We cut our cheese into 4 sections after we pressed it so we could experiment with different aging times. Will a rind appear on the cheese that was exposed after we cut it into sections? Is it ok to leave this part exposed during the drying process or will it go bad? It has been only 8 hours or so and a rind is appearing on the outer part, but the inside is still quite damp and soft.
wow....that's a new question....I haven't thought of that before!
I dont have any advice, being fairly new myself, but welcome to the board!
From my limited experience, I would say yes, but ideal would be to press smaller batches I think. This is because then the entire outer surface gets brined or salted (assuming it is that type of cheese), as opposed to what I think you might have now which is a brined outside and unbrined edges from cutting. You could cut before brining, but if there are some openings in the paste you might not want them getting brined to so much.
Everyone else here knows better than me though, I guess I just felt like typing.
Take it away pros...
I did the same thing when I was new at making cheddar. I waited 2-3 days until the outside was consistently dry when turned, then cut the cheese into 2 quarters one half and waxed them all. I opened at 1 month, six weeks, and two months. Making smaller cheeses really isn't beneficial because they dry out so quickly that you dont' get much cheese to try.
I learned rapidly, though, that even two months isn't enough time for cheddar to develop really good flavor. It is more like 4-6 months at minimum to be really tasty.
Cheese ages better when aged in larger wheels. Best to wax whole, then cut at, perhaps, 3 months--then cut (and taste). Wipe cut sides with vinegar--let dry, and rewax or vacuum seal. Good luck!