Confused about cheese

tomisonbottom

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Apr 17, 2013
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Ok, so I thought that the cheese should ONLY consist of milk, salt and annimal rennet?
Is this correct?
Because isn't rennet an enzyme and I thought we're supposed to avoid enzymes and cultures in cheese?
Also, don't cottage cheeses always have cultures in them?
Thanks so much ya'll!
 

Mittir

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RP warns against new kind of industrial enzymes used in many cheeses. He thinks those are very allergenic. Even commercial citric acids used in cheese making can be allergic due to contamination in industrial processing. He thinks real animal rennet cheese is fine. He has the same worry about contamination in commercial supplements.
 

narouz

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Mittir said:
RP warns against new kind of industrial enzymes used in many cheeses. He thinks those are very allergenic. Even commercial citric acids used in cheese making can be allergic due to contamination in industrial processing. He thinks real animal rennet cheese is fine. He has the same worry about contamination in commercial supplements.

He does complain about those enzymes.
I would love to buy only true rennet cheeses,
but even at health food stores in the U.S.,
it is getting tough to find economical cheeses free from the enyzmes.

I eat them all the time
and I'm still living:>)

From talking to the cheese people at those stores,
it seems like the younger, less expensive cheeses are,
these days, mostly going to be enzymes.
Perhaps especially so in health food stores
because their customers so often associate health with vegetarianism.
This one cheese person I talked to
said you might not notice it too much in the taste
if you just got younger cheeses.
She seemed to say that it would be in the longer aged cheeses
that you would notice a flavor deficit.
 
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tomisonbottom

tomisonbottom

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Mittir said:
RP warns against new kind of industrial enzymes used in many cheeses. He thinks those are very allergenic. Even commercial citric acids used in cheese making can be allergic due to contamination in industrial processing. He thinks real animal rennet cheese is fine. He has the same worry about contamination in commercial supplements.

So how do we know what enzymes are the "new kind of industrial enzymes"? versus real animal rennet?

I am eating this cheese right now and it just says, "Milk, salt, animal rennet" on the ingredients list.

It is packaged by my local organic health food store and bought in bulk there.
 

Mittir

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tomisonbottom said:
Mittir said:
RP warns against new kind of industrial enzymes used in many cheeses. He thinks those are very allergenic. Even commercial citric acids used in cheese making can be allergic due to contamination in industrial processing. He thinks real animal rennet cheese is fine. He has the same worry about contamination in commercial supplements.

So how do we know what enzymes are the "new kind of industrial enzymes"? versus real animal rennet?

I am eating this cheese right now and it just says, "Milk, salt, animal rennet" on the ingredients list.

It is packaged by my local organic health food store and bought in bulk there.

Best way is to ask the company whether they use real animal rennet or not.Most company's websites have good information on their cheese making method. I rely on my reactions to new foods. I notice allergic reactions to some cheese and other cheese works fine. Most aged cheese are high in histamine. I mostly drink milk and make homemade farmer's cheese. It is just adding lemon juice /vinegar to warm milk. One simple recipe is adding crumbled farmers cheese to small amount of milk and add some sugar . Refrigerate for few hours ,it is very tasty and pure.
 
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tomisonbottom

tomisonbottom

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Ok thanks, I would like to make some home made cheese although it won't have that yummy aged cheese flavor I'm enjoying right now. I will call the manufacturer and find out if this cheese is using real animal rennet.
 

pboy

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I think the problem is not the enzymes themselves, but the bacteria they are extracted from are sometimes grown on and fed things like inulin and carageanan, and the residues may make it into the cheese. Personally I've not had any issues with these cheeses (maybe I've got lucky and not had any brands that do this)...I'd guess 90% of the cheeses even if made with microbial or vegetarian enzymes are safe, but of course you could research the cheese before buying it, email the company, and find out 100%
 

Beebop

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If you can find out what the vegetable source of the rennet is can you be sure it would be safe? For example, I asked a brand what they use and they told me 'rennet made from potato'.
 

pboy

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sorry Beebop, i'm not quite sure. Hopefully someone else can answer for you (us)
 

Beebop

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Thanks pboy. I had just dismissed this particular cheese - until your comment about inulin/carrageenan.
 

Rolan

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I've just ordered two cheeses, and went they arrived I was dismayed to see they were vegetarian rennet. Guess I need to do more research, but mostly I've been eating animal rennet.

Why is soft cheese better? Would a mild cheddar constitute a hard cheese?
 
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tomisonbottom

tomisonbottom

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Rolan said:
I've just ordered two cheeses, and went they arrived I was dismayed to see they were vegetarian rennet. Guess I need to do more research, but mostly I've been eating animal rennet.

Why is soft cheese better? Would a mild cheddar constitute a hard cheese?


Where did you read that soft cheese is better?
 
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Ok, so I thought that the cheese should ONLY consist of milk, salt and annimal rennet?
Is this correct?
Because isn't rennet an enzyme and I thought we're supposed to avoid enzymes and cultures in cheese?
Also, don't cottage cheeses always have cultures in them?
Thanks so much ya'll

Northstar Bison has raw grass fed cheeses made with only veal rennet. They sell them salted and unsalted.
 
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Oops I got my NorthstarBison cheese in the other day, and though it has veal rennet in it, it also has cultures grrrr! They did not disclose that on their website before I purchased it. On the brighter side I just got in, today, a sheep milk cheese sampler from Olioandolive.com and their pecorinos are all just sheep milk, salt and rennet yaaayyy!
 
Joined
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Ok, so I thought that the cheese should ONLY consist of milk, salt and annimal rennet?
Is this correct?
Because isn't rennet an enzyme and I thought we're supposed to avoid enzymes and cultures in cheese?
Also, don't cottage cheeses always have cultures in them?
Thanks so much ya'll!
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2021
Messages
21,494
Here are the cheeses I bought through the mail from Olioandolive.conlm that have only rennet.
 

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