Second attempt at making Mozzarella
Got the same milk as before, but also bought Distilled water and a stainless steel skimmer. Decided also to cut down on the citric acid based on comments made here; finally, I found four different and similar recipes which I laid out on the kitchen table to compare notes between them (All are similar, but not exactly the same as each other – and interestingly, all promise that this is easy!!)
Started at 2:54 PM with the temp in the kitchen at 72 degrees.
Dissolved one teaspoon of citric acid in one cup of distilled water. It fully dissolved after a small amount of stirring. Poured one galled of the milk into the pot. The milk has an expiration date of 5 November which is two weeks away so this is the same age as before. Milk is at 48 degrees in the pot. Stirred in the citric acid solution.
Turned on the heat using the left front burner at level 3 at 3:00 PM.
Crushed one quarter tablet of Rennet and stirred into one quarter cup of distilled water. It does not fully dissolve even after a long time of stirring.
At 3:08 the milk reaches a temp of 92 degrees. I turned off the heat and drizzled the Rennet solution into the milk trying to scrape all the remaining powder into the milk. Stirred it all using an up and down motion. At this point I covered the pot and let it rest for 10 minutes. When inspected, the milk separated when I stuck a finger in it and it feels like relatively soft Jello. Moving the pan around showed some separation on the edges, but I did not think it was quite ready so I decided to let it sit for five more minutes. At this point, the top temp was 91 degrees.
Five minutes later everything is looking good. The sides of the pot are separating away from the coagulated curds when I slightly tilt the pot. I decided to go ahead and cut the curds which I proceed to do with a pastry knife. The curds on the side of the pot are more firm than the center (Not sure if that's meaningful or not...). For depth cuts, I used the skimmer and followed the procedure shown in Ricki Carroll's video. The curd feels firm and you can feel the resistance as it's being moved. Good signs as far as I can tell. It turned the burner back on to level 3 at 3:30 PM.
The curds started to sink as the pot warmed up. By 3:36 PM the curd temp was approaching 98 degrees so I lowered the heat to LO. At 3:41 most of the curds had sunk and I could only see a few on top with yellowish whey all around. The curds at the surface had reached 108 degrees so I turned off the fire. I used the skimmer to move the curds to a glass bowl. The curds looked relatively firm and maintained their cut shapes. Some of them began to stretch as I was picking them up. I was feeling pretty confident at this point.
Microwaved the curds for 30 seconds and poured off the excess whey. Whey kept separating from the curds but when I used the skimmer to try and form the curds into a ball, nothing much happened. So, I kept microwaving for 30 seconds at a time and repeated the process. When the curds reached a temp of 135 degrees, they started falling apart. No matter what I did from this point on, they never formed a semi-solid ball. I let them cool down and they started to form a ball, so I pressed them a bit and then started rewarming them again. As soon as they warmed above 130 degrees they started breaking apart and separating into the consistency of cottage cheese.
From my very limited experience, this second attempt got me much further than the first one as I really had some nice looking curd going into the heating stages, but it still fell apart. Can any of you, experienced folks, tell me whether you can tell what I am doing wrong? All help appreciated.
By the way, I also made some Paneer over this past weekend and it worked very well! It's just this Mozzarella that I am not succeeding with yet. Thanks for all you help in advance. :-[
MacGruff,
The problem with starting a second thread is that you are missing details from the first one. Like what kind of milk? How much? ...etc. Details are important or we can't give you the best advice.
In general, this is either a problem with the milk or a problem with the pH. Some milks are overprocessed and just won't work for Mozz. If it's the milk, just try another brand. Since the cut curds held their shape and didn't "shatter" I don't think it was your milk. If the pH is too high, Mozz won't stretch at all. If the pH is too low, it will start to stretch then break.
Undissolved rennet is not good. I would recommend getting liquid rennet instead of the tablets.
After rennet, the milk needs to sit for 30 minutes with NO MOTION. Moving the pot around will upset the coagulation and weaken the curd.
Don't give up. Mozz can be very frustrating until you get it figured out. As we have said many times, Mozz is not a beginners cheese.
I know you are using tablet rennet, but what kind? I have used Junket rennet tablets and also veggie rennet tablets. I don't break up the tablet or stir it into the water until it has dissolved. That can take 5-10 minutes.
In my experimentation for my cheesemaking classes, I was never able to get a good set with vegetarian rennet and store bought milk, but that doesn't sound like your issue.
Rather than microwaving the curds, you can put them in a colander or fryer basket and lower them into hot water or whey - 145 degrees works best for me. It is a gentler way of warming the curds up to stretching point. I have to take them out and break them up a bit to make sure they are warmed throughout and after a few warmings they start to melt together and I can stretch at that point.
Hi MrsKK and Sailor!
Sorry about the unlinking. I was actually trying to be mindful of people and started a second thread to allow people to read each separately. Guess that did not work out too well, eh? :-[
Anyway, the milk I used in both attempts came from the same local dairy. It is the only milk in my area that is a whole milk and pasteurized but not homogenized. Asking the farmer, the milk is pasteurized at 160 degrees for between 15 and 17 seconds. I purposely used the same milk (well, different dates, but from the same source) to eliminate one possible variation. In both attempts I used one gallon with sell by dates of two weeks out (to keep the age about the same)
I have seen multiple comments about making sure of the pH level. I am researching the net to purchase a pH meter as my local stores do not seem to have them.
On to the Rennet (which I am suspicious of). I mentioned that the tablets I got have not been fully dissolving in the distilled water and MrsKK asked as well about them. The tablets I got were from the Ricki Carroll kit. The back of the package states: "Coagulant Tablets; FROMASE; (R) DSM Food Specialties" I have had it stored in the freezer since I got it several weeks ago.
In my first attempt I let the curds sit for longer than the five minutes described in the instructions and last night I let it go for 15 minutes before I thought it was ready. I may have given the wrong impression when I wrote "moved the pot". What I actually did was tilt it slightly to see if the curds had solidified somewhat or not. Next time I will let it sit longer.
I understand your comments about the microwave method and that is another point to experiment for me. The microwave I have at home is pretty powerful so I am wondering if it heated things too much too fast. Next time I am thinking of going for the double boiler method.
I do understand that Mozzarella is not easy. I have much better success with Farmer's Cheese, Ricotta, and Paneer - all of which came out great. I am willing to learn about it as I go so I am not giving up yet and I appreciate all the help you guys are offering. Thanks!
The creamline milk I buy for my cheesemaking classes is pasturized at 145 degrees for 20 minutes, which is much gentler than what you are buying. Unfortunately, most milk is treated very poorly for cheesemaking purposes.
In doing a web search, it looks like Fromase rennet is made with Rhyzomucor miehei, which means it is a vegetarian rennet. You may get better results if you try using calf rennet. I recommend powdered calf rennet, as it doesn't weaken the way liquid does.
I'm not sure what you mean by using a double boiler method for your mozzarella. I was referring to putting the mozz curd directly into hot whey or water to heat it. I use a colander so that I don't lose the curd while warming it.
Even though you are using the citric acid method, it might help you to understand the process better to read about the cultured method for making mozzarella. This (https://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,4155.0.html) is a thread and recipe I started quite some time ago on how I make mozzarella.
Have you made other cheeses, such as soft cheese like cream cheese or even feta? If not, it might help you understand the different stages/steps and what you are looking for. Mozz is awfully challenging, even for experienced cheesemakers.
Good luck!
Hi MrsKK and thanks for the reply.
I think I mentioned that the farmer told me they pasteurize their milk at 160 degrees for 15-17 seconds. Their literature talks of them NOT homogenizing their milk which is one of the reasons I bought their product for use. I have just today found a different retailer who sells their milk in raw form. I might go there next.
I also found a Malaka brand liquid Rennet package which I bought. Only when I got home did I notice that it is a vegeterian Rennet, but I am still willing to give it a try as I have been somewhat suspicious of the powder that I have that did not fully dissolve.
As to the double boiler comment, that comes from baking. A double boiler is when you put a smaller pot inside and on top of a larger one. You put water in the larger one and bring it to the desired heat, and put solid chocolate in the smaller pot. The heat is gently distributed throughout the chocolate and so it melts easier and tends not to burn. I was using that term as the other way I've seen suggestions for bringing the curd up to temp - other than the microwave method I was using to date.
I have made soft cheeses and have had good luck with Farmer's Cheese, Ricotta, and Paneer. All of them worked great and they encouraged me to try Mozzarella. I understand it is a difficult cheese to master, but I hope I am up to the challenge. I am certainly not willing to give up yet.
I am thinking that my next try will be with the same milk, but I will first get a pH meter to check on the milk's acidity. The other two changes I am considering are to use the liquid rennet I bought today and change the method of heating the curds. I might also let the curds rest longer to see if they get more firm.
Thanks for the help and please offer any other suggestions you might have as I am defintely a beginner and attempting to learn!!
I join the opinions of MrsKK and Sailor
- Use creamline milk. (Non homogenized), gently pasteurized. is best This is essential. Ultra Pasteurized or HTST supermarket brand milk will almost always fail. Get milk from your farmer
- Rennet: under no circumstances you should even sprinkle powder directly onto the milk. you must first dissolve it. Liquid rennet is best and it too -needs to be diluted with water first so that it distributes properly. It needs to be mixed very well and evenly. The mixing should be brisk and completed within 30 seconds but be gentle and not incorporate air bubbles. DO NOT DISTURB THE POT WHILE COAGULATING!!!
- Curd control and shaping: Forget microwaves and use the traditional method. A bowl of water at 165°F and a bowl of ice water. Wear protective mitts and go. If it melts too much, drop it in the ice! Melts too little, keep it in the hot water longer. Knead it until its shiny and has no lumps, then tie it into a bowl, bocconcini, braid or string cheese. It will be a little practice the first few times you do it but then it will be very natural, easy "matter of fact" kind of skill. Keep at it. Some photos below of the process. This is cheese I make maybe once a year so it's not perfect but you get the gist. You can do better than me surely!
Fly - great photos! That last one makes my mouth water.
MacGruff - since you have raw milk available to you, I recommend that you try it for your next batch, with the liquid rennet you bought. I believe that you will have much better results.
Wow! You got further than I did!!! Congrats :D
Raw milk is best of course. Mozzarella is such a hot temp make that it will pasteurize during the process anyway. That does remind me that if you are using pasteurized milk you need to put Calcium Chloride in it (Often referred to by members here as Calcl2). I would put more in Mozzarella than any other cheese because the process and quick acidification really depletes it from the milk. (in quick Mozzarella where you use citric acid or vinegar, not in traditional slow mozzarella where you use starter culture)
On one of the other cheese making boards on the 'net, I saw some discussion about problems similar to mine and I tried their solution. I am going to detail it here to see if what I am describing help any of you who are experts at this to help this rookie diagnose what the problem is.
First of all, I started from where I left off. I took the gloppy mess that I was left with and drained it overnight in a collander. I stored the results in the fridge. Now, what I did with it was put it in a non-stick pan and turn on the heat to very low. Almost as soon as it reached a temperature hotter than room temps, milky white whey started coming out. I used a metal spatula to keep folding the stuff and to move it around so it did not burn. Every few minutes, there was so much milky white whey that I drained it off and kept going. It took no more than maybe five minutes and the solids were forming into a ball while more milky liquid was coming out. I kept going until the stuff was at a temp of around 140 degrees and then started trying to stretch it. While it formed into a ball, it would not stretch much bur rather, separated out. It looked and felt like a really dense dough. I kept trying for a bit more and eventually decided it was not going to work. Since it was a ball already, I dunked it in an ice bath and after it felt cool to the touch, I wrapped it and put it in the fridge.
The next morning, it had turned a color that was tannish-yellow and had gotten very hard. I sliced a small chunk off and tasted it. It was definitely NOT mozzarella. It almost tasted like a dough that had not been baked but was severly overkneaded.
Does any of this description give you folks any clue as to what I am doing wrong? I would like to try again this weekend - especially now that I've gotten the pH meter that I ordered. But, maybe my problem is something different?
As usual, any help is appreciated!
Your pH was too high.
This sounds like a bit of a crude hack. Mozzarella is not made over a pan and you do not drain the whey otherwise you get very dry or chalky cheese and you lose the elasticity of it. It needs to be kneaded/stretched (like the photos I posted above), not just formed into a ball without the kneading part.
The stretching and melting of it is assisted by the heat but it happens because of acidity levels; not because of heat. If you have not reached a good acidity, the cheese will break apart rather than knot and stretch.
My suggestions:
- Stay away from any recipe that calls for using a frying pan or microwave. Use patience (it will take more than 30 minutes) and water
- Use exact prescribed temperatures and amounts of rennet/acid/salt/Calcium/Lipase. Cheese needs accuracy like bread baking or meat curing
- If you are using pasteurized milk (especially if homogenized) you MUST use Calcium Chloride
- Choose the best milk possible. The change in seasons currently may give you funky relationship between solids, fat and water. You don't need a fat milk for Mozzarella. Avoid as much as possible homogenized milk and you CANNOT use ultra-pasteurized, UHT, HTST, condensed or dry milk
Your issues seem like a combination of nontraditional hacking techniques, improper acidity and possibly wrong milk. Can we try another recipe?
I suppose I should start a new thread and title it: "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Mozzarella!"
This is the story of my third attempt at making Mozzarella. In the spirirt of keeping changes down to a minimum from attempt to attempt, I got the same brand of milk I've used for the previous two failures and followed the same recipe. The first difference was that I had ordered and received a pH meter in the meantime and after adding the Citric Acid, I stirred the milk and measured the pH level. It was 6.0. In line with my readings, I added Citric Acid until I got the pH down to 5.5.
From here I warmed it up, added the liquid Rennet and let it rest. It took a very long time for the milk to curdle and to get a clean break, but eventually it got there. I then cut the curds, and started warming up the liquid. The curds would not sink to the bottom. Hmm... Gave it some more time at heat (making sure I did not go above 110 degrees) and still no sinking. I decided it was another wasted effort and drained the curds through cheesecloth overnight intending to do something else with the stuff.
In the morning, on a whim, I decided to take the caked curds and play with them some. I first pinched off about a third of the cake and sprinkled some cheese salt into it. Worked it until the salt was distributed throughout the material and then started working it under heat. As it warmed up, the stuff looked like it was melting and disintegrating. Not knowing what else to do (except throw it out, that is). I kept heating it and working it. At some point - just as it was getting too hot for me to handle with my rubber gloves on - it appeared that a lot of White Whey was coming off but at the same time, I could feel the cheese coagulating into a ball under my fingers (before that stage, it separated as it felt kind of grainy).
I started getting excited so I kept heating it and working it and all of a sudden it just started feeling like Mozzarella! It was stretching like taffy! Pulling it out and looking at it closely and it was looking like Mozzarella! I started whooping and hollering and almost dancing in the kitchen as I kept pulling and stretching what was definitely Mozzarella in my hands! Success!!!! I was so happy that I kept on doing this with only brief moments when it stopped stretching and I threw it back in the hot water to rewarm. After a good long while of stretching, I dunked the ball into a bowl of cold water and let it cool. Then I wrapped it in plastic wrap and put it in the kitchen.
Now that I was all pumped up, I turned to the other two thirds of the curd cake and repeated the process: i.e. added salt; worked it into the curdsl applied heat; applied some more heat; applied some more heat; more heat; more heat; heat; heat; heat.... Nothing. Instead of the reaction I had before, this time it all melted away into nothingness. I ended up playing with it for over an hour and ended up with a gloppy mess.
Ok, so now I am royally confused. What could possibly be going on here? One third makes a Mozzarella, and other two thirds don't?
Looking at my notes I can only see that I maybe added different proportions of salt - but if I did, the differences were not particularly large. Is Mozzarella that sensitive to salt variations?
By the way, the next morning, my wife and I ate the Mozzarella melted on some bread with tomatoes for breakfast. Supper Yummy, but nowhere near enough!! P.S. - when trying to just eat a small slice of the cheese with nothing else, I am pretty sure I overworked it. :-[
It seems like you have overworked it indeed. You need to knead it just a little bit until it's slightly stringy (and may have some lumps in it, that's okay). If you overwork it you extract the whey and you get a dry tougher mozzarella so if that's what you got, knead less next time. A little practice and you'll get the hang of how much kneading is just right. Also, don't forget to add salt to your hot water to create equilibrium and prevent it from running out of your curd and dissolve in the water.
As for the other 2/3 of your curd, I am not sure. I don't think that adding different amount or type of salt would make any difference. What you are describing is typical for leaving the curd in hot water for too long. It starts running into the water. You have to be on top of it and get it out as soon as it stats melting. You shape it by hand and ONLY if/when it becomes too cold and tough to knead and you still need some kneading - dunk it for a few seconds in the hot water to get it melting again. You should also have ice water so if it starts to be too runny or milky, you can dump it in it. The second you are done kneading and shaping, no matter how hot, cold, stiff or soft your cheese is - dunk it in the ice water and let it cool down thoroughly. If you don't want milky whey to ooze out and dry your cheese it is best to leave it in the cool water for no less than 10 min, then dry it, wrap it and let it chill for a couple of hours before eating. It's a little like waiting to cut through a steak that just came off the grill; you always want to wait a few minutes otherwise all the blood will run out of it the second you cut through it. (Of course, with steak it's 5-10 minutes, not 2 hours)
I recommend adding salt to the water you are stretching in, too, rather than adding the salt to the curd. I also recommend using a sieve/mesh colander suspended in the pot of hot water so that you don't easily lose your curd.
Keep at it!
If you want to master authentic Mozzarella, forget the citric acid and learn/practice how to make excellent yogurt. Cultivating/managing the thermo culture is the basis of the authentic Mozzarella process. (I can say this with some measure of confidence, having learned from Italians who make their living making cheese in Italy).
I agree with mhill, you can't compare traditional cultured mozzarella to quick acid coagulated one.