New from Indiana

[TjoeS]

Hi cheese makers!  I've got a question.  Can one make cottage cheese curd into other cheeses than farmers and especially for longer term preservation?  What would you do if you had a surplus of cottage cheese curd before milk or cream is added ?   

[Stinky]

Welcome!

I'd probably press it with light pressure, salt, and eat quickly.

[awakephd]

What process are you using to generate the cottage cheese? If you are simply letting the milk acidify on its own, you have effectively created a "lactic acid coagulated cheese." If you are adding culture(s) and rennet, then a rennet-coagulated cheese. In either case, you have the basic building block for various types of cheeses. Depending on whether you are "cooking" the curds and how much you stir, you may have drier or less dry curds; depending on the length of time, you may have more or less acidic curds. The type of culture(s) used will affect taste, speed of acidification, and how hight the temperature can go without killing the bacteria. All of these are variables that contribute to the type of cheese that is produced.