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Hello!
I have not been here in a while, my goats were not milking.. But now they are, and a LOT.

I am still confused with raw milk.
First, can someone link to a mozzarella recipe using a Ph meter?  I am confused as to a few things: do I add Calcium Chlloride? (thinking no, this is more for pasteurized milk). When exactly do I wait for the ph to rise (unsure if before or after rennet, looks like I should ripen, then add rennet, but I found several different PH values using the search function of the forum, unsure which value to aim for).

Secondly, is homemade pasteurization OK in regards to safety of aged cheese and yield? I know that commercial pasteurization is not a process we can do at home. I tried it once, then tried a yogurt and a fresh cheese to see how much yield I would get and it seemed lower than with the raw milk. I prefer the raw milk but if I give cheese away to my mom and dad, I want it to be on the safer side..

Third question, can you help me find a few easy cheeses to try, using my raw (or home pasteurized) goat milk? I have done queso fresca and chevre (of course). Tried mozz (without my PhMeter). I would like to be able to make a cheddar, or cheddar-like cheese that wouldn't taste too 'goaty'. When I tried hard cheeses, I failed at the time of pressing it. I have a cheap cheese press and the pressure is very hard to judge. I tried not using it and instead using weights, but that did not go well either    I would also love to be able to make a brie style cheese.

Thanks!

Oups, 4th question. Is it always OK to freeze the milk and wait until I have a larger quantity to make a cheese? Or will the freezing cause problems?

Hi Sab,
I can' t answer many of your questions, but here are my few comments.

There is no need to add CaCl to raw milk, but if you pasteurize it, that turns the CaCl from its soluble to colloidal (insoluble) form, so then you have to add it.

There shouldn't be any difference between home and commercial pasteurization -- the bad actors don't know that they're in your kitchen

I've never heard of making a cheddar from goat.  Maybe a Montasio?  You don't even need a press for them.

L

I have actually had a few goat cheddars.  They are wonderful.  Actually, you can make all cheese with goat's milk.  They do taste a *little* different, but not in a bad way at all.

Cheddar made from goal milk is one of my favorites! There are a couple of commercial outfits making them ... and a few artisanals that pop up around here every so often. Love them!