I was thinking of making a Gruyere, but didn't have any Proprionic Shermanii, so decided to make a Gouda instead. This was my first go at both a washed curd and a pressed cheese. I made this batch from 2 Gallons of Clover whole milk, and it all just barely fit in a single 5" mold. All in all, the process went pretty smoothly, following the recipe from Mary Karlin's book. The yield from this batch was 2lbs 4oz.
I did learn a few things:
- Build or buy a press (this balancing act thing is nutty!) :)
- Buy a large cheese mold to handle this size batch in a wheel that's not quite so tall.
- Get better at wrapping the cheese in the mold for a smooth finish, or do the final press naked.
- Did I mention build/buy a press?
I have noticed in my cheesemaking so far that I seem to get pretty small sized curds very quickly when stirring (even when I try to be exceedingly gentle with it.) Is this a function of using pasteurized and homogenized milk? Or does it have something to do with perhaps not using enough rennet (used 1/2 tsp for this 2 gal batch), and I'm not getting a firm enough set? I feel like I'm getting a nice clean break within the amount of time specified by recipes, so I'm a bit curious.
Anyway, here is the cheese post pressing, and just before going into the brine:
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4859/32843370258_fb3894a0e5_k.jpg)
I haven't decided yet if I'm going to do a natural rind, oiled rind, waxed, or vac-packed cheese.......I've got a couple of weeks of aging post brine to figure out the next step.
Thanks for lookin'!
Rich
Whoops, forgot to post the recipe... :)
2g whole milk (clover)
1/4 tsp MM100
1/2 tsp Calcium Chloride
1/2 tsp rennet
heavy brine
Heat milk to 86, add culture, rehydrate/stir, then let ripen 45 minutes
Add CaCL, stir; add rennet, stir, let set up for 45-60 minutes
Cut curds (1/2"), let heal 5 minutes
Stir gently 5 minutes, let settle 5 minutes
Remove 2 cups whey, add 140 degree water to bring temp to 92F, while stirring 10 minutes, let sit 5 minutes
Remove whey to level of curd, add 140 degree water to bring temp to 98F, while stirring 20 minutes, let sit 5 minutes
Drain curd in colander for 5 minutes, break off 1" pieces to fill mold
Press with 10 lbs for 30 minutes, then press with 15 lbs for 8 hours (this is for an 8" mold)
Brine for 3-4 hours per pound
Age 10 days at 55F/85%, then wax
Hi - My observation are this..pay attention to what the rennet package says for set time. Generally it's based on pasteurized and homogenized milk.
I have the best set with raw milk
As for pasteurized homogenized my set is best with Jersey milk and less so with holstein. If you can find Jersey it's nice when it sets. You still got great looking cheese. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Thanks, DC! At this point, all I know about the cows for this milk are that they (most likely) had four legs..... I'll do a bit of research and see if any of the dairy products I can get locally indicate what type of animals they are milking. I'm sure I can come up with some data, just a bit of coffee fueled Googling! :)
I'm sure I made cheese, just won't know if it's Gouda for a while. ;)
R
Nice work and good luck! I've only tried a washed curd cheese once, also a Gouda, and I found the process to be a bit difficult, and the aging hasn't gone too well for that particular cheese either. Hope you have a better experience!
Thanks, Cheesehead!
We will see how it goes.
R
My experience is almost entirely with P&H milk, and almost always my curds "shatter" to some degree or another. Some brands of milk work better than others, and there can be variations from make to make even with a brand that has worked better. Nonetheless, I have gotten very good cheeses from the P&H milk (I'm up to about my 110th cheese), and I predict yours will be good as well.
The one and only time I tried raw milk, it was a revelation - it actually worked just the way they show it in the books! But it is extremely expensive and inconvenient to get raw milk here in NC- it is not legal to sell raw milk, so unless you know someone who has cows, you have to get milk shipped in from out of state. I decided that the results I get with the P&H were good enough not to bother with the hassle ... though I still keep looking to make friends with someone who has cows!
One thing about the Gouda, based on my own experience - I predict that when you try it, yours will be very tasty, but not have the mild taste or smooth, flexible texture of a Gouda. The reason is that you need to move the cheese from the press to the brine when the cheese hits a pH of around 5.3 - but in my experience, that happens a LOT faster than the times given in recipes and books - as in, within a couple of hours in the press at most. Once I got a pH meter and started testing the pH, my Goudas started coming out tasting like Gouda, rather than like a crumbly sort of generic not-quite-cheddar. Mind you, the latter was tasty! But just not quite right.
The same is true for any cheese that is pressed first and salted later (Asiago, Parmesan, Gruyere, Swiss, etc.) - my experience with every one of these was that the times I had used yielded much too low pH, with the result affecting both flavor and texture.
Of course, using different milk, different room temperature, different sizes of makes, etc., YMMV. Looking forward to hearing the report on how this turns out!
Awake-
Thanks for checking in over here, too! :)
I do have a pH meter, and I have read about the criticality of timing the pH levels correctly for the desired texture. I did not, however, use the meter in this make, as I'm so new to the whole process, I decided that I'd leave that out as a variable in my learning process. I plan to add pH targets to my make worksheets that I'm using once I feel like I've got the process figured a bit better.
Thanks for the comments on your success with P/H milk, and that you have had shattered curds with it as well. I can get raw milk from some "local" dairies, but at 4x the cost, I'll stick to what I can easily find in the grocery store until I know I'm not going to screw up $40 for 2g! :) I just put the gouda in the cave today, and it certainly is starting to smell like cheese, so I know I made something cheese-like! ;)
R
Quote from: awakephd on January 14, 2019, 05:37:39 PM
My experience is almost entirely with P&H milk, and almost always my curds "shatter" to some degree or another. Some brands of milk work better than others, and there can be variations from make to make even with a brand that has worked better. Nonetheless, I have gotten very good cheeses from the P&H milk (I'm up to about my 110th cheese), and I predict yours will be good as well.
The one and only time I tried raw milk, it was a revelation - it actually worked just the way they show it in the books! But it is extremely expensive and inconvenient to get raw milk here in NC- it is not legal to sell raw milk, so unless you know someone who has cows, you have to get milk shipped in from out of state. I decided that the results I get with the P&H were good enough not to bother with the hassle ... though I still keep looking to make friends with someone who has cows!
One thing about the Gouda, based on my own experience - I predict that when you try it, yours will be very tasty, but not have the mild taste or smooth, flexible texture of a Gouda. The reason is that you need to move the cheese from the press to the brine when the cheese hits a pH of around 5.3 - but in my experience, that happens a LOT faster than the times given in recipes and books - as in, within a couple of hours in the press at most. Once I got a pH meter and started testing the pH, my Goudas started coming out tasting like Gouda, rather than like a crumbly sort of generic not-quite-cheddar. Mind you, the latter was tasty! But just not quite right.
The same is true for any cheese that is pressed first and salted later (Asiago, Parmesan, Gruyere, Swiss, etc.) - my experience with every one of these was that the times I had used yielded much too low pH, with the result affecting both flavor and texture.
Of course, using different milk, different room temperature, different sizes of makes, etc., YMMV. Looking forward to hearing the report on how this turns out!
Posts like these are awesome. Keep it up - I'm learnin' here. ac4u
Thanks! I learned SO much from folks on this forum when I was starting out - and of course, still LOTS to learn. (So many types of cheese still to try ... so little time ... sigh!) I've missed both the learning and the sharing on this forum; nice to be back!
Lovely! You did a gouda job there!
AC4U...
If you're going to build a press, may I recommend one that has zero guesswork, minimal tools and parts required, and almost certainly made of things you already have?
Like this one:https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,17192.msg131247.html#msg131247] [url]https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,17192.msg131247.html#msg131247 (http://[url)[/url]
All I have to do to put 10 lbs of pressure, is put one 10lb weight on top. Voila! 10 lbs. No guessing. Easy as cake.
Curdless-
Thanks for the cheese!
I have the threaded rod and fasteners already waiting to build your easy press! :) Just need to find the time to cut some proper sized platforms from a piece of 3/4" plywood that I have on hand. :) Your post was certainly the one that got me moving in this direction, and I meant to drop a note in that thread to thank you. So, THANK YOU! :)
As an added bonus, I have a handy, woodworking friend who is going to build me a lever press when he has some spare time. :) Hmmm, what ever will I do with TWO presses?!?! :)
R
Thank you for the encomium!
May I also suggest that you don't forget the 6" long section of 4" PVC? The reason for it is that unless you have something between the follower and the upper plate, it won't press on the cheese. The top of the form will be hitting the upper plate.
If you have two presses, you could always auction the one you use least on eBay! LOL
R, for the lever press design, check out the "original" SturdyPress. Bob has stopped making and selling these, but now has posted free plans (http://sturdypress.com/sdm_downloads/diy-plans (http://sturdypress.com/sdm_downloads/diy-plans)). It is far and away the most simple, elegant, and versatile press I've ever seen. (And that definitely includes the presses I have designed and made myself!) Key to its versatility is an easy selection of different MA (mechanical advantage) - if I remember correctly, you can choose 5x and 9x MA. This gives you the ability to press just about anything you might want to press, unless a) you are making 100lb. batches, or b) you want to make Cantal.
Quote from: awakephd on January 16, 2019, 05:15:02 PM
R, for the lever press design, check out the "original" SturdyPress. Bob has stopped making and selling these, but now has posted free plans (http://sturdypress.com/sdm_downloads/diy-plans (http://sturdypress.com/sdm_downloads/diy-plans)). It is far and away the most simple, elegant, and versatile press I've ever seen. (And that definitely includes the presses I have designed and made myself!) Key to its versatility is an easy selection of different MA (mechanical advantage) - if I remember correctly, you can choose 5x and 9x MA. This gives you the ability to press just about anything you might want to press, unless a) you are making 100lb. batches, or b) you want to make Cantal.
Thanks, Andy. Those are the plans I sent to him. :)
R
Excellent - you won't go wrong with that design.
I've got both his standard sturdypress and his foldaway. The former is a great press. I finished my with stain and poly. Also, I replaced all screws with wooden dowels and glue. Not important, but that's how I like it.
I only used the folding one once. It is smaller and folds up into a fairly small bundle. Makes storage much easier, and shipping MUCH easier, but there's no advantage so it never gets used.
So, an update on this cheese..... I've had some molds showing up, and have just been washing them off with some cheesecloth and brine. I have some unexpected business travel that's come up, though, so today, after a wash, I vac packed this cheese, and have it on the bottom shelf of the "cave" to be forgotten about for a at least another month (unless I manufacture some patience!) :)
These don't look to scary, but any thoughts on identity?
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7822/45936828875_8652fdf056_k.jpg)
Plotting my next make for when I get back.....thinking more Camembert, perhaps Gruyere, or time for a long aging parm..... :)
R
The black spots look like regular mildew to me, which is usually a result of some combination of too much humidity and not enough air circulation. Not a big deal though, most of my cheeses get some in the early stages of aging. Wiping it with vinegar or brine will stop it from growing but won't really remove it, it kind of stains the cheese. It does fade some over time though.
Thanks, Cheesehead! Just a waiting game now (will keep an eye on it in case it needs any draining, etc.)
R
Ok, so I just opened up my first cheese (Camembert), and after that disappointment, I just had to check on my (very young) Gouda!! I very much like the looks of this one, though the taste is very young with what my untrained palate thinks is great promise. Don't worry, I packaged it back up, and tossed it back in the cave.....will try to stay out of it for at least another 3 months! :)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7824/47171727502_60af74a11a_k.jpg)
Rich
Quote from: rgreenberg2000 on January 23, 2019, 04:32:54 PM
So, an update on this cheese..... I've had some molds showing up, and have just been washing them off with some cheesecloth and brine. I have some unexpected business travel that's come up, though, so today, after a wash, I vac packed this cheese, and have it on the bottom shelf of the "cave" to be forgotten about for a at least another month (unless I manufacture some patience!) :)
These don't look to scary, but any thoughts on identity?
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7822/45936828875_8652fdf056_k.jpg)
Plotting my next make for when I get back.....thinking more Camembert, perhaps Gruyere, or time for a long aging parm..... :)
R
Hi R,
Thanks for posting this pic. On my first gouda as well, and i have the same spots show up. More like blue mold. Easily wiped away with brine. Plan on waxing mine but these spots worry me. Did yours ever go away?
I also have some dark yellow spots on my first 2 asiagos...assume they are b. linens?? I'll try and post a pic.
Thanks!
Quote from: Mina on February 27, 2019, 03:25:44 PM
Hi R,
Thanks for posting this pic. On my first gouda as well, and i have the same spots show up. More like blue mold. Easily wiped away with brine. Plan on waxing mine but these spots worry me. Did yours ever go away?
I also have some dark yellow spots on my first 2 asiagos...assume they are b. linens?? I'll try and post a pic.
Thanks!
Hi, Mina. I had did an aggressive wash/scrub to remove those spots (which meant I was probably removing a bit of the top layer of the cheese.) After I got it cleaned up, I washed it daily for a couple more days, then I vacuum packed it. It still has some very minor stains from the "spots", but it's just a visual defect.
Not sure about the yellow spots you are seeing, but if you post up a pic, I'm sure someone with more experience than me will be able to help out!
R
lets try this one last time
attached are 2 pics...both are asiago. is this discoloration from mats or b.linens? both have this on only one side.
Mina, I don't think that is linens, though hard to be sure from a picture. (Sometimes hard to be sure in person in the early stages of growth!) The pattern on the first one does look like it could have come from the mat ... could also be some uneven dryness of the curd ... but you mentioned wiping away blue mold. I find that blue mold nearly always leaves a "stain" on the cheese, even when I wipe it away pretty thoroughly.
I would not hesitate to wax these (or vacuum bag them). If your wax is hot enough, it will help to kill off any mold, as well as seal it. Either way, lack of oxygen will inhibit growth. It's pretty normal to have a spot or two or ten on a cheese - but likely you will not even notice it once it is ready to eat!
Quote from: awakephd on February 28, 2019, 02:40:18 PM
Mina, I don't think that is linens, though hard to be sure from a picture. (Sometimes hard to be sure in person in the early stages of growth!) The pattern on the first one does look like it could have come from the mat ... could also be some uneven dryness of the curd ... but you mentioned wiping away blue mold. I find that blue mold nearly always leaves a "stain" on the cheese, even when I wipe it away pretty thoroughly.
I would not hesitate to wax these (or vacuum bag them). If your wax is hot enough, it will help to kill off any mold, as well as seal it. Either way, lack of oxygen will inhibit growth. It's pretty normal to have a spot or two or ten on a cheese - but likely you will not even notice it once it is ready to eat!
Thanks. I had a feeling it was from the bamboo mat. Changed the mats to the plastic I had originally. I scrubbed the 2 asiago and 1 gouda with vinegar/salt solution. I'll wait a couple of days and then wax all three. I'm assuming you can pretty much wax any cheese? It's not like a cheese-sin right :)
Any cheese that is not mold- or linens-ripened - if you were to wax a camembert or a taleggio, you would choke off the mold/bacteria that softens the paste. Of course, some cheeses are not traditionally waxed ... but when you are making small makes (2, 4, 6, even 8 gallons), your surface area to volume is much greater, and waxing or bagging is a way to stop too much moisture loss. And yes, it will age - maybe not quite the same way, but as an example, I have a Romano-style (actually, only about 1/6 of the original is left at this point) - currently just over 4 years old. It is a beautiful dark cream / light brown color throughout, lots of flavor - aged for most of its life in a vac bag!
It's been about 3 months since I made this cheese, and I'm just dying to know if I'm any good at this hobby! So, I busted open one of my vac packs, and cut a slice to test. Texture-wise, it's not the smooth paste that I would prefer, and has a bit of crumbliness to it. However, upon tasting, I'll be damned if I didn't make cheese!!! And, my not-so-well-trained palate even thinks that it tastes like Gouda.....a VERY young Gouda, but Gouda nonetheless.
So, what would any good cheesemaker do?? Yep, you guessed it, I packed it back up and threw it in the back of the cave to keep aging...... :)
I have to say that this is a bit of a milestone in my early days of this hobby. I made cheese.....that.....tastes.....likes........well, cheese! :)
Gives me hope for my Manchego and Gruyere that are aging, and some confidence to get a couple of additional makes under my belt, and into the aging process.
Fun, fun stuff!
Rich
Good job on the cheese that tastes like cheese. AC4U
Thanks, RBF! :)
R
Yummy cheese! AC4U!
Congrats! A cheese for you
Thanks, Mike & Cheesehead. Fun to get some positive reinforcement! :) Can't tell if my wife was happy for me, or disappointed that this means the hobby continues! ;)
R
Well done, AC4U!
Hi again! So happy your Gouda #1 is coming along nicely! AC4U!
Turns out I have my own G #1 going about the same time frame as yours. I tested it at 2 months and was edible but not worth keeping out to eat, then just the other day tried it at 3 months. Texture and flavor much better, but just like you...back to the cave it goes. I had so many *little* things with it that did not go according to plan, so I don't have super high expectations, but if it keeps improving it just might be quite edible.
Have you decided how long you will let yours age prior to taste testing again?
Thanks, all, for the cheeses! :)
Susan, I think I will probably let it go for another three months (so six total from make date) before I taste it again. I've got it divided into fourths, so I can use one as my tester piece, and leave the others alone.
Really fun to get a first taste of cheese that tastes like cheese! ;)
R
I think it is a good idea, especially as you are figuring out recipes and cheeses that you like, to sample along the way to see how it develops with age. Some cheeses I wind up liking at a younger stage, but others become ever more amazing with age.
Typically Gouda is aged a relatively short time (3-6 months), but there are long-aged varieties (3+ years). I have had a commercial long-aged Gouda that was out of this world, so I decided to give it a try. Currently my long-aged Gouda has been aging for 2 years, with a target of at least 3 years before opening. Only another 12 months of waiting to see if the experiment worked ... !