Is chevre a cheese that contains mold?

[narnia]

I am wondering if chevre is cultured or developed by mold species?  If I don't use a microbial rennet, does the mesophilic type culture contain mold?  Is that what develops the cheese to have that flavor?

Sorry for my ignorant questions.  I am just so totally new at this, and I am so grateful for everyone's patience with me and helping me!

[SOSEATTLE]

Mesophilic culture is normally bacterial, not fungal. It is the bacterial fermentation occurring in the milk that contributes to flavor. Flavor development in cheese is hugely complicated and is the result of many interactions between cultures (fungal and bacterial), milk, and environment. This is especially true with aged cheeses. Fresh cheeses like chevre are more straight forward because there is less time involved.



Susan

[narnia]

Thank you, Susan!  I  should feel safe with eating chevre then, if I don't make it with microbial rennet.

[Stinky]

Yes. Chevre is typically just plain cheese, although one can modify it if one wants to grow mold on it to affect the flavor. The flavor comes from goats! If you followed the same recipe with cow's milk, it would not taste at all as good. On the flip side, cow's milk is somewhat more suitable for long-aged cheeses, because reasons and stuff. Science.

[narnia]

Yes. Chevre is typically just plain cheese, although one can modify it if one wants to grow mold on it to affect the flavor.

Thanks, Stinky!  I knows nothin' bout cheeses, so the term "just plain cheese" has no point of reference for me.   I figured that all cheeses were mold-based, since cheese have not been allowed on an anti-candida (AKA anti-fungal) diet.

[Stinky]

Yes. Chevre is typically just plain cheese, although one can modify it if one wants to grow mold on it to affect the flavor.

Thanks, Stinky!  I knows nothin' bout cheeses, so the term "just plain cheese" has no point of reference for me.   I figured that all cheeses were mold-based, since cheese have not been allowed on an anti-candida (AKA anti-fungal) diet.

Well, most natural rind ages cheese will have mold on it. Vacuum sealed cheese will not. Fresh cheese, like chevre, will not. If you take something like a chevre in rounds, and age it for a few weeks, mold will grow on it. As is, fresh from the process, no mold apart from spores that would be on any food.

[narnia]

That is great news!!!  Hopefully, once I change out the rennet, I will be able to happily eat my chevre with no issues!!  Thank you!

[Stinky]

That is great news!!!  Hopefully, once I change out the rennet, I will be able to happily eat my chevre with no issues!!  Thank you!

I wish you luck.

[narnia]

Something else that occurred to me...yogurt, lactobacilus acidophilus is anti-fungal, as it feeds the good bacteria to promote good bowel ecology.

But, I wonder if the bacteria in chevre feeds the candida fungus, because I have had a flare-up from eating the chevre.  I automatically assumed that it was the microbial rennet, since it was made from mold, but since I have been told that there is no mold in microbial rennet, I am wondering...

[Stinky]

You said this only happened with one batch of chevre?

[narnia]

It started after the first batch pig-out.  Then, even when I just tasted the new batches after draining, I had an instant reaction. 

I did drink some of the whey with the first batch, right after putting the curds into the bag (about a cup because I had always heard who wonderful it is for health).   The whey absolutely wiped me out after about 30 min!!

So...I consulted my blood type diet app and duh!!  It was a huge avoid!!!  I don't know if it was way to acidic for me...no idea, but that may have contributed to my reaction to the goat cheese. 

But...I felt fine the next day when I ate the chevre.  I woke up the next morning after eating the cheese, feeling swollen, congesty, achy, and tired!  Eating food that feed the candida does not affect me until the next day, as the candida takes time to feed and multiply.   So, I have stayed away from the cheese and have taken probiotics to counteract.  We have had a lot of rain here in the South lately, and the house has been smelling mustly, so that has added to the mold burden.  I am slowly recovering.

[Gregore]

Correct me if I am wrong but you mention that you had a reaction to the whey when fresh but the cheese made from the same whey the next day gave you no problems?

If this is correct then I am wondering if you have issues with lactose ?

By the time the milk has become fully cheesed it should have very little lactose left .

It also sounds like with your issues around molds and fungus you should really be adding yogurt  or kefir cultures to your make.  I may help make your cheese more digestible.

I think that you should also phone and or make contact with the maker of the chèvre you said that did not effect you and explain your situation and find out exactly what and how they make their chèvre .

Check out on line to see if kefir has any cultures that would not agree with you .

[narnia]

Correct me if I am wrong but you mention that you had a reaction to the whey when fresh but the cheese made from the same whey the next day gave you no problems?

If this is correct then I am wondering if you have issues with lactose ?

Correct!  As this article states:  http://www.livestrong.com/article/435760-candida-diet-cheese/

By the time the milk has become fully cheesed it should have very little lactose left .

The ingredients of the culture that I used: CULTURE INCLUDES: lactose, (LL) lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis, (LLC) lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris, (LLD) lactococcus lactis subsp. biovar diacetylactis, microbial coagulant enzyme. 

I don't know why it should include lactose when the milk already has lactose...even so, with the tiny amount of the powdered culture that is in the packet, I don't see how it could add much lactose to the cheese....   

It also sounds like with your issues around molds and fungus you should really be adding yogurt  or kefir cultures to your make.  I may help make your cheese more digestible.

That is an excellent idea!!!  I wonder if there are recipes to make chevre with yogurt culture included....

I think that you should also phone and or make contact with the maker of the chèvre you said that did not effect you and explain your situation and find out exactly what and how they make their chèvre .

Yes.  I did contact the seller last week and left a VM but have not heard back.  Will try again.

Check out on line to see if kefir has any cultures that would not agree with you .

Good idea!  I have enjoyed store-bought cow kefir in the past.

[Gregore]

I do not know why the culture would contain any lactose , but don't worry about it as  almost all if not all of it will be gone after 2 days of  hanging the curd .   Lactose is sugar and that is what the cultures eat .

As far as a recipe goes I just add kefir to the milk at the same time I add the culture , I do however cut back on the culture by about 20 percent and add 1/2 cup of kefir . You could do the same with yogurt.

If you want to make kefir get your grains from  " the kefir lady . com "    Any kefir made form milk should also have very little lactose left after culturing.

[narnia]

Thank you!