www.sausagemaking.org

I tried a small amount of hard cheese but it ended in disaster as the milk curdled when I heated it up to 86f.
Since then I have read on David Fankhauser's website that this can be caused by store milk needing calcium and like one of the posts I read by Blue Cheese he also recommends adding CaCI to store milk.
Does anyone know where to obtain this?
I have tried various chemists without success, they have not heard of it.

I used the following process:
1. Brought 4 pints Whole fressh milk upto 68f then added 2tsp buttermilk.
Left it overnight in a warm cupboard
2. When I looked at it the next morning it as slighty thickend(should it be?)
I brought it upto 88f and it was curdled, I added 40 doips vegeren as per instructions on the bottle which stated 10drops per pint.
3. Checked it every hour for 4 hours but never got the clean break.
4. Dumped it.

I think it was knacked when it was curdled prior to adding the vegeren.
Going back to Fankhauser's website he reckons after my stage 1 the milk should look normal no thickening, so it could be either too much buttermilk or I needed the CaCI.

I would welcome any help on this.
Thanks
wallie

Hi wallie, you get CaCl from a cheese making supplier such as Ascott's. Get yourself a reasonable shopping list together though, otherwise the postage can kill you. Buy some proper rennet while you are there

My thinking is that the milk curdled overnight in the warm cupboard and that would have happened with or without the calcium. Rik's recipe (on this site) ripens for just 45 minutes at 90F with the buttermilk.

Dave

Thanks Dave
I am looking at Rik's recipe but I am a little confused by the timings.
First 45mins ripening, thats o/k
Than after renneting is it left for 90mins till the clean break or 1hour 45mins?

wallie

I see what you mean... I'll have a think and get back to you.

Dave

Wallie,

I leave for about 90 minutes (Rik's times are approximate), test for a clean break, if I don't have it I leave it for another half hour or so until it is achieved. Then I cut and turn the curds and leave them to 'cook'.

I've used Rik's recipe for stilton lots of times and it has always turned out OK.

Once you have made one you'll be hooked.

Jen

Ok, phew!
My interpretation:
incubate with buttermilk for 45 minutes, before starting to make the cheese

...................................................................................elapsed time:
START by adding rennet, incubate 90 mins......................1hr 30 min
cut and leave 15 mins....................................................1hr 45 min
warm up over 30 mins....................................................2hr 15 min
incubate 30 min ............................................................2hr 45 min
drain and salt.................................................................3hr
and mix for 60 mins........................................................4hr

Dave

I would have thought, if you put in the buttermilk to 4 pts milk, and left over night, you would have 4pts of buttermilk the next day? Dunno how good buttermilk is for making cheese, not much by the sounds of it Stick with it, I'm finding the cheesemaking more demanding than the saudsage making, but after a few false starts, seem to be getting there now. Tried my first brie the other day, absolutely fantastic !

buttermilk is good if you want that sort of starter.
it's not produced like yogurt so you don't get loads more buttermilk

Buttermilk and yogurt are ok for making cheese however they dont give your the "cheese" properties that the "Proper" cheese have, they are more farm homestead cheeses.
rennet can get old and u may not get a good break.
What u might want to check as well is what additives if any are in the yogurt/buttermilk, if their is, it may change from batch to batch that they put out.
The addition of CaCl is also important when using processed milks.