeeded so gave up in the end frustrated.

About a month ago I became very interested again and did a lot of reading and research on the Internet. I've tried again about 5 times using different recipies but all I get is either something like Feta cheese where the curds don't bind together or a very creamy mozarella type cheese.

As I have no access to row milk I tried it with pasteurised/homogenised whole milk at first but had no luck. Then I read somewhere that mixing double cream with skimmed milk would work but all I get is Mozarella. I've tried adding buttermilk and citric acid but when I try to cook the curds after pressing at 80-90oC it just melts.

I have no idea what I'm doing wrong and hope to find answers in this forum.

E_D

[linuxboy]

Welcome!. For halloumi, the pH cannot be lower than 5.9. Other than that, it's a straightforward cheese to make, both in the cultured and non-cultured versions. We have some recipes here on the forum.

[E_D]

Welcome!. For halloumi, the pH cannot be lower than 5.9. Other than that, it's a straightforward cheese to make, both in the cultured and non-cultured versions. We have some recipes here on the forum.

Thanks for the welcome Linuxboy.

Can you please tell me where I can find these recipes?

What happens if the pH does go lower than 5.9?

Thanks

[bbracken677]

Here is one: http://www.wacheese.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59:halloumi-cheesemaking-howto&catid=36:fresh-cheese-rennet-coagulation&Itemid=60

I have never made it...but it comes from a trusted source    ;)

[E_D]

Here is one: http://www.wacheese.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=59:halloumi-cheesemaking-howto&catid=36:fresh-cheese-rennet-coagulation&Itemid=60

I have never made it...but it comes from a trusted source    ;)

Thanks for your reply. I had a quick read but I think they are using row milk in the link which I have no access to.

From my research, I found out that I need to add calcium chloride and heavy cream to skimmed milk but I have not been able to find a recipie that uses these ingredients and don't know how much of each to add.

[bbracken677]

You can also use whole store bought milk as long as it isnt ultra pasteurized. For whole store bought milk you should add 3/16-1/4 tsp of 100% calcium chloride dissolved in 1/4 cup non-chlorinated distilled water (I use a bottled water).  If you use 1 gallon of skimmed milk (0% fat) then you should add 1.5 cups heavy cream, also not ultra pasteurized. Mix in the cream gently...no need for serious agitation.