I have just finished watching all four volumes of Will Studd's Cheeselinks DVD's. He went to countries in Europe, US, Japan etc. to visit artisan cheesemakers then talked to and filmed them. But I was rather surprised to learn that these commercial cheesemakers used finger/hand to test for clean break, and none was shown to have used the flocullation point bowl test method. Another point of interest is a cheesemaker from Japan making a type of soft cheese by ladling the curds directly into hoops without cutting them first.
I am not sure about who uses this method. for home cheese makers it is very helpfull for most types of cheeses. It is a "tool" that is supposed to help us during the coagulation period, regardless to some changes in milk, culture and rennet properties.
Farmer cheese makers, usually make only one type of cheese they expertise during the years and generations past. This is the main reason they don't use any special equipment like pH meters, and sometimes even thermometers.
For most of us, at home, trying to make more types of cheeses, is better to use some modern equipment.
The floating bowl technique is a good guide for predicting time. I have used it since I read about it here but still base my cutting decisions by lifting the curds not time. Sometimes I feel it needs a bit more time than the test would indicate but I feel confidet enough to go about the business of doing other household chores using it as my guide.
Debi, what do you mean by "lifting" the curds?
Pam
Pam -
I just insert something - a knife, spoon, finger whatever to check the firmness of the curd. If you look close you can see the foot print of my spinning bowl off the the right. I let the curds sit for another few minutes before cutting.
Did you feel it wasn't quite "set"?
Thanks,
Pam
Yes I felt it needed a bit more and it did.
DJD - what are the orange strips that I see in the curd. Very interesting. What type of cheese are you making there?
Mr Kim those are saffron threads - very tasty in cheese!