After a request from Annet who was looking for more information about Feta, I knew that I could fulfil the request easily. She was disappointed at the diminishing quality of commercially made cheese. What better way to overcome that issue, by making your own Feta!
Feta (Greek: φέτα) is a brined curd cheese traditionally made in Greece. Feta is an aged crumbly cheese, commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. It is used as a table cheese, as well as in salads (e.g the Greek salad), pastries and in baking. It can also be served cooked or grilled, as part of a sandwich or as a salty alternative to other cheeses in a variety of dishes.
Now what are you waiting for? Get some milk and get cracking!
Just so you know exactly what I put in it, here is the ingredient list that I used.
Feta:
4 litres full cream milk (1 gallon)
1/4 teaspoon of lipase diluted in 60ml (quarter of a cup) of non-chlorinate water
2.5 gm direct set mesophilic culture
2.5 ml rennet diluted in 60ml of non-chlorinated water
2.5 ml calcium chloride diluted in 60ml of non chlorinate water (if milk is homogenised)
Brine:
2 litres water (boiled)
1/3 cup salt
1/3 cup white vinegar
3 drops calcium chloride
Boil brine for 5 minutes then cool to room temperature before adding finished cheese.
Enjoy this wonderful cheese!
Feta (Greek: φέτα) is a brined curd cheese traditionally made in Greece. Feta is an aged crumbly cheese, commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. It is used as a table cheese, as well as in salads (e.g the Greek salad), pastries and in baking. It can also be served cooked or grilled, as part of a sandwich or as a salty alternative to other cheeses in a variety of dishes.
Now what are you waiting for? Get some milk and get cracking!
Just so you know exactly what I put in it, here is the ingredient list that I used.
Feta:
4 litres full cream milk (1 gallon)
1/4 teaspoon of lipase diluted in 60ml (quarter of a cup) of non-chlorinate water
2.5 gm direct set mesophilic culture
2.5 ml rennet diluted in 60ml of non-chlorinated water
2.5 ml calcium chloride diluted in 60ml of non chlorinate water (if milk is homogenised)
Brine:
2 litres water (boiled)
1/3 cup salt
1/3 cup white vinegar
3 drops calcium chloride
Boil brine for 5 minutes then cool to room temperature before adding finished cheese.
Enjoy this wonderful cheese!
Ask and you shall receive!! Thanks Gavin - heading to the homebrew shop tomorrow, apparently they also sell all the cheesemaking bits.
ReplyDeleteWill let you know how I go - and more importantly how it stacks up against Aldi's Danish feta that I used to so love...
Thank you so much for this tutorial, I luv the way you teach and explain your process and the wonderful little practical ideas you share!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely are a blessing I'm sure for many...I am sort of ashamed to admit that I do not know how to translate the grams to teaspoons as I am in the USA. Can you please help me with that?
I would luv to try the feta with a gallon or two of raw milk...or perhaps I should start with store bought milk first!
Many blessings...
Gavin,
ReplyDeleteThis turned out great! I tried it with a couple slight variations:
1) I replaced 1/3 of the milk with goat's milk, and I used a herb salt from Epicure for the brine. Turned out incredible! Nice and creamy and great for crackers.
2) For the second variation, I used all goats milk, and let drain for 8 hours instead. It created a much more "crumbly" feta.
Thanks again! Love the blog!
Tasos
Dear Gavin good evening from Greece
ReplyDeleteI am glad you are interested to build feta cheese
a small correction
Feta done with sheep and goat milk in the ratio 70/30
Having cut the curd leave for 10-15 minutes and then strain. when removed from the mold, cut into pieces and put it on the shelf, pour onto the coarse salt and let stand for 5-6 hours and repeat on the other side.
Now you can leave the cheese for at least two months to mature.
I apologize for the very bad English :-(
Hi Niko,
DeleteThanks for the tips. I will have to try adding goats milk to my feta as well. I can't source sheeps milk here where I live.
I will also let the next batch mature longer.
Gav