Cheese is the ultimate comfort food. A cheese toastie, cheesy pizza, braai broodjie – you name it. Cheese is the glue that is keeping us together during lockdown. Here is a simple, delicious recipe that you can use to craft your own cheese right from home.
Like all good things, the cheese-making process takes time. To make 300 grams of cheese, you will need:
Ingredients
1l full cream milk
2 large lemons (or three small)
1 Tsp salt
Additional ingredients
2 cups (400ml) olive oil
Black pepper, herbs, garlic
You’ll need these items too
Bowl
Colander
Gauze or a tea towel
Storage container
Storage jar
Method
1. Put milk and salt into a pot and warm gently until it reaches 33°C
2. While still on low heat, add the juice from one squeezed lemon and mix gently. At this point the acid from the lemon should cause the liquid to coagulate slightly, forming small clumps. If the mixture doesn’t coagulate, add more juice from the second lemon. Once you see clumps begin to form in the mix, turn off the heat and leave it as is on the stove.
Tip: lemons are easier to squeeze when heated
If you’re struggling to extract the lemon juice, slice the fruit in half and then place on a plate and put it in the microwave for 1 minute at 600w.
3. Leave the mixture in the pot without heat for up to two hours to increase the number of cheese clumps in the mix.
4. Place a gauze-lined colander in a bowl and pour the mixture onto the gauze. Squeeze to drain immediately or leave as it is to drain naturally for about half a day in the refrigerator.
Tip: The liquid that drains from the mixture is whey. In powder form, this is a popular protein supplement for vegetarians. It can also be used in a variety of applications, from soaking grains to baking. It can even be used to make ricotta, which means ‘twice cooked’.
5. After draining, place the mixture, including the gauze, into a container and refrigerate for half a day to a day to solidify. The mixture will become more compact if you leave it in the fridge overnight.
6. Remove the cheese from the refrigerator and serve or store for up to a week.
For a prolonged shelf life, you can store the cheese in olive oil. Add in garlic, rosemary, thyme or bay leaves to make your cheese more flavourful. The cheese should last up to two weeks if stored like this.
Image: Unsplash
