Cheese workshops are a great option for laymens, who want to start their adventure with home-made cheese. On Saturday, February 20, 2016, such workshops took place in the Szczecin educational studio Kulinarne Atelier run by Leszek Wodnicki.
A group of 16 people learned to make Gouda at home under the vigilant eye of Gieno Mientkiewicz, who is a a Polish chef and cheese maker. Cezary Szczupak also honored us with his outstanding cheese from the "Kozie Frykasy" farm. Accessories needed for cheese making and substantive support were provided by Jakub Krężel from Serowar.pl.
I invite you to read and watch the photo report!
Chilled milk from the farm near Szczecin was heated to a temperature of just over 30 degrees C. During this time, the milk should be mixed frequently to prevent possible protein burning. When the temperature reached the target, we added some kefir to inoculate the milk with the desired bacteria that will give the cheese a taste and preserve it, giving it the right pH. Their work also affects the rennet, which we clearly learned later - kefir probably did not have enough active bacteria, so we had to wait long enough for the milk to get the right acidity, in which the rennet began to effectively form a curd. For this reason, we recommend using ready-made starter powders (or kefir as a lifebuoy if you do not have a starter culture).
Rennet added about 10-15 minutes after adding kefir. We used microbial rennet in liquid (made of a special type of fungus), which is convenient to use - the bottles have a dropper, and the optimal dose is 1 drop per 1 liter of milk.
While we were waiting for a solid curd, Gieno prepared the first tasting - it was fresh cheese with the addition of roasted poppy seeds, topped with buckwheat honey.
Delicious!
We eat and talk, but here the curd is ready for cutting. We cut it with ordinary kitchen knives - slowly, without haste, into cubes.
Slicing the curd causes the leaking of whey and the formation of cheese grains. The basis for making cheese is separating the so-called "dry matter" (i.e. primarily protein and fat) from the rest - whey, which is mostly water.
Remember to mix the grain often after cutting, so that it does not stick together. It is still too early - it will stick together in special cheese forms, but only when some whey leaks from it and the grains become firm.
At this stage, hot water is also added for Gouda. This process is called curd rinsing, and it is aimed at drying the grain (whey flows out faster at higher temperatures) and alleviating the taste by washing out the lactose.
When the cheese grain is properly prepared, it's time to put it into special cheese molds. This can be done with a regular strainer. The molds are lined with cheese cloth to prevent cheese from getting stuck in the molds (under pressure, the cheese could squeeze into the holes in the mold and get stuck in them). The cloth also helps to easily remove cheese from the mold. The mold filled with cheese grains is pressed down with a lid, which is included with this type of mold.
Perfect pressing of Gouda cheese should last about 12 hours and take place under a pressure of several kilograms (for cheese about 250 g). However, due to the limited time, we have significantly shortened this process. The result is a slightly worse squeeze of air and whey and poor skin development, but it does not matter. Yesterday's cheeses will certainly not ripen for long, because their "authors" can't wait to eat them! The shortcomings I have just mentioned could have a negative impact on these cheeses if they matured for several months - for example, the uneven skin promotes the formation of mold in the "nooks" that are difficult to reach by wiping the cheese with a cloth.
After removing the cheese from the mold, it should be salted. Salting out can take place both in brine and by rubbing the cheese with salt. We, due to the limited time, used the latter method. It is worth remembering that the salt used in cheese making should be non-iodized. Iodine limits the growth of bacteria that we need! To the common question "Can you use plain, iodized salt?" the answer is: there will be no tragedy, but if you do something, it is worth doing it as best as possible and in accordance with art!
Salting aims at: giving the cheese a taste, "calming" the bacteria working in it, removing excess water, developing a protective skin.
So we rub our cheese with a decent amount of salt and leave it for several dozen minutes. After this time, the cheese should be lightly patted with salt and left to dry - at home, a fridge will be the best, although a cool basement would be ideal.
Our cheeses need several dozen minutes to salt. This is a great time for another tasting - this time Gieno prepared a dessert, which consisted of Gouda cheese, smoked cheese, honey, nuts, apples and orange peels.
Such freshly prepared cheese is still quite moist, so remember to rotate it often (during the first week up to twice a day) - this will allow both sides of the cheese to dry evenly.
From 2 liters of milk, we received cheese weighing about 200-250 grams. This is a standard result for good quality milk. Such small cheeses do not need long ripening. After a month, their taste will become interesting and expressive.
It is worth preparing whey cheese (like Ricotta, the most important and popular cheese of this type) from the whey that remained after "main cheese" making. For this purpose, the whey is heated to a temperature of about 90-95 degrees Celsius and acidified with e.g. apple cider vinegar. This causes the precipitation of globulins and albumin - a delicate cheese is formed, which is ideal, for example, mixed with herbs for sandwiches.
To sum up the workshop, I would like to mention the surprise of the participants. Most of them had not had the opportunity to make cheese before. They were amazed at the fact that the curd made from milk tastes sweet and mild - like warm milk. This is the basic difference between acid (cottage cheese) and rennet cheese made of fresh, sweet milk.
I didn't realize that making this type of cheese is so simple. We are used to the fact that cheese, sausages, etc. are made in processing plants - and this is instilled in us. And yet 100 years ago this type of production was largely based on a farm product - says one of the workshop participants.
We invite everyone to try to make homemade cheeses - this is a great way to spend an extraordinary evening, and our cheese will certainly surprise and delight family members and friends! Their taste is unique, and the fact that they were made by hand gives great satisfaction!
The workshop used accessories and additions available in our store.