This might seem a weird way to start my Cheddar make notes but, the regulars here might remember I started a project using Kefir as the culture source. Not very successful I'm afraid. It made cheese but not to the standard I and my family enjoy. So, Here we are, back using the 'Evil' and 'Industrial' DVI cultures we have come to enjoy. Not that using Kefir doesn't work - it does - but I like my Cheddars to age out 1 to 2 years and that sort of investment in time is just too long for the prospect of a bland Cheddar.
I'll post as the day progresses - and yes photos not that they will different from the others but... you never know.
-- Mal
What a nice change from the Kefir experience. pH markers all hit - Temperatures within a degree C and the timings back where they should be.
The cheese making today was a nice relaxing one enjoyed with good music and a nice beer..
Attached are a range of photos from start to finish - only basic this time. I find myself taking the same pictures I have enough to fill a book.... now there's an Idea ! :o
1. As always - My kitchen ready for a cheese session.
2. Clean Break - Although I use the Flocculation calculation, I still like to test this way.
3. Curds just after cut
4. Curds after raising to 38 deg C
5. Curds after cooking for 60 minutes @ 38deg C
The Cheddaring stage.
1. Just after removing from the Colander
2. first turning.
3. Cut into slabs
The transformation is really quite remarkable.
4. Pressing
I love this press - it gets me all the force I need. This is using a 2 litre (2kg) at 12 X = 24 Kg the next step in the pressing is a 5 and a 2 Litre bottle to give me 84 Kg.. Just perfect..
Quote from: OzzieCheese on July 15, 2017, 01:13:02 AM
This might seem a weird way to start my Cheddar make notes but, the regulars here might remember I started a project using Kefir as the culture source. Not very successful I'm afraid. It made cheese but not to the standard I and my family enjoy. So, Here we are, back using the 'Evil' and 'Industrial' DVI cultures we have come to enjoy. Not that using Kefir doesn't work - it does - but I like my Cheddars to age out 1 to 2 years and that sort of investment in time is just too long for the prospect of a bland Cheddar.
I'll post as the day progresses - and yes photos not that they will different from the others but... you never know.
-- Mal
Same here, I tried few cheese with kefir and it was quite a lot of tinkering and adjusting on the process I decided it's just not for me. I like to know I will get pretty much the same result with the same recipe ;D
Nice pictures, I always enjoy the cheese pics from your post.