A new cheese press

I admit it I BROKE my other cheese press.  It was a dinky one I had bought off of eBay when I first started making cheese.  I wanted a really nice one but hey $300 just was not in my budget.    Cheddar cheese has to be pressed at very heavy weights because the curds are so tough.  The dinky one just could not do it. So I looked really hard at the expensive one and thought "I could make something similiar to that" I searched around and found springs which I had to buy online and they had a $50 minimum order...  I went to Lowes and bought red oak boards and the hardware.  Then I got busy.  Sawing and bolting.  I still have to fashion a handle right now I am using just a nut that I am turning with a wrench to tighten it down.

This is the end result of my engineering:

I made it big enough so that:
A. I could fit my bathroom scale under it to determine the pressure it exerts and
B so that I could get a bigger piece of PVC and make 10" rounds

I put my scale under it and finger tightened the nuts down.  Then with 3 full turns on each side I had 20lbs, 6 turns =40lbs and 9 turns = almost 60lbs just what I needed for cheddar as easy as can be...

And here is the first round of cheddar I made with it:

The curd is nice and tight and I made it for a fraction of what I could buy it for!!!

Using Mother Culture instead of Direct set for Cheese

There are 2 different types of cultures you can get for making cheese.

The first is "Direct Set" this is a predetermined amount of powder culture.  It is pricey when you have to use one packet for each 2 gallons of milk.  They cost $6 for 5 packets.  That is $1.20 for each 2 gallons of milk.  I make 4 gallon batches so that would be $2.40 for each wheel of cheese.

The second is "mother culture" This one is set up by making your starter then saving a "start" of it by freezing it in ice cube trays.  Then each ice cube makes another quart of starter.  The cost for it is $6 for 1 packet but then you keep using it over and over.  Out of my first packet I got 24 fresh starts frozen plus I made 4 gallons worth of cheese.  I have made to this date 20 gallons worth of cheese curd  So right now my cost is at $0.60 cents per 2 gallon batch and it will just keep going down with every batch I make.  I have 22 starts in the freezer so when I get that done used then my cost would be less than $.07 for each batch and then with the last batch I would refill my trays and start over even further reducing the cost.  After 2nd batch of cubes were used my cost then would be $.03 and after the third batch of cubes are used it would be $.01 for each batch.  After the 4th batch it would be basically free.....

As compared to direct set it paid for itself with the first quart.

Here is how to use it:

Sterilize your milk:  (Sorry no pics)

Pour 1 quart of milk into a canning jar and then put it into a pot with a rack underneath so the jar is not setting on the bottom of the pot and enough water to cover the top of the jar.  Bring this water to a boil and hold it there for 30 minutes. 

Cool milk:
Remove the jar and run cool water over it until the temp reaches about 70 degrees.

Add one pack of mother culture to cooled milk.  Replace the lid and shake it up.

Allow to ripen for about 12 to 15 hours.  You will know it is ready when it is thick like buttermilk.

See how it coats the inside of the jar

After it is done fill a clean ice cube tray with your starter and freeze the cubes.

Frozen cubes of starter

Place your frozen cubes into a freezer bag and label what kind of starter it is.

To make another batch of it repeat the above steps except add a cube instead of the packet of starter.

When you run low on cubes just fill another tray with your prepared starter and freeze.  This can go on indefiantely so you can see how the cost would actually become less than a penny after several batches.

Use your prepared starter within 1 week and you can store your cubes up to 2 years in the freezer.

To use the starter:

Place your milk in a large pot and add 5 ounces of prepared starter to each  2 gallons of milk and then allow to ripen for 60 minutes.

The Cheddar Experiment

About 2 months ago I made a wheel of cheddar. It was starting to look very dry so in fear that our cheese was ruining we cut it open.
The directions I found were "Old World".  It did not use wax but instead I mummy wrapped the cheese with cheese cloth.    I put a layer on the top and bottom and coated it with olive oil and then I wrapped a strip around the edge of it.  It was then put in my daughters basement to age. 

Cheddar wrapped in cheesecloth

Lipase is the stuff that you add to cows milk to make the cheese sharpen as it ages.  The more you add the sharper it will get.  Goats milk on the other hand is naturally high in lipase so I did not add any.  After only 2 months we had what could definately be deemed as a medium cheddar.  It was not far from being sharp...  The instructions had said to age it 6-24 months depending on the sharpness desired.

It took me many hours to make this cheese.  I had 3 hours alone invested in the "cheddaring" process.  This is where I allowed the curd mass to matt together then I sliced it and stacked the slices on top of each other.  I kept it warm and turned and stacked ever 15 minutes for 2 hours.  It is my understanding that this process allows the production of lactic acid.  That high lactic acid content is what makes Cheddar different than Colby.

Because the cheese had no wax the rind dried.  Even though we kept olive oil on it I still ended up with about 1/2 inch of dried rind that was un-useable.

You can see the dark hard rind all the way around

After cutting off the rind though a very yummy inside was exposed.  It has a nice texture which is kind of crumbly.  It was absolutely delicious.  I just hate the idea that so much of it went to the dogs.  Although they were definately not displeased with the idea.

Wonderful on crackers

So lessons learned:
 

1. If I decide to invest another whole day to make cheddar then I will definately just wax it to age. 
2. You do not have to age cheese made with goats milk nearly as long as cows milk cheese in order to obtain a sharp taste. 
3. Must build a bigger cheese press so that I can make larger wheels of this one.
4. Do not tell your family of cheese lovers that they can eat as much as they want or a 4 pound wheel will be gone in only a few minutes!