Lancashire recipe

[MrsKK]

The recipe posted at the beginning of the thread calls for buttermilk or mesophilic culture...not sure where you read yogurt.

That being said, I use yogurt to culture my Colby recipe when I want to make fresh cheese curds, as I think the flavor is much better when the curds are fresh.

[steampwr8]

Several recipes for Lancashire also call for yogurt or thermophilic cultures like the one here:

https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,6275.0.html
and here

https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,4739.0

I am curious as to your opinion on the flavor profile difference. What would you think the difference would be?

[MrsKK]

I really can't answer that, as I've not aged a yogurt-cultured cheese that normally calls for mesophilic culture.

[Sailor Con Queso]

Thermophiles are often used for flavor enhancement and as a way to accelerate aging. Many award winning cheddars use this technique. So, why not do this with every cheese? Different bacteria and different strains bring different flavor profiles, proteolytic activities, and texture to the table. Do you want all of your cheeses tasting like Parmesan?

[steampwr8]

Ed,

The answer is of course not with every cheese. And I wasn't equating the thermo with parm in this instance.

I am just trying to get your and others reasoning and learn from you.

So first if I understand your first line, the Thermo cultures,  ( I used c201 ST+LH)do become active even though I didn't cook at a higher temp. They then work to shorten the aging cycle and also add their flavor profiles.

Thanks to all,

Mark

[dthelmers]

Mark, to get a good idea of what a thermo adds at meso temps, try making a couple of quick acid coagulated bag cheeses. Do one with meso, and another with thermo. We played around a lot with this last summer making snack spreads. The yogurt adds a brighter flavor then buttermilk, but less rich tasting than the buttermilk.
Dave in CT

[Sailor Con Queso]

Mark,

Thermos can SURVIVE higher temps, Mesos generally cannot. So if you do a blend and then cook to higher temps, the Mesos will die mostly off. In this style of make, the Mesos are important for early acidification, then the Thermos take over as the dominant culture.

Consider this. When you make a true thermo cheese, like a Parmesan, the curds (and bacteria) are only at higher temperatures for a relatively short time during cooking. After draining, the curds cool quickly, and obviously reach room temperature during overnight pressing. They are cooled down even further at cave temps during aging. The thermo bacteria remain active and continue to do their thing long afterwards. Even after the lactose runs out and the bacteria die, they bring a whole different set of proteolytic enzymes into play for long term aging, flavor, and texture.

[sor]

Is it just me or is this a giant recipe for a beginner recipe? Is this from the book? I'm wondering if I can cut it in half as I've only got a 16qt stockpot, without major changes. I suppose given the history I could make it in two batches, but then I've only got a 4.5" x 5" poly mold as well (which historically has been perfect for 2 gallons).

[MrsKK]

Sor - The book's recipe was for 4 gallons, I believe.  But because I have my own cow that gives LOTS of milk, I bump my recipes up to 5 gallon batches, because my largest kettle will hold that much milk.

16 quarts is 4 gallons - you may be able to work with three and a half gallons of milk without too much trouble...and then I read your post again and see that your mold probably won't hold that much curd.  You could try breaking this down to a 2 gallon batch.