Hi this might be a dumb question but I'm wondering...
I am thinking about making a Romano cheese but cannot get sheeps milk is Lipase powder and cows milk a substitute for sheeps milk? Thanks for any info
In short, yes. It will make a different, yet similar cheese.
Thanks for responding, Can you elaborate on what the difference and similarities will be?
Sheep's milk is a different milk with different types of fats, mineral/ash content, etc. If you add lipase, it will add a "kick", but it's not the same as replicating the unique structure of sheep's milk. You could never make a mountain sheep's milk cheese, for example. Or a true roquefort, or a ossau iraty, or similar other great sheep milk cheeses.
Sheep's milk has "sheepy-tasting" lipases in it, which attak the milk fats and break them down. If you add a lipase, it will break down the fat of whatever milk you're using. But in the case of cow's milk, when you break down the fats, the resulting products are not the same as when the sheep fat molecules are broken down. So the end result is different in the cheese paste, the cheese aroma, and flavor, and to a degree, the body. But, it will be similar in the sense that the sensory profile with lipase added will resemble the sensory profile of a sheep milk cheese. You will have noted of sharpness, parmesen-y age, etc.
It's not a romano cheese, but let me tell you my experience. I am obsessed with chevre. I adore it! however, only 1 store in a 30 mile radius carries it, it is expensive, and hey, I like to make my own. But i don't have access to ANY goats milk, not even the ultra-pasturized, super-expensive stuff.
So, i experiment. I have come up with a fairly decent fromage blanc with lipase. I get the twang i am looking for, however the texture is different....slightly grainy. there are some other subtle differences that i can detect, but just cant figure out how to voice them yet. Overall, I am happy with the results.
just my 2 cents worth, hope it helps!
Linux, you said exactly what I was trying to say!
I've been using lipase in what was intended to be a pecorino romano style with pepercorns, but in reality is more like a dry jack cheese but with more sharpness. I comes out really nice, but I wouldn't mistake it for sheeps milk.
Be careful using Lipase. I have found that Lipase is really strong and I only need to use a very tiny amount about a sixteenth of a teaspoon for two gallons.
There are also different types of lipase Kid, Lamb, calf and combinations of each of them. You may find one works beter than another depending on what your are looking for.
I use kid or lamb or and combination of kid and lamb for many of my cheeses but Italian cheeses for example seem to be best with calves lipase.
Thankyou for the input I am going to try it and see how it comes out, If I ever did find sheeps milk you would't need lipase though, right its only used to make cows milk similar to sheeps or goats milk???
Not necessarily. It's also used to add a bit of a bite or sharpness to cheeses. Piquant.
Lipase is a naturally occuring enzyme and really doesn't make cows milk similar to sheeps milk. Lipase doesn't do anything to "flavor" the milk but comes into play during proteolysis and the long term aging process. Lipase is used in a lot of Italian cheeses to acheive a certain flavor profile. Think Parmesan and you'll know the flavor that Lipase brings out.
By contrast sheep's milk has a distinctly different "flavor" than cows milk. So if you want an "authentic" sheep's milk cheese, you have to use sheep's milk. Lipase doesn't change that.
Thanks for the replies!!! I was on the wrong track, I was thinking Lipase was a substitute, when in fact it is a enhancement. I am now a little more "cheese smarter"
Just a newbie note to all of you that have been doing this for a while and give your time to help us learning, Sometimes when someones explains it thier way it dosen't sink in and then you read another response and it totally makes sense, this was the case with Sailor's response (Thanks) the way it was said I finally got it. So if you have an answer to a queastion that someone already answered put it in anyway it may be the one to make sense to the newbie. Thanks again