Dry Aged Cheese - Adjusting Curd Cut Size vs Flocculation Multiplier

[steffb503]

My Tomme turns ok tastes great  but a bit too dry. I am air dying for about a week, getting a good dry rind then vac sealing. Is there a process in the make that leads to a moister cheese?

[Boofer]

Cut larger. Use a bigger floc factor. Don't press as hard. Don't overcook.

-Boofer-

[zenith1]

short-sweet-correct Boofer! Steff choose one of the factors that Boofer has mentioned, adjust it for you next make and see what you end up with.

[linuxboy]

IMHO, for tomme higher moisture, keep curd size smaller (smallish pea size), but increase floc multiplier. You will get more even moisture content and more even syneresis this way, to keep those moisture gradients to a minimum. With this approach, you can finish cooking/stirring when it feels done, and be assured that the moisture gradient in the curd is fairly even. With larger curds, often have some casein shell happening in tomme.

[steffb503]

Thanks,
That will be my goal for todays batch.

[Boofer]

Thanks, LB. Added to my Tomme notes.

-Boofer-

[steffb503]

Well I increased the multiplier. I guess I have to now wait a few months to find out my results.
Cheesemaking is not for those who crave instant gratification!!!

[george]

Just as a matter of interest (for when I get into tommes), what was your starting multiplier and what did you increase it to?

[steffb503]

I have been following Linuxboy's recipe.
It calls for 3.5 multiplier. I increased it to 4.5
My floc was 16 mins I actually waited about 88 mins.

[george]

Cool, thanks!

[dthelmers]

IMHO, for tomme higher moisture, keep curd size smaller (smallish pea size), but increase floc multiplier. You will get more even moisture content and more even syneresis this way, to keep those moisture gradients to a minimum. With this approach, you can finish cooking/stirring when it feels done, and be assured that the moisture gradient in the curd is fairly even. With larger curds, often have some casein shell happening in tomme.

Is this generally true for hard/semi-hard cheeses? A longer floc multiplier for more moisture, even if you don't go with a larger curd cut? It seems to be working that way for me when using cheap milk; I know the curd is going to break up more than raw milk, so I compensate with a longer floc multiplier. To get a moister cheese, is it better to increase the multiplier and curd size both, or will just increasing the multiplier get us there? Specifically for cheddar style cheeses.

[linuxboy]

A longer floc multiplier for more moisture, even if you don't go with a larger curd cut?

Depends on the milk. For good milk with high solids, at times it is advantageous to cut bigger. Sometimes, you also want to create a very slight curd shell, in which case the curd size varies. But generally, yes. Note how in my tomme guideline I suggest a 1/4" size? Very deliberate, to help people avoid moisture gradients in the cheese.

The reason to cut bigger is that often, results in less solids loss in the curd. Most makers use a middle ground and do something like 5-6mm (about 3/8").

For cheddar style, because you're stacking those slabs, I would stick to 5-6 mm. It loses a lot of moisture during the texturizing period.