 |
| curds and whey |
something i thought i'd never bother with
making my own cheese
it really is so very cheap to buy
unless of course you have access to fresh milk (preferably free)
but i was lured by a 30 minute mozzarella
with an option of ricotta
and i was won
my sister (the chef)
said that ricotta was misleadingly a high end cheese
when its simplicity should make it a cheap cheese
so in choosing a "fancy" cheese i should get better value for money
it was really easy
even given that i didn't follow the instructions properly
which would say that it was "fool proof"
a curd formed easily
the whey separated nicely
and the mozzarella easily became elastic
formed a block
and froze well
(and thawed in good condition)
 |
| squizin' the cheese - draining off whey |
the product ?
superior in taste
i used local Ashgroves non-homogenised Green Milk
good form and easy to grate
so four litres of milk @ $7.36
(using a generic brand of milk @ $4.00)
made 500grams of mozzarella
add some rennet and salt (say $0.50)
valued at $ 7.86
(or $4.75 using generic and adding extra rennet to counter balance homogenised milk)
shop bought block mozzarella is about $7.50 / 500gm
shredded mozzarella about $7.00 / 500gm (with carriers added)
 |
| the weigh in |
so theoretically shop bought is cheaper
as we haven't valued the labour or cooking energy
but then my chooks got two litres of whey
and the dog about a litre
and no i won't be getting a milking cow
just to make cheese
but maybe i need to find a dairy . . . .
Hey Lee, love the idea of home made cheese.
ReplyDeleteWe made cottage cheese at school many years ago, but it would be fun to have a go at the mozarella.
Are you sure you won't be getting a cow?
Claire :)
very very very sure Claire !
ReplyDeleteWow, I'm impressed! I've never made my own cheese as I presumed it would be too difficult, the mozzarella looks fantastic though! I think you should get a cow, send the kids out to milk it each day, think of all that fresh milk! Chris won't even let me get hens, even if we weren't renting, rubbish, I'd love the fresh eggs and a cow would be great too! :) x
ReplyDeleteIt may not be cheaper than shop bought but defiantely better! No crappy stuff added in and you can use the best milk available! Looks pretty good too, maybe I will give it a go one day, it just always seems too confusing for me :)
ReplyDeleteif anyone wants the contact for the mozzarella kit just drop me an email - it was a $40 kit with everything but the milk and makes about 30kg of mozzarella.
ReplyDeleteit was ridiculously easy !
Sounds wonderful Lee.
ReplyDeleteBill is interested in the contact please..
Bill makes my cottage cheese from skim milk.. so quick and easy to make. Like all home made products, you know what has gone into it :))
We had a cow or two in our younger times and the milk is so yummy.. I would love to have a Dexter..
A part of our life we miss so much..
thanks for sharing the info ..
hugs pat ..
This is so cool! It may be worth getting a milking cow. Now I want to make my own cheese...
ReplyDeleteMy sister does this!! :-) Maybe you could get a goat instead of a cow.
ReplyDelete