Little Green Cheese

Cheese making at home with Gavin Webber the Cheeseman

How to Make Monterey Jack Cheese at Home

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Monterey Jack cheese hails from the Monterey area in California.  It was brought over by the Spanish via Mexico and was originally known as Queso del Pais and was made by the Mexican Franciscan friars during the 18th century.

An American entrepreneur named David Jack realised its commercial value and started selling it all over California. The cheese came to be known as “Monterey Jack’s” or “Jack’s Monterey,” eventually acquiring the name Monterey Jack.

Monterey Jack Cheese

Makes about 1 kg (2.2 pounds) of cheese

Ingredients

Equipment

Method

Adding ingredients

  1. Sterilise your utensils and leave to air dry
  2. Using a double boiler, heat the milk to 32°C (90°F).
  3. Add the starter culture, mix well for a minute, cover and allow milk to ripen for 45 minutes.
  4. Whilst keeping the temperature at 32°C/90°F, add the diluted rennet and stir for one minute.  Cover and let sit for 45-50 minutes.

Cutting the Curd

  1. Check for a clean break and cut the curds into 1.25 cm (½ inch) cubes.
  2. Rest for 10 minutes to allow curds to heal.
  3. Return to a low heat and gradually raise the temp to 38°C (100°F), stirring gently and continuously, during the period of 40 minutes.
  4. Once the target temperature is reached, maintain for 30 minutes and continue stirring.  Let the curds rest for 30 minutes.

Pressing and Brining

  1. Line a 165 mm cheese mould with cheesecloth and fill with the curds.  Cover the curds with the corner of the cheese cloth, top with a follower, and press at 13 kg (30 lb) for 1 hour.
  2. Remove the cheese from the press, and slowly and carefully unwrap it.  Turn the cheese over, rewrap it in the cloth and press at 13 kg (30 lb) for 6 hours.
  3. Repeat the unwrapping and turning process, this time pressing at 13 kg (30 lb) for 6 hours.
  4. Remove the cheese from the press, and take it out of the mould and unwrap the cheese cloth.
  5. Place the cheese into the brine for 12 hours, turning at 6 hours to ensure coverage.

Air Drying and Waxing

  1. Then place on a cheese mat and board and let air dry at room temperature until it is dry to touch (usually 2-5 days).  Turn twice daily to allow for even drying.
  2. Wax the cheese and allow it to age for one to three months in a humid cheese cave at 10-12ºC (50-54ºF) at 80-85% humidity.  Don’t forget to turn weekly, to allow for even distribution of the fats and flavour.

Monterey Jack Cheese

You can pick up supplies for Monterey Jack cheese at our shop https://www.littlegreenworkshops.com.au.

I recommend the Hard Cheese Kit for newbie curd nerds as it contains most things you need to make this cheese.

Little Green Workshops

 

How to Make Edam

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I’ve loved the subtle taste of Edam for many years.  So why not learn how to make Edam?

I first tried it on a visit to The Netherlands way back in 1986.  We visited a cheese factory on the outskirts of Amsterdam on after a pleasant ride through the dutch countryside on our bicycles.  It was a sight to behold.

The cheese was made in huge stainless steel vats and the curd was washed with warm water after draining, pressed, then brined in an equally massive vat.  Then put in a machine that applied the traditional red wax coating.

It was quite an impressive operation.

Who would have thought that 30 years later I would make the same cheese in the same style, but at a much smaller scale?

It was a pleasure to make, with the steps quite simple.  I modified the recipe found in Debra Amrein-Boyes book, 200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes, and then reduced it down to a manageable 10 litres.  Edam is a washed curd cheese that is mild compared to cheddar, without sharpness due to the lower acid levels during the cheesemaking process.

So without further ado, here is the Edam video tutorial followed by the written recipe.


Here is the recipe for how to make Edam.

Edam

Ingredients

  • 10 Litres (10 quarts) whole milk (about 3.8% fat).
  • 1/8th teaspoon Mesophilic culture (MO30)
  • 2.5ml (½ tspn) liquid rennet IMCU 190, diluted in ¼ cup non-chlorinated water.
  • 2.5ml (½ tspn) Calcium Chloride, diluted in ¼ cup non-chlorinated water.
  • Cool saturated brine solution (18%).
  • Cheese wax

Mould – 165mm cheese mould

Method

  1. Sanitise all equipment.
  2. Warm your milk to 31°C (88°F), stirring gently whilst bringing up to temperature.  Turn off the heat.
  3. Sprinkle culture over surface of milk and allow to rehydrate for 2 minutes.  Stir thoroughly in an up and down motion without breaking the surface of the milk.  Cover and allow to rest for 30 minutes at the target temperature.
  4. Add the Calcium Chloride solution and mix well.
  5. Add the rennet solution to the milk and mix thoroughly using the same up and down motion for no more than 2 minutes.  Cover and allow to set for 40 minutes.
  6. Check for a clean break.  If necessary, leave for another 5 minutes then check again.
  7. Cut curd into 1.25 cm (½ inch) cubes.  Let stand for 5 minutes for the curds to heal.
  8. Turn on heat to low and slowly warm the curds to 33°C (92°F) over a period of 20 minutes.  Stir slowly and constantly during this period.  Don’t heat too quickly.  Allow the curds to settle for 5 minutes.
  9. Reserving the whey using a second clean pot, drain off the whey to expose the curds.  I use a sieve and ladle to ensure that I only drain out the whey.  Do not throw out this whey as you will need it later during the process.
  10. Replace the whey with an equal amount of warm water (about 50°C (122°F)) to the original level of the whey to bring the curds to 37°C (99°F).  Stir continuously for 30 minutes, maintaining the target temperature.
  11. Let the curds settle and begin to mat together.  Drain off into a cheesecloth lined colander allow to drain for 1 minute.  Bundle up the curd filled cheesecloth and transfer to your cheese mould.  Fold the cheesecloth over the top and put the follower on top.
  12. Place the mould in the cheese press and press at 12kg (22 lbs) for 30 minutes.
  13. Meanwhile, warm the reserved whey to 50°C (122°F).  Remove the cheese from the press, gently unwrap and immerse the cheese into the hot whey for 20 minutes.  Turn the cheese once to ensure that the entire cheese is exposed to the whey.
  14. Remove the cheese and wrap in cheesecloth and place in the cheese mould.  Cover with the excess cheesecloth and replace the follower.  Press at 22.5 kg (50 lbs) for 6 hours.  Remove from press, turn and re wrap in cheesecloth and press as before at 22.5 kg (50 lbs) for 7 hours.
  15. Remove cheese from press and unwrap.  Place in the saturated brine solution for 12 hours, turning over once at 6 hours.
  16. Remove from the brine and let air dry on a cheese mat at room temperature for 2-3 days.  Turn a couple of times daily until touch dry.
  17. Coat the cheese in 2 layers of cheese wax.  Ripen at 12°C (54°F) and 85% humidity, turning weekly for even ripening.
  18. The Edam is ready to eat in 2 months, but can be matured longer for a stronger flavour.

How to make Edam

Normally this cheese is pressed in a bullet shaped mould with rounded follower to create a cannonball shaped cheese, however this will not affect the final taste and structure of the cheese.  The day 2 weight for this recipe was 1.281 kg (2.8 lbs)

So now you know how to make Edam, please give it a try.  It should turn out to be an amazing cheese!  Let me know how it turns out.

Making Mascarpone

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Mascarpone is such a simple cheese to make and should be added to your cheese making repertoire due to its versatility as a cooking ingredient.

It uses two cost-effective ingredients; Cream and Lemon Juice.  The cream needs to have a fat content of at least 35%.  I used what is known as Thickened Cream which has added gelatin, but Pure cream or heavy cream will work even better.


Very simple to make.  Here is the recipe.

Mascarpone

Makes about 1kg (2.2 lbs) of cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 litre (4 cups) Heavy Cream (at least 35% fat)
  • ¼ teaspoon Tartaric Acid in 1/4 cup water, or
  • ¼ cup lemon or lime juice, or
  • 1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar in 1/4 cup water

Note; you only need to use one type of acid.

Mascarpone ingredients

Equipment

Method

  1. Sanitise your equipment.
  2. Add the cream to the pot and heat to 91°C (196°F).
  3. Remove from heat and add acid and stir for 2 minutes.  Cream will not curdle, thicken, or split.
  4. Pour into butter muslin lined colander and allow to drain in the fridge for 12-24 hours (12 hours for a soft creamy cheese and 24 hours for a firmer cheese).
  5. Remove from fridge and butter muslin and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.  Use in any dish you desire.

I used some of the Mascarpone in a Chicken Korma curry.  It added amazing depth and flavour to this dish.

If using in a desert, I would recommend that you drain for only 12 hours to achieve a smoother consistency.  Mascarpone is meant to be a spreadable cheese, just thicker than cream and not quite as firm as cream cheese.

Enjoy this cheese and let me know if you have any success of your own.

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