Hey everyone, it's good to be a member of this forum.
Ivan here from Indonesia, people don't usually eat cheese here, with the exception of processed cheese and mass produced mozzarella. It's hard to find good cheeses, and when I do find it, they are quite expensive. Parmigiano reggiano is about US$7-8/100 gram, there are cheaper 'parmesan' alternatives of course, but I can't stop buying the real one after I tasted it, Galbani is the only brand available.
And recently due to covid19 pandemic, it is extremely harder to find these cheeses.. which is kind of sad :'(
I am interested in making cheeses myself due to the cost issue of constantly buying cheese is so high and also the availability problem, plus I do love cooking as well. So I've been making my own mozzarella and ricotta(sort of), i'm still using citric acid to increase the acidity, but I'm planning to use thermophilic or mesophilic cultures soon, luckily I can get cheese making supplies online.
Temperature here is around 29-32°C night and day, coldest maybe 28°C, I still have to figure out how to store the cheese to age it properly (maybe buying a wine fridge, or using my existing fridge if possible).
Currently I don't have any equipment yet, and I am quite interested in making aged cheese, so if anyone can suggest what cheese that I can try to make as a beginner it would be fantastic, I'd prefer type of cheeses that can be aged in the temperature range of 5-8°C (I can set my fridge to these temperatures), and doesn't take too long to age (maybe about a month).
Thanks! :)
Welcome to the board!
There is lots of information around these parts, so I suggest you do some thorough searches for the equipment people are using and recipes to get you started. Aging and "about a month" are somewhat contradictory when it comes to cheese though. :) A good Parmesan is aged for 18 months and an aged Gouda can go for up to 5 years.... :o
On the other hand, there are lots of cheeses that are eaten much sooner than that. I am trying to master an alpine style - called a Tomme - right now. Not very successfully yet, I am afraid. Results can be tasted as early as 2 weeks, but it's probably best at around 6 weeks and that's a relatively young cheese.
So, have fun, explore for a little bit, and then accumulate tools and ingredients and learn what works for you!
Ah I see, didn't know "aged" term is for cheeses that are ripened for over a year.
I will do more exploring on this forum for recipes
:D
You might also consider the "stinky" (washed-rind) cheeses like Limburger or Taleggio, which will be happy aging at 8 degrees C, and will be ready in a month or so. Not to everyone's taste, though.
Real Parmigiano-Reggiano for $7-8/100 grams is about what it costs here in Virginia! :(
-L