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Making
Mozzarella
Paul Peacock clutters up the kitchen with whole milk on a quest to make moreish mozzarella...
Mozzarella is not a difficult cheese to make, really. You might have a number of trial runs to get your technique just right. But to be honest, even your first attempt will be really good, and since the whole point of this cheese is to cook it, you will find the results most satisfactory. Mozzarella is a bit of a journey, is great fun, and you get a great product.
Essentially, you will be lining up the protein molecules to give the cheese a stringy texture, and that’ s all there is to it. In the old days this was achieved by kneading the curds over and over, but at home we help the process using citric acid.
“ The structure of mozzarella has its molecules lined up to give it the characteristic
‘ stringy’ texture, now achieved by using citric acid rather than kneading.”
It is said that mozzarella used to be made using buffalo milk, but this has never been wholly true, and similar cheeses have been made from cow and sheep milk, although I don’ t know of an instance where goat’ s milk has been used. That said, please let us know if you make goat mozzarella, we’ d love to hear from you.
How to make Mozzarella
Makes 3 balls
• 1 portion of mesophillic starter
• 5 litres( 1 gallon) whole milk
• 6 drops rennet
• 1 level teaspoon citric acid crystals
• 5 g salt( 1 level teaspoon)
Some people dissolve all the citric acid in water, some sprinkle all the citric acid directly in the milk, others go half and half. If you do use water, make sure it is un-chlorinated, which you can do by leaving tap water to stand overnight. The chlorine and fluorine, which interferes with the citric acid, evaporates slowly from the water.
What do you need for mozzarella?
• A large pan, at least ten litres( two gallons)
• A good thermometer
• A stirring spoon
• A slotted spoon
• Muslin
• A long knife for cutting curds
• A bowl
The ability to sterilize the equipment is important. You should be as scrupulously clean as possible.
Using starter culture
For mozarella, strictly you do not need to use starter, but I find you get a creamier cheese, and better setting with the rennet. A small sachet makes a lot of cheese, so add your culture to a half litre( one pint) of milk, and then leave for a few hours. Simply pour this cultured milk into an ice cube tray and freeze. When you are making cheese, add a milky ice cube to the milk and leave at room temperature to ripen overnight.
Don’ t use too much citric acid, and dissolve in a little water.
Add the citric acid and stir constantly for five minutes. Do not add too much, the milk will curdle. You will probably have several attempts at this to get it just right.
Add too much you get lumpy porridge like milk which will not set with rennet.
Best to start with a little, and then over the next few batches, increase. Find exactly the right level for you, your milk etc.
You will find that, using too little citric acid will mean the cheese doesn’ t stretch so well. But no matter, it’ s still great on pizza. Next time, add a tad more and see how it changes the feel.