What is going on with my cheddar lately? I am so frustrated that every. single. wheel has mold growing. And I'll see if I can attach a picture for you to see it. There is orange and black mold and sometimes green. Yuck. I didn't used to have this problem and now it's happening all the time. What am I doing wrong?
If I cut off the moldy sections, is the rest still edible?
Is the mold growing under some sort of rind protectant or wax? Can't tell from the photo.
I would guess that your texture is too open and conditions are allowing the spores to 'do their thing" on the cheese body. You can certianly eat around the mould, very few are actually pathogenic.
The cheese is growing underneath the wax. What does that indicate?
What do you mean the texture is too open? And how do I fix that?
I'm no expert by any means but, aside from the molds, those look very nice.
I think Francois is saying that the curds may not be pressed tightly enough together. This would leave voids in the cheese so that molds can grow.
If the molds are on the surface of the cheese (on the rind but under the wax), could it be that something contaminated the outside rind while the cheeses were drying? If so, can you remove the wax, clean them with some vinegar & salt and rewax them?
I would eat them regardless of the mold and just cut it off if you do not care for it. I've got some mozzarella I'm aging (for provolone) and it got both blue and white mold on the outside (I never bothered to wax these as it is too humid here right now). Not much. But they still taste good! And I (and my family) are still here.
Kristin
Traditional Cheddar shops actually let the their wheels of cheddar completely mould over. So I would not worry so much about a little mold. You can always cut away the rind get to the good, tasty cheese inside.
In terms of why, there are a myriad of factors that might contribute to this.
>trapped moisture under the wax
>insufficient air circulation in the cheese cave.
>poor sanitation in the cheese cave. (now that you have mold on one, it spreads easily.
I might suggest letting the rind dry for a bit longer next time, (don't let it split open though)
then wipe it with white vinegar, rub some salt on it, then let that dry, then wax right away.
I have resolved to only wax the cheese once it is ready to distribute. I prefer to let a natural rind develop,
This requires that the curd on the outside of the wheel be completely closed. No gaps or spaces. Then I occasionally wipe with white vinegar, then salt, then a very light coat of mineral oil.
I do this over and over and over....About every month.
I really don't want to let mold take hold. Then its a pain to get rid of..
I too have a wheel or parmesan and romano that are both covered in mould. I have salt rubbed, cut off the salted again, rewrapped, but to no avail. I decided to try some, and to me I can taste the mould. yuck
How do you get mould to cover without the resultant cheese tasting mouldy in the end?
Tea, with parm and romano you can certainly oil them. So once a month or so rub the rind with a vegetable oil, then two weeks later rub in some salt and possible a light wipe with a vinegar rag. Then two weeks later re-oil, then salt after two weeks....repeat indefinately. Just watch out for yeast, it can still grow on the rind. If this happens wipe the crud back as best you can, give it a vinegar wipe:dry:distillers alcohol wipe: dry: salt rub: dry: oil
i have some 10 month old parms that have no mould on them. the rinds are completely closed and i use the above methods...
The outside rind is like a rock, impervious.
Quote from: Wayne Harris on August 02, 2010, 05:37:24 PM
Then I occasionally wipe with white vinegar, then salt, then a very light coat of mineral oil.
Quote from: FRANCOIS on August 02, 2010, 09:46:20 PM
So once a month or so rub the rind with a vegetable oil, then two weeks later rub in some salt and possible a light wipe with a vinegar rag.
Mineral oil,
vegetable oil, and then there's
olive oil....
Is there an oil that offers the best
sealing protection without contributing a flavor all its own?
Is the choice of oil more than just a personal preference?
-Boofer-
Going way out on a limb here, I use only mineral oil.
My personal thoughts are that vegetable and Animal oils may go rancid while mineral oil would not.
I could be WAY off on that, but those are the thoughts in my head. I would defer to anyone that really knows.
The choice is personal preference for the most part, any oil with relatively long shelf life will do. Vegetable oils, when left open to oxidize, will go rancid. My experience is that their incorporation into the rind makes this a non-issue.
I'm sure Linuxboy can tell you about the fatty acid chains and why certain ones will lead ot long shelf life while others will lead to rapid rancidity.
Used in moderation, any oil will work. Some, like grape seed oil are more prone to leaving off flavors. Neutral oils like peanut, olive, and rapeseed (canola) work well.
What happens with any vegetable oil is that it will autooxidize. Oils consist of all sorts of fatty acids usually bound up as triglycerides, and the balance of the types of acids vary with the plant. Generally, the shorter the length of the fatty acid, the stronger the flavor. When typical acids like oleic break down due to oxidation and/or light, all sorts of aromatics are released like ketones and aldehydes, and smaller chain fatty acids, some of which are free and unbounded as triglycerides. End result of this is that all these compounds produce a taste or aroma of rancidity.
If you overapply any oil it will produce a rancid flavor. The point isn't to create a huge slick on the cheese, but to condition the outer layer of the rind. With a very light application, any oil will work. It's easier to use the ones I mentioned, though. Also, you can stabilize oxidation of oils by adding in some citric acid to chelate oxidation byproducts (free radicals) or delay oxidation by using vitamin E (tocopherol).
On a slightly different note, I am vegetarian and have wondered about doing a cloth-banded cheddar with clarified butter as opposed to lard. I think the consistency is similar (never used lard though). At cave temps the clarified butter should stay relatively solid. And then there is the added potential advantage of imparting a buttery (and even nutty caramel-y, depending on how cooked the butter was) flavor. Take that diacytilactis!
Thoughts?
I have also wondered about rubbing with clarified butter in general. it keeps for a long time even at room temp.
Quote from: Nitai on August 04, 2010, 04:50:43 AM
On a slightly different note, I am vegetarian and have wondered about doing a cloth-banded cheddar with clarified butter as opposed to lard. I think the consistency is similar (never used lard though). At cave temps the clarified butter should stay relatively solid. And then there is the added potential advantage of imparting a buttery (and even nutty caramel-y, depending on how cooked the butter was) flavor. Take that diacytilactis!
Thoughts?
I have also wondered about rubbing with clarified butter in general. it keeps for a long time even at room temp.
Without protein, clarified butter is directly comparable to lard. It may even be a little more stable. It's the protein degradation in butter that makes it go rancid. Those heavy saturated fats in clarified butter make it last a long, long time.
So go right ahead, it'll work great. It's just expensive.
I use ghee, butter, or lard for rubbing on one of my cheeses. It is a stirred curd cheddar style. I played around with natural rinds on this recipe last summer and the kids loved it with ghee, butter, and/or lard.
I had done waxed cheeses at first, but now I'm only doing natural/olive oiled rinds. Less mold.
I have resolved to only waxing right before anyone sees it.
Its only for aesthetics.
I used Olive oil. I tried grape seed oil and it was disgusting after a few months! Luckily the vinegar`washed it off with some heavy scrubbing! Don't use a lot just polish it on the surface to help build a firm sturdy rind. One you build a hard rind it's like a bowling ball nothing bothers it you can't wipe off.
Thankyou Gentlemen for this. I made a romano again, and I have been following the procedure of oiling and salting. 2 1/2 months on, and no sign of mould anywhere.
I have a 22lb wheel of parm that is approaching 12 mon.....
killin me not to cut into it...
Followed this general prescription...
No mold in sight...
I really love the idea of using ghee to rub down the cheese. I have a Lancashire that I just moved to the cave yesterday and so far it is really a beautiful cheese. Im shooting for a really creamy texture inside and I think the ghee would really compliment what im aiming for. Still waiting on DeeJayDebi to get back to us on how to properly finish it though. (hint hint)
I have had some cheeses crack and dont want that to happen with this one for sure.
Quote from: Brentsbox on October 06, 2010, 10:52:48 AM
I really love the idea of using ghee to rub down the cheese. I have a Lancashire that I just moved to the cave yesterday and so far it is really a beautiful cheese. Im shooting for a really creamy texture inside and I think the ghee would really compliment what im aiming for. Still waiting on DeeJayDebi to get back to us on how to properly finish it though. (hint hint)
I have had some cheeses crack and dont want that to happen with this one for sure.
I am curious about coating with ghee also as I bought some recently. I have two little 2 lb bandaged cheddars that I started with a lard coating, then stripped and scrubbed with vinegar and salt when green and yellow mold appeared under the bandage about 2 weeks later. Re-coated with lard and re-bandaged, but mold has re-appeared beneath the coating with a vengeance.
So I'm thinking about dispensing with the butter muslin 'bandage' and just re-coating with either lard or ghee. I see others have posted on this forum about success with similar bandage-less coatings.
Whenever I go the route of oiling I use extra light olive oil. I too have tried grape seed oil and it was not satisfactory.
Quote from: Brentsbox on October 06, 2010, 10:52:48 AM
I really love the idea of using ghee to rub down the cheese. I have a Lancashire that I just moved to the cave yesterday and so far it is really a beautiful cheese. Im shooting for a really creamy texture inside and I think the ghee would really compliment what im aiming for. Still waiting on DeeJayDebi to get back to us on how to properly finish it though. (hint hint)
I have had some cheeses crack and dont want that to happen with this one for sure.
Just wanted to report back on my own ghee experience. After having mold occur under a crisco/cheesecloth bandage layer and then one I replaced that with which was lard/cheesecloth, I decided to try using just ghee, figuring at least I wouldn't be wasting the effort on re-cutting and laboriously fitting another 'bandage' on the cheese each time.
I ended up slathering on a pretty heavy layer of the clarified butter, but after a couple of weeks, a quick peek revealed no mold beneath it and a fairly moist-looking cheese (I did accidentally slice into the cheese a little, as you can see from the pics) so I have just let it run like that. Looking forward to tasting this first cheddar attempt in another month or two . . .
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5244/5312901899_2f42e7b197_z.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5243/5312902061_45d3523e0c_z.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5004/5312902073_ac84d2fcf5_z.jpg)
Here is an update on my ghee-covered cheddar, another 2.5 months later. I had opened the other cheese from this batch and been fairly happy with how it had matured under its coating. I'd been watching this one get moldier and moldier . . .
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5253/5549074858_bded436e4d_z_d.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5098/5549074864_6aafe6dd33_z_d.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5299/5549074966_6d73b44fde_z.jpg)
I finally could not stand the furriness, and there were a couple of areas where I was not sure if the coating had held up, so today I scraped it clean.
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5294/5549074976_20cf692591_z.jpg)
I was pretty pleased with the result, with just one little crack with some mold remaining in it. I covered it in new ghee and stowed it away again. It's at about 5.5 months total aging now, but I am trying to hold out as long as I can!
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5138/5549074982_d6ac03fcd8_z.jpg)
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5265/5549074990_4d569d6570_z.jpg)
I realize that this is probably way too thick a coating of ghee, but it has worked out OK. Even the areas where it dried out pretty much entirely the mold just stayed on the surface of the cheese, and seems to have died and hardened itself also. I don't think I would go back to trying a cheesecloth bandage again in the near future, this has just worked out better for me.
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5099/5548571273_ba90084b9d_z.jpg)
I just said something like this in another post.
I age Cheddars for up to 1 1/2 years. I have tried the bandaging but at this length of
time, they all got moldy.
The only thing that I found satisfactory, (thanks to Margaret Morris of Glengarry
Cheese) is coating them with a cream wax prior to the heavier wax. This has
kept them mold free. The cream wax has something to inhibit mold.
I know that they will age faster with the bandage, but if they get moldy, so what?
annie
Quote from: Brandnetel on March 22, 2011, 03:12:37 AM
Here is an update on my ghee-covered cheddar, another 2.5 months later. I had opened the other cheese from this batch and been fairly happy with how it had matured under its coating. I'd been watching this one get moldier and moldier . . .
Nice. What a surprise it must have been for you to have it be so clean under the ghee & mold. Well done.
A cheese comes your way for that experimental effort.
-Boofer-
I cant imagine dealing with all that greese,
May I offer some advice.
After coating my gouda with lard (did it 3 weeks post make after cloth larding failed and started to grow mold under) I put it in a zip bag,sucked the air out and sealed it.
Its easy to handle and not a hint of mold on top or under the coat.
So you can say Its a cross of two methods keeping mold out and moisture in.
Zip bag alone is not vaccum baging & mold would have quickly took over.
Larding alone is very messy and you would still have to maintain proper humidty in your cave.