Homemade Ricotta Cheese

[Dutchie]

I'll have to try making Ricotta/cottage cheese and would save me money, it looks so easy in various recipes. I don't have a cheesecloth,but I'm guessing a teatowel will work too?

How long will the cheese last in the fridge?....and can it be frozen?anyone any experience with it?
I read on some recipeblog that 2Liters of milk make for about 500/600grams of cheese....

 

[Dutchie]

So what are you eating your ricotta with? Mixing it with fruit? Eating it plain?

You can make these Russian Ricotta Pancakes - Syrniki
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tL2mHAtZXz8

I guess,you'll only have to substitute the flour for coconutflour......or maybe potato/riceflour if you tolerate starch.

I don't know if it's possible to make them without flour....just the mixture of cheese,eggs,sugar and sometimes vanilla? I guess they'll fall apart.

 

[Jenn]

Isn't a no flour pancake a crepe?

 

[Dutchie]

@Charlie The process you describe for making Ricotta,is the same kinda outcome as the guy in this video making Paneer?(Though Paneer uses no cream).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohn26YPgkY8

It seems like Ricotta,Paneer,Cottage Cheese are actually all the same when making at home.

 

[jyb]

I'll have to try making Ricotta/cottage cheese and would save me money, it looks so easy in various recipes. I don't have a cheesecloth,but I'm guessing a teatowel will work too?

How long will the cheese last in the fridge?....and can it be frozen?anyone any experience with it?
I read on some recipeblog that 2Liters of milk make for about 500/600grams of cheese....

With a tea towel it might be too tedious, if at all possible, unless its really thin or something.

 

[charlie]

I didn't see his cheese separate from the whey. So I dunno if it's the same. You can clearly see the cheese separate from the whey when I am making it.

 

[Dutchie]

I didn't see his cheese separate from the whey. So I dunno if it's the same. You can clearly see the cheese separate from the whey when I am making it.

I think he mainly gets the whey out at the end,by putting those things on the bowl to drain it of excess liquid

 

[mt_dreams]

Traditional Italian ricotta is made with they whey that separates from cheese making. The final process ends up being different than 'ricotta' made with whole or skimmed milk. The latter version is probably has an official name stemming from one of the old cheese making cultures, but it has taken on the 'ricotta' name due to the familiarity of the term ricotta. I use the whey left over from making fresh mozzarella or cottage cheese to make ricotta . It's a great way to get the most bang for your buck.

 

[aquaman]

@Charlie The process you describe for making Ricotta,is the same kinda outcome as the guy in this video making Paneer?(Though Paneer uses no cream).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohn26YPgkY8

It seems like Ricotta,Paneer,Cottage Cheese are actually all the same when making at home.

Cottage cheese you re-heat just enough to make the cheese form curds. It's super important only to heat minimally, or you get chewy curds!

Personally I prefer home-made Ricotta, ie not re-heated at all.

 

[Dean]

ok, I back to making this...I guess. I seem to have lost the mojo though. When I used to make this a few years back I would get much better "clumpage" of the curds, which saved me the hassle of having to do a lot (or even any) squeezing--since I'm not all that concerned about removing all the whey anyway.

But, the two times I've made it in the last few days, I am getting no "clumpage." Just tons of small curds that I have to do a lot of squeezing on. So what am I doing wrong? Is the milk too hot, not hot enough? Am I stirring too much or too little when I add the vinegar? Do I likely need more vinegar or less?

 

[charlie]

I find lemon juice works really well. Tara uses animal rennet I think.

Oh and I would think if "no clumpage" then its not done. Bring milk hotter, maybe add a little more vinegar.

 

[narouz]

I've been working my way up to this cheese making thing.
Mittir is my exemplar.

But many others here seem to be very competent cheese makers.
What is a good easy firm cheese one might try to make?
I like the idea of using rennet or lemon.

 

[schultz]

I've been working my way up to this cheese making thing.
Mittir is my exemplar.

But many others here seem to be very competent cheese makers.
What is a good easy firm cheese one might try to make?
I like the idea of using rennet or lemon.

I'm just getting into this as well! Mainly because I have goats.
I really want to make romano and other aged cheeses but I'm intimidated by the aging process because you have to control for humidity and temperature.
I've made mozzarella and it's an easy, firm(ish) cheese.
Queso blanco also looks easy to make and requires no rennet.
Farmhouse cheddar looks like a nice way to get into doing some of the more complicated cheeses. It only takes a month to age.

Anyway, I would love to hear other peoples experience with making cheese!

 

[narouz]

I've started thinking I might have a bad reaction to the ever-growing
"vegetable enzymes" in cheese.

For a long time I seemed okay with like Kroger's cheeses.
Lately, I started eating some Sargento brand cheeses.
Not sure, but...I think they give me gut problems.

Harder and harder to find cheese without that bullsheet.
Anybody got any tips?

And...makes me see homemade cheesemaking in my future.

Oh...and:
could somebody give some info on how to figure out the labeling
to avoid the bad enzymes?
I see "enzymes."
Or "vegetable enzymes."
Or "cheese cultures."
And there was one at Whole Foods today...
some weird ingredient, just a bunch of letters and numbers, gobbleteegook,
with an attached note about it being derived from egg white....

It was hard as hell and expensive,
but I finally did come across a couple listing only "rennet."
(sometimes you'll see "vegetable rennet"; I take that as a no-go.)

 

[gummybear]

I've started thinking I might have a bad reaction to the ever-growing
"vegetable enzymes" in cheese.

For a long time I seemed okay with like Kroger's cheeses.
Lately, I started eating some Sargento brand cheeses.
Not sure, but...I think they give me gut problems.

Harder and harder to find cheese without that bullsheet.
Anybody got any tips?

And...makes me see homemade cheesemaking in my future.

Oh...and:
could somebody give some info on how to figure out the labeling
to avoid the bad enzymes?
I see "enzymes."
Or "vegetable enzymes."
Or "cheese cultures."
And there was one at Whole Foods today...
some weird ingredient, just a bunch of letters and numbers, gobbleteegook,
with an attached note about it being derived from egg white....

It was hard as hell and expensive,
but I finally did come across a couple listing only "rennet."
(sometimes you'll see "vegetable rennet"; I take that as a no-go.)

Parmesan cheese is your friend

 

[narouz]

Yeah, I know gummyb.
The Regianto Parmegiano or whatever it is.
I do get that.
But...it seems kinda limited.
I mean, if you're trying to get a big percentage of your protein, say, from cheese...
Hard to figure a way to get that much Parmesan down....

 

[gummybear]

Yeah, I know gummyb.
The Regianto Parmegiano or whatever it is.
I do get that.
But...it seems kinda limited.
I mean, if you're trying to get a big percentage of your protein, say, from cheese...
Hard to figure a way to get that much Parmesan down....

quark, you got quark in the states? cold cuts of meat?

just had some high protein milk (52g per liter oh yes baby) go talk to shops that sell to bodybuilders they are usually pretty solid.

 

[narouz]

"quark."
I don't think so.
Maybe it is a bodybuilder product?
Is it a casein protein powder by any chance?

I was just asking about this over in another thread....

 

[gummybear]

"quark."
I don't think so.
Maybe it is a bodybuilder product?
Is it a casein protein powder by any chance?

I was just asking about this over in another thread....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quark_%28cheese%29

I guess most common in german speaking countries and in scandi. Maybe get some casein powder?

 

[narouz]

(That is a wonderful fat cat :>))

I get the idea that Quark was a life changing product in your life, gummy.
If so,
how would you describe its effects?