Hi guys, this is probably a basic open-ended question, but Im new to this so I wanted mor eperspective.
I made my 1st batch of feta 2 days ago w/ 2 liters & I split them up into two batches and infused each batch with different flavorings/spices (1 was pesto, 1 sundried tomato).
While doing research, I saw that some recipes called for no pressing, while some for light pressing.
I left 1 batch unpressed & 1 pressed with 10kg in a cheese press for 20 minutes. I pressed that hard because the pesto had liqued in it I wanted to get rid of.
In the end however, the pressed feta had a slight mozarella like consistency (the curds meshed together). I was wondering what the right amount of pressing is, and the effect of heavier pressing?
Thanks
Hi and welcome to the forum - hope you find the info helpful - there is an amazing collection of Cheesemakers of all levels here - Stay long and enjoy :)
To help answer the question you asked - to press or not - the answer - It depends. the link below is how I make Feta.
https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12962.0.html (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12962.0.html)
Depends on the texture you are trying to achieve. The act of pressing removes whey from the curds. This whey contains Lactose and it is this lactose that the cultures need to create Lactic acid. As you can see from my make note that I press the two stacked before brining. The weight is only about 1 to 1.5 lbs - but even in this the amount of acid produced (lower pH) is reduced. This ends up creating a cheese that is smooth and spreadable. If you want a crumbly Feta you should let the cheese drain under it's own weight. This means that the whey content is higher (hence more lactose) for a longer time but the lactic acid produced is greater and the texture is more open and therefore crumbly.
Ahh Cheese is part art - part science - part magic and totally addictive :)
CheeseOn 8)
Hmmm ... the requirement to press feta at all is news to me, so I can't vouch for that. In all my makes the feta consolidates just fine by merely flipping it around in its mold every few hours over a period of two days (night time excluded, thankfully). I don't want to chase out all of the intercurdial whey because I want a nice acidic feta that won't turn all slimy in the whey-brine later.
In any case, glad you did it both ways, and would like to hear your thoughts on any differences. Nothing like a controlled experiment to reset one's biases ;).