Has anyone made this recipe? Why does he salt at the end then let it rest overnight warm then attempts to press over two days? I never could get it to seal the rind. Holes etc all over. The curd would press a lot but not attach to one another. Seems it would have sealed had it been pressed soon after salting while still warm.
I have made it twice, and both times it turned out tasting really great. I prefer it to Cheddar. The internal paste was consolidate well,
but you're right, you need a ton of weight to get the rind to consolidate well. But as I understand it, that's the original process.
I've been wanting to make another one, but since it requires a lot of time, I just have had the time to devote to it.
One tip that I'm going to try next time, is at the very end of the pressing, if there are still some mechanical divots, you can dip the whole cheese in some very warm water for just a minute and then immediately return it to the final pressing weight. Only the most exterior part of the cheese heats up--and only enough to allow for a smoother rind.
I had to wax both of my previous ones, because there was no way I could do a natural rind with the amount of mechanical openings they each had. But like I said, in the end, they both tasted great.
Thank you gorKlaalu. You made me feel better. I got most of the holes out but I was thinking of waxing it as well.
So I did try the 150F for 1 minute trick then tried pressing at the final pressure. Oil came out of the rind in the press and did very little to close the rind further. Now the rind is just dry because I push all the fat out of it.
I had two so I tried the hot water again but for 30 second with less damage but still not my idea overly helpful.
I've seen most recipes for this cheese calls for right into the press after salting. Why doesn't this recipe? To dry it out more inside maybe?
You should send them an email from their website. Last time I had a question about one of their recipes, Jim replied with tons of great information!
Thanks for letting me know Dorchester....I won't try the hot dip then. :)
I have not made this one but I've made the version in 200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes book several times and it's great.
I suppose I should make the NECC recipe and compare, but the thought of letting the chunks of curd sit overnight before pressing really seemed quite foreign to me.
The pieces were kept warm all night about 80 and drained a lot more whey but just did not want to knit.