A butterkäse - just out of the brine

[Danbo]

This butterkäse (buttercheese) just go out of the brine.

My new cheesecloth is perfect and the cheese is left wringle free with a nice texture.

:-) Danbo

[Al Lewis]

Beautiful Danbo!!

[Danbo]

Thanks Al.

I used the same recipe as last time but with a different pressing procedure... I also drained the curd for 5 minutes before placing in the mould. I ran my fingers through the curd and turned it to drain it.

1. press (30 min.):
0.3 psi (20 cm mould: 15 kg. 10 cm mould: 4 kg).

2. press (30 min.):
0.7 psi (20 cm mould: 35 kg. 10 cm mould: 9 kg).

3. press (90 min.):
1.3 psi (20 cm mould: 65 kg. 10 cm mould: 16 kg).

4. press (120 min.):
1.3 psi (20 cm mould: 65 kg. 10 cm mould: 16 kg).

5. press (30 min.):
1.3 psi (20 cm mould: 65 kg. 10 cm mould: 16 kg).

I had a bit of cheese cloth embedding after the 3. press but it healed fine after 4. press.

Next time I will reduce the weight at 3. press a bit. I'm sure that a pressing that is generally lower would work fine too...

I took a couple of pictures... The first picture is after 1. press - look how soft it is... The second picture is after the 2. press...

Planning to age only 14-28 days...

Danbo

[AeonSam]

Really nice looking cheese Danbo!

Two questions.

1. What kind of cheesecloth is that and where did you get it?

2. What is your target ph at unmoulding? I've been doing mine at 5.5 but I accidentally went to 5.3 on my last one and amazingly - it's much creamier.

Sam

[nccheesemike]

Beautiful cheese Danbo! I just tried Butterkase for the first time recently and loved it.

[Danbo]

Sam:

Thanks...

I usually use some blue plastic cheese cloths. They are practical as the are disposable, but they leave marks on the cheese. So I bought some ordinary cheese cloths. They are not that tightly wowen and are easier to get smooth in the mould. Getting cheeses without wrinkles is a matter of technique, but a good old cheesecloth is a great help. This cheesecloth is bougt here in Europe - I guess that it will cost a million to ship to rhe US.

My target PH just before brining is 5.55 but I didn't meassure that PH mark this time ... Do you think that the lower end-PH made your cheese creamier? Strange - but who knows...

Mike:

Thanks...

I love it too. And it's a great cheese to make if the cave has no orher cheeses ready. It's amazing how fast it ages. Still very mild but tasty and delicious in a toast as it melts very easily.

[AeonSam]

Thanks Danbo,

I guess I need better technique for molding to reduce marks.

I'm not sure if the 5.3 ph is what made the difference.  That was one of the only changes in variables. The second variable is that I used mixed milk. I normally use Non-homogenized, lightly pasteurized milk. This time I used half good milk and half regular milk and added calcium.

Sam

[Danbo]

I've read somewhere, that the cheese usually ripen quicker when using homogenized milk due to the smaller milk fat globules. Could be that's why this cheese was creamier?

[AeonSam]

Maybe so,

I never heard that but that is one major change I made.

Sam

[Paine88]

So good looking! C4U! Will have to wait until after the holidays to make more cheese, but then Butterkase is at the top of the list!

[Danbo]

Thanks!

I waxed it today. A bit early perhaps - its been drying for only two days. I used transparent wax and will keep an eye on moisture under the wax etc. Butterkäse is a rather moist cheese and I didn't want to battle molds.

If you want my recipe just let me know...

Danbo

[Al Lewis]

I want your recipe. LOL

[gathwaegl]

Your cheese is beautiful and I am also interested in a recipe!

Butterkase has been on my list to try to make!

[Paine88]

We all want the recipe! Is this anywhere near Gräddost?

[Danbo]

Paine: I guess that the two cheeses could be compared. They are both soft with a buttery mild taste. I have no Gräddost recipe though so I can't compare to the Butterkäse recipe.

Gräddost has a lot of small irregular eyes - my butterkäse does not. That said, I have seen a lot of butterkäse variations - some with a lot of small eyes, some without (it depends a lot on the cultures used - CO2 producing or not)...

I will post the updated recipe here in a couple of days. The last recipes that I used had some errors regarding PSI during presssing...

:-) Danbo