Fresh milk cheese recipe. How to make homemade cheese

I haven't bought cheese at the store for a long time. Because my homemade cheese is much better in all respects! I advise you to cook it too. I've tried different homemade cheese recipes, but this one... simple cheese recipe at home liked it the most. Making soft curd cheese from milk is simple and quick. And most importantly, it tastes much better than usual!

Preparing homemade cheese takes about half an hour plus time for cooling and hardening in the refrigerator - I usually leave it overnight, although it will be ready earlier.

How many calories are in homemade cheese?
On average, regular cheese contains from 250 to 350 or more calories per 100 grams, but in calorie tables for homemade cheese they indicate a value of 113. I don’t know what kind of cheese they mean. I believe the calorie content of homemade cheese will depend on how high-fat cottage cheese and milk you choose. You can even make diet cheese with your own hands by taking the same recipe, but using low-fat cottage cheese and milk.

The color is always different

Ingredients for making homemade cheese:
- 500 ml of milk (it is believed that the fattest is best, but I always buy 2.5%)
- 500 grams of cottage cheese (I take 2 packs of Piskarevsky cottage cheese 5%, although the recipe says 9%)
- 50 grams of butter
- 0.5 teaspoon of soda (put less)
- 1 egg
- salt to taste (About half a teaspoon is recommended, but this results in a very delicate taste of homemade cheese. I like it better when I put even more than a teaspoon. It somehow doesn’t come out particularly salty)

Sometimes I make a larger portion, then I take 3 packs of cottage cheese, a little more butter and 2 eggs.

Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then cook for another 15 minutes.

You will see whey separated from the milk. Make sure it doesn't burn or stick to the bottom.

We put it in a colander; if the holes are large, you can put gauze on it. Let it drain, but don’t pour out the whey right away.

In the same pan (I usually don’t even remove it from the heat, I cook it and keep everything nearby) add butter. As soon as it melts (stir), add the egg and a little soda. Mix well with the same spatula.

Immediately add the mixture containing the whey. And we continue to stir all the time - cook for another five minutes. The fire should be as small as possible. If the mixture is too thick, difficult to stir, or starts to stick to the bottom, add a little drained whey. For me, the consistency is often different, thicker or more liquid.

When everything is thoroughly mixed and brewed, immediately transfer it to the mold. Almost any dish can be used as a mold for homemade hard cheese. I sometimes use plastic plates, containers, and soup cups. I don’t lubricate it with anything, I don’t put anything inside. It is easier to remove from the plastic mold.

I wait until it cools down, cover it with cling film or a bag (otherwise it will air out) and put it in the refrigerator. It is important to transfer the homemade cheese immediately and compact it well into the mold, otherwise it will not be even.

Delicious cheese at home ready!!!

Even more of my recipes for cupcakes, cookies, gingerbreads, cheese, etc. in the section!

Home-made cheese is unrivaled not only in cost and taste, but also in the entire range of unlimited creative space that opens up to the home cheese maker.

To make 1.3 kg of soft homemade cheese you will need:
- 9 liters of whole home milk
(you can also use store-bought, not sterilized, but this requires a starter).


- Sourdough.
I took Bifilux 400 ml, you can use kefir or any other fermented milk product with a shelf life of no more than a week. It’s even better, of course, to use specialized cheese starters. Although if the milk is homemade, whole, then you can do it without any starter at all. (before this I did it with pure milk, now I decided to try something different)
- Pot.


- A sieve or colander.
- Thermometer.


- A piece of cotton cloth or gauze.
- Cheese form - container.
The container can be a tin or plastic mayonnaise can, a saucepan, or any other container. We select a piston based on the inner diameter of the container; it can be either a wooden circle or a saucer. It (this piston) should fit freely into the container with a gap of 2-5 mm at the edges.
- Enzyme for curdling milk.
Pepsins are used as an enzyme. Today, the most affordable enzyme in terms of price and quality is the Japanese-made “meito” enzyme. You can also buy Acidin-pepsin tablets at the pharmacy, but the results are not always stable (at least for me).


Pepsin, microbial rennin Meito is used in the production of soft and hard cheeses both at home and in production. Using Meito pepsin you can make: regular homemade cheese, brined cheeses (brynza, suluguni, feta, etc.), as well as almost all known hard cheeses.
"Meito" is a natural product containing milk-clotting enzymes.
These enzymes are specific proteases that are identical in their amino acid composition to veal rennet. But Meito does not contain animal or chemical components, which has a beneficial effect on the shelf life and taste of the cheese.
Meito is produced by fermenting and further drying a plant-based edible mushroom.
MeitoTM was approved at a meeting of the Expert Council of the State Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology named after. N.F. Gamaleya at the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences; Approved by the Institute of Nutrition of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences
The enzyme is included in the national standard of the Russian Federation - GOST 52686-2006 “Cheese. General technical conditions".
Manufacturer: MEITO SANGYO CO.,Ltd (Japan)
- Press.
However, a substitute press can be made from two pans.
- and time 2-3 hours :)
Making soft homemade cheese.
1. Some recipes recommend pasteurizing milk, but my milk is tested, so I decided not to do this, and we pasteurize at a temperature of 62 degrees for half an hour - this is critical if homemade milk is of unknown origin. It is better to heat milk in a water bath.


2. Cool to a temperature of 33 degrees.




3. Pour Bifilux into milk and wait 20-30 minutes for our lactic acid bacteria to start working.
4. Pour 1/10 of a bag of meito pepsin into half a glass of cold (pre-boiled and cooled) water and stir until completely dissolved.
There is only 1 gram in a bag and all this is for 100 liters of milk. How to divide 1 gram into 10 parts? We watch a movie about drug addicts and learn how to make tracks. :)) You can also dissolve the entire sachet in 100 ml. water and use a syringe to measure the required amount. Store in this case in a tightly closed sterilized container in the refrigerator for no more than 2-3 weeks.
5. Pour this half a glass into milk and mix thoroughly once for 2-3 minutes (this is important!) and leave.
6. The process of coagulation (coagulation) begins. Coagulation turns milk into whey and curds. This happens after 30-60 minutes.
7. Check the readiness of the cottage cheese. It should look like a cream with a clear division into curd and transparent whey. If the whey still resembles milk, leave the curd for a few more minutes. We do a “clean finger” test. This is a very simple test: you just need to dip your finger (clean! :)) into the curd mass and look at it. If a white milk mass remains on your finger, then the cottage cheese is not ready yet. If your finger remains clean, then the readiness of the cottage cheese is guaranteed.




8. Lower the long knife to the very bottom of the container, cut the mass with a “mesh” of 2-3 cm.




9. Then we try to cut horizontally with a slotted spoon so that the result is something similar to cubes 2-3 cm in size. Of course, it is impossible to cut into even geometric cubes in this way, but in this case it is not necessary.




10. Gradually increasing the water temperature to 38 degrees and maintaining it at this level, carefully periodically stir the cheese mass (now it is a cheese mass), trying to prevent the pieces from sticking together. If we come across large pieces, we cut them at the same time. You can stir every 20 minutes.




11. After 2-3 hours, pour the whey into a separate container; it will be useful on the farm.


12. Place the cheese mixture in a sieve or colander. When the remaining whey drains and the mass cools to room temperature, we will get soft homemade cheese.


It can be stored in the refrigerator, but no more than a week, since it is not recommended to store soft cheese longer.
How to make hard cheese.
In order to make hard cheese from homemade soft cheese, you simply need to press it.
13. Break the cheese mass into pieces with your hands and add salt to taste (I added 1.5 tablespoons).
Mix and place in a container mold, previously lined with a dry, clean piece of cotton fabric, and place a saucer-shaped piston on top.
In the process of making cheeses, he experimented with different forms. Here in the photo on the right is a vessel for spoons and forks, and on the left is a lid from a box for 100 CDs (in the end I threw it away - it was cracked, a little thin - I then used an enamel colander)




14. We put this whole economy under pressure. We increase the load gradually - up to 10 kg.


In a simplified version (press of two pans), we place a container with cheese on the bottom of a large pan, put some elevation in the form of a small bowl on the piston and lower a small pan on top of this elevation, filling this small pan with water for weight. To ensure that the small container stands in the center of the large one and does not tilt, we insert three folded towels radially between the containers
15. After 5 hours, take out the slightly pressed cheese:


16. Drain the whey, wipe it dry, replace our piece of cotton fabric with a fresh one, only this time the load on top is greater - 40-50 kg. The hardness and shelf life of the cheese depend on the weight of the load - the heavier the load, the lower the moisture content of the product and the longer the shelf life.
17. After 12 hours of standing under the press, remove




Here's the cheese from the last batch
This is already cheese that is almost ready and can be tasted, but has not yet matured like real cheese. To ripen, you need to place the cheese on a wooden base or on a plate lined with a clean cotton cloth - and in the refrigerator, in the absence of a cellar. We wait for the crust to form and the cheese to ripen within one to two weeks. In order for this to happen evenly, the cheese will need to be turned over periodically.
Our cheese is ready! It is slightly swollen and rounded, this is due to the holes inside the cheese (eyes), which are formed as a result of carbon dioxide pressure. Carbon dioxide is released during the work of the cheesemaker's irreplaceable little helpers - lactic acid bacteria.
This cheese is a week old


This is 12 days old

Making your own cheese has many benefits. This ensures the naturalness of the product and the absence of harmful chemical components. There are a large number of recipes on how to make delicious cheese from milk at home. Production is carried out using one of two methods: melting dairy products or mixing milk with bacteria and enzymes that accelerate the coagulation of the product.

Adyghe

Making Adyghe cheese at home from milk is not difficult if you follow a certain technique.

Cooking technology

Heat 1 liter of kefir in a non-stick container over low heat, stirring continuously until it curdles. Then strain the contents of the dish, and the resulting curd can be eaten, but the whey must be left in the room for a couple of days.

When it sours well, 3 liters of milk are poured into it, and the mixture is heated over low heat until curdled (about 5 minutes).

Armenian

The peculiarity of making Armenian Chechil cheese at home from milk is the need to marinate it in a solution saturated with salt.

Cooking technology

Heat 4 liters of milk to 38 degrees and add rennet according to the instructions for it. Stir everything, remove from heat and leave in the room for 40 minutes.

During this period, a mass will form, which must be cut into squares and left for half an hour to form whey.

The threads must be placed in a pre-prepared saline solution. To make it, water and salt are mixed according to taste preferences. The cheese should be soaked in the solution for a day. Afterwards, you can give the product an attractive shape, for example, weave it into a braid.

Brynza

The salty variety of the product is often used in salads. When making cheese at home from milk, you can add spices to the recipe to add spiciness.

Cooking technology

Heat 1 liter of milk over low heat until boiling. When this happens, add salt (2 tablespoons). There is no need to reduce the fire.

Beat a mixture of 3 eggs and 200 grams of sour cream and pour it into the milk, stirring the solution all the time. Cook for 5 minutes.

When the whey is separated from the resulting cheese, strain the composition in a colander lined with gauze, then cover the cheese with the ends and hang it for 3 hours. Then, place the resulting product under a press until it becomes elastic.

Dutch​

When making Dutch cheese at home from milk, you will definitely need butter. If the mixture begins to stick to the walls of the dish, you need to slightly increase the amount to avoid a burnt taste in the product.

Cooking technology

Heat 3 liters of milk almost to a boil, put 2 kilograms of cottage cheese into it and stir. Next, the composition must be boiled over low heat until whey forms.

Place the resulting cottage cheese in a colander lined with gauze until the liquid is removed.

Melt 100 grams of butter and put the remaining ingredients into it: made cheese, 1 chicken egg, salt and baking soda (half a teaspoon). The mass must be constantly stirred until it acquires a creamy appearance and a yellow color.

After this, the fire should be turned off. The slightly cooled cheese must be shaped into the required shape by hand and placed under the load. The product should be placed in the refrigerator until it hardens.

From​ ​sour​ ​milk​

If the milk has turned sour, there is no need to rush to get rid of it. There are a lot of practical tips and photos on what to use it for. You can make delicious cheese from sour milk at home.

Cooking technology

Beat one egg with salt to taste, mix with chopped herbs. Pour 1 liter of sour milk and the whipped mixture into a bowl and place over moderate heat. Wait for the solution to boil and cook until curdled.

Next, the composition must be poured into a colander, the surface of which is lined with a layer of gauze, the ends of which cover the cheese, and a pressure (small weight) is placed on top. The product is placed in a cool place for a couple of hours.

From​ ​goat​ ​milk​ ​

To make goat milk cheese at home, you can use rennet, an organic substance that is synthesized in the stomach of a kid. However, instead of this expensive substance, other fermentation methods are quite suitable (using citric acid, vinegar, yogurt).

Cooking technology

Squeeze juice from one medium-sized lemon. 2 liters of goat milk should be pasteurized; for this purpose, you need to pour it into a saucepan, place it on the fire, add salt (a pinch of salt). Wait until small bubbles appear (do not boil), then remove the pan from the stove.

Immediately pour the squeezed lemon juice into the milk, stirring the resulting solution. Quite quickly it will begin to coagulate, resulting in the formation of 2 wheys: a white curd whey and a slightly yellowish whey.

Then roll up the gauze with the curd part and squeeze it out. Now you need to form the required product shape. Place the cheese together with a gauze layer under pressure (a container with water is suitable for this purpose) until it becomes dense. You can do without molding by molding the cylinder by hand.

From​ ​pasteurized​ ​milk​ ​

You can make such a dairy product not only from village products, but also from store-bought products. Cheese made from pasteurized milk, prepared at home, will compare favorably with the product from the store in terms of taste and price.

Cooking technology

Beat 300 grams of sour cream (20%) and 4 eggs. Salt one and a half liters of pasteurized milk (3%) (2 teaspoons) and place on the stove. Wait until it boils and pour in the whipped mixture, stirring continuously. Simmer the mixture over low heat until curdled.

Cover the resulting composition with the edges of gauze and place a weight on top. The product should be kept under it for 3 hours.

From​ ​baked​ ​milk​ ​

For this recipe you will need cottage cheese of a dry consistency, preferably natural. Ready-made baked milk cheese at home takes on a light brown color.

Cooking technology

Combine a kilogram of cottage cheese with a liter of baked milk. Heat this mixture to a boil and cook, stirring continuously for 10 minutes. Then place the mixture in a colander lined with gauze and strain.

The resulting cottage cheese should be thoroughly kneaded and placed in a bowl, preferably non-stick. Add the remaining ingredients: 2 chicken eggs, 1 teaspoon of salt and soda, 80 grams of butter. Stir the mass well.

Place the mixture over moderate heat and stir continuously. The composition should melt and become viscous. Cooking time - 7 minutes until the mixture is homogeneous.

After this, transfer the composition into a container to harden and place in a cool place. The cheese is ready when it acquires a dense consistency.

Mascarpone

Making Italian Mascarpone cheese from milk at home is quite simple and you can taste it immediately after making it.

Cooking technology

Mix 800 milliliters of sour cream and 200 milliliters of milk until the composition is homogeneous. Place the mixture on the fire and heat it, but you cannot boil it, otherwise the product will not work.

Place the contents of the pan in a colander lined with gauze for 1 hour to remove liquid. Then carefully squeeze out the cheese, transfer it to a bowl, and be sure to close the lid. It is advisable to put it in the refrigerator to cool, but you can taste it right away.

Mozzarella

The recipe requires full fat milk and pepsin. The enzyme can be purchased at a pharmacy or in specialized stores. To make Mozzarella cheese at home, a pepsin solution is prepared in advance from milk in a ratio of 1/4 teaspoon of the substance to 1/2 cup of water.

Cooking technology

Heat 2 liters of milk to 70 degrees, then add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, a ready-made pepsin solution, and mix everything.

Wait for complete curdling; this will happen quite quickly; there is no need to bring the milk to a boil. Then leave the cheese mass and drain the liquid.

Then heat the water to 90 degrees and add salt (2 tablespoons). Place the prepared cheese in hot water for a couple of minutes, then take it out and knead it with your hands. The mixture is hot, so you need to wear gloves when cooking.

Repeat immersing the product in water again. Then, using cling film, roll the soft cheese into a sausage and form balls with a special twine, then cut them off.

Mozzarella is stored in a closed container with the remaining brine.

Paneer

This product has a rather strong sweetish milky taste. Therefore, when making Paneer cheese at home from milk, you can add seasonings or more salt to it.

Cooking technology

Bring 2 liters of milk to a boil over medium heat, you can add salt. Dilute 50-70 milliliters of lemon juice in half a glass of hot water. Then pour into milk when boiling. In this case, the mixture must be stirred continuously.

After curdling, remove the pan from the stove. Place the mixture on cheesecloth and squeeze out. If you want to make a solid product, you need to place it under a load for a couple of hours. The shelf life of this cheese is short - about 3 days in the refrigerator.

Fused

This product, made independently from natural ingredients, is much more environmentally friendly and healthier than a product from a store. You can add various seasonings to processed cheese prepared at home from milk.

Cooking technology

In a deep saucepan, grind half a kilogram of cottage cheese with soda (1/2 teaspoon), then add half a glass of milk and mix everything.

Place the dishes over low heat and stir the mixture continuously. When melting the mixture, add salt and 2 tablespoons of butter to the saucepan to taste.

The composition should become completely homogeneous. Next, the hot mixture must be poured into a convenient container. After cooling for 12 hours, place it in the refrigerator.

Brine​​

This product should have a pronounced salty taste. When making brine cheese at home from milk, you can additionally grease its side surfaces with salt.

Cooking technology

Beat 2 eggs with sour cream (500 grams) and kefir (200 grams).

Bring the milk to a boil and add salt (2 tablespoons). Then pour it into the whipped mixture. And whisk everything again.

Place the cheese under a weight and put it in the refrigerator overnight.

Ricotta

Making Italian Ricotta cheese at home from milk is not difficult and takes little time, resulting in a most delicate product.

Cooking technology

Heat 1 liter of milk, but do not bring it to a boil. It is better to immediately remove from the stove. Add the following ingredients to the hot product: 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, 150 milliliters of kefir, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt.

Leave the mixture for half an hour until curdled. Then place it on cheesecloth in a colander and hang it by the edges until the liquid has completely drained.

Creamy

This product takes a long time to prepare. When making cream cheese at home from milk using this recipe, you will get about 1 kilogram of the product.

Cooking technology

Place a liter of milk (3.2%), 0.5 liters of cream (20%) and 400 milliliters of sour cream (20%) in a saucepan, stir until smooth and leave in a warm place for 7 hours (no more than 8). You can place the dishes in a bowl of warm water. Do not overheat, overexpose or stir the mass. As a result, a solid clot should form in the shape of a pan.

After this, the dishes are placed on a small fire, you need to make sure that there is no overheating and the mass does not boil. You cannot mix the cheese. Soon the whey will begin to separate, it will be brought almost to a boil (small bubbles will appear).

Suluguni​

This product is of Georgian origin. When making brine suluguni cheese at home from milk, you should take into account some features of its preparation technology.

Cooking technology

Heat 4 liters of milk to 40 degrees, then add a teaspoon of salt and 100 milliliters of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Stir the mixture continuously until it curdles.

Place the resulting cottage cheese on cheesecloth in a colander. When the liquid has drained, the edges of the gauze should be tightly bandaged and left in this form for 3-4 hours.

Hard​ ​cheese​ ​

To make hard cheese at home from milk, use cottage cheese, preferably of a soft consistency.

Cooking technology

Pour mashed cottage cheese (700 grams) into 1 liter of milk. Then heat the composition over low heat.

The mixture must be stirred until the whey is yellowish in color. In this case, the cottage cheese should acquire a solid consistency. Next, place the composition on gauze.

Melt butter (2 tablespoons) in a non-stick pan. Then add 2 eggs, 2 teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking soda and cottage cheese to it.

The mass must be kneaded until it becomes homogeneous. The longer you stir, the denser the cheese will be. Kneading time is usually about 20 minutes.

Afterwards, the composition is laid out in a mold covered with cling film and placed in a cold place until it hardens.

Curd

The recipe for making cottage cheese at home from milk is one of the simplest and fastest.

Cooking technology

Heat 1.5 liters of milk almost to a boil, pour half a liter of kefir into it and add salt to taste. Boil the mixture until curdled.

Strain the resulting cottage cheese through layers of gauze and place under a press. The mass should be left under pressure for several hours. The longer it takes, the denser the consistency of the cheese will become.

Philadelphia​

Making the product according to this recipe takes little time and does not require settling. To make Philadelphia cheese at home, it is preferable to choose full-fat milk, then you will get more product.

Cooking technology

Heat a liter of milk over medium heat, then add 1 teaspoon of sugar and salt to it. Stirring, bring the mixture to a boil.

Then add half a liter of kefir. Again, continuously stir the mixture until it curls.

Lightly squeeze the resulting mass through cheesecloth and hang it by the edges until the liquid stops flowing, for about 15 minutes.

• Cottage cheese – 2 kg
• Cow's milk (you can make homemade cheese from goat's milk) – 2 liters
• Butter – 200 g
• Eggs – 2 pcs.
• Tea soda – 1 tablespoon
• Salt - to taste

(it’s better to buy homemade cottage cheese from a familiar milkman at the market)

Cooking process:

A very interesting recipe for making cheese at home from Valentina Gorbacheva, light, quick and easy to prepare:

When I had a household, I often made delicious homemade cheese from milk and cottage cheese for myself. Making cheese at home is very simple, the main thing is that the products are of high quality. The recipe for making homemade cheese can be changed; when cooking the cheese, add cumin seeds, dried aromatic herbs (for example, Provençal or Italian), sun-dried tomatoes, dried bell peppers (paprika) or simply chopped dill, parsley and cilantro.

To get a harder cheese with a low fat content, you can reduce the amount of butter, add 100 -150 g of it. But you can’t spoil the porridge with butter, so my homemade cheese also turned out delicious, here it is in the photo.

Of course, it may not be the same as the store-bought one, but it is environmentally friendly and you know that everything in your homemade cheese is natural, from cows, fresh and there is no palm oil, no dyes or preservatives. Initially, in preparing my homemade cheese, I used 3 liters of milk per 1 kg of cottage cheese, then I tried to reduce the amount of milk. I didn’t notice any difference in the quality of homemade cheese, so I started adding enough milk so that it just covered the cottage cheese.

PREPARATION OF HOMEMADE CHEESE FROM MILK AND Cottage Cheese

I put 2 kg of cottage cheese in a saucepan and poured in 2 liters of milk. I put it on fire. Stirring lightly (mostly just along the bottom, the cottage cheese may stick) so that the mass is evenly heated, bring the milk and cottage cheese to a hot state. Once you see whey forming, it's all done. The cottage cheese becomes like soft plasticine. There is no need to break this curd ball too much. In time it takes 7-10 minutes, no more.

Then you need to separate the whey from the resulting cheese mass, I usually put it on cheesecloth, you need to try so that, if possible, all the liquid runs away and the curd mass is almost dry, without whey. Then put the resulting mass into the cauldron where you will cook homemade cheese, 200 g of softened butter, 2 eggs, 1 tbsp. l. soda and salt. Salt, of course, is to your taste; some people like salty cheese, others lightly salted.

Mix all the ingredients for homemade cheese in a casserole or other dish with a thick bottom (not enameled) and put on fire.

Making cheese at home requires constant monitoring, so you cannot leave it, as the cheese may burn during cooking. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat, the curd mass will begin to melt and stretch, you need to boil the homemade cheese for about 5-7 minutes. I have a wooden spoon with which I constantly stir the cheese mass. You will be able to tell when the cheese is ready. It will be sticky and viscous. You can determine the readiness of the cheese by testing it by testing it, if it sticks to your teeth, then that’s it, it’s ready! Another sign that the cheese is ready is that it begins to pull away from the walls of the container in which it is cooked.

Then pour the hot homemade cheese into any container (cup or container) to give it its shape. The cauldron must be handled with care, as the cheese mass is very capricious. Cover the top of the warm homemade cheese with cling film so that the crust does not dry out.

I made homemade cream cheese, it’s not entirely hard because it’s high in fat, but it holds its shape and can be cut with a knife.

Tips from the Notebook:

• The remaining whey from making homemade cheese from milk and cottage cheese can be used for baking or used to make yeast dough for bread, or in the summer to make okroshka using whey.
• I would like to highlight separately: the store often sells not cottage cheese, but a COOK PRODUCT, which in its composition is not cottage cheese at all, such fake cottage cheese will not make cheese, it is better to buy real farm cottage cheese with milk and get a good result and the taste of homemade cheese! It is better not to use ultra-pasteurized and sterilized milk from boxes.

We also have a recipe for more dietary kefir cheese on our website, try that too:

The Recipe Notebook wishes you bon appetit and delicious cheese!

On store shelves you can find various varieties and types of cheeses.

Most of them were brought from abroad - from Switzerland, Holland, France or Italy.

Although, due to the influence of sanctions, Russian cheeses are now not in the minority.

But the prices for good cheese are very high.

And who can guarantee that store-bought cheeses contain no preservatives, thickeners or flavorings?

People knew about cheeses several centuries ago, when it was not possible to mass produce this product. Every family knew the recipe for making cheese, because making cheese with your own hands is not at all difficult. You can make cheese from store-bought pasteurized, cow, goat, and even soy milk. The essence of the preparation is either boiling milk with coagulating enzymes or melting dairy products. There are a great many recipes for making homemade cheese. Read on in the article to learn how to make cheese at home from milk.

Making homemade cheese from milk: cooking features

No cheese recipe is complete without milk, so you should be careful when choosing this ingredient. If the recipe does not specify how much fat the milk should be, then it is better to use homemade farm milk. If it is not possible to purchase farm milk, it can be replaced with store-bought milk with the maximum fat content and minimum shelf life.

In addition to milk, many homemade cheeses also contain cottage cheese. And you need to be more careful with this product - real cottage cheese is rarely found in grocery stores, mostly curd mass or a curd product is on sale. The curd mass will not make real cheese. Therefore, it is better to purchase cottage cheese from farmers or make it yourself at home. Only in this case can you be sure of the quality of the cheese produced.

Don't expect homemade cheese to be as hard as store-bought cheeses. Homemade cheeses are much more tender and softer. But if you wish, you can make the cheese harder, because the hardness of this product depends on the pressure of the press. Accordingly, if you need hard cheese, then the press should be as heavy as possible.

When choosing low-fat products, you need to be prepared for the fact that a lot of whey will be released and relatively little cheese will be obtained. The higher the fat content of the cheese, the more buttery and tender it is, which undoubtedly has a positive effect on the taste of the product.

As for hard cheeses, it is better that after cooking such cheese lies for some time - “ripe”. The taste will become brighter and richer. However, you need to keep in mind that cheeses weighing half a kilogram or more ripen well. Therefore, to make homemade hard cheese tastier, you should not skimp on the ingredients and it is better to wait a few days after preparing it.

As for devices for making homemade cheeses, everything is not so scary. A mold for cheese, if it is missing, can be easily replaced with an ordinary colander, sieve or fine mesh that comes with the deep fryer. And as a press you can use a jar filled with water.

Whey is released during the cheese making process. Many people simply pour it out, but whey can be used in some dishes. Thin openwork pancakes are easily made from whey dough. Some people use this product when preparing okroshka.

How to make cheese at home from milk: preparing hard cheese

Hard cheeses are made by boiling dairy products with curdling enzymes. During the manufacturing process, whey is released, and the more whey is separated, the harder the cheese will be. Hard cheese must be kept under pressure, then it will turn out denser. Let's take a closer look at the most popular recipes for making hard cheeses from milk at home:

1. Adyghe cheese

This recipe is the easiest to prepare and requires little financial investment. The result is the most delicate cheese without preservatives, flavor enhancers or flavorings.

Ingredients: Pasteurized milk (you can use farm milk, the fattier the milk, the better) – 3 l, kefir (preferably farm or homemade) – 1 l, salt – 1.5-2 tsp. (you can do more, you can do less - you should focus only on your own taste)

1) The specified amount of kefir must be poured into a deep saucepan and put on low heat. It is better if the kefir is not low-fat, but as fat as possible. Cook kefir over low heat until the curds separate from the whey and float to the surface.

2) The next step is to separate the curds from the whey. The serum must not be thrown away! It will come in handy later in the cooking process. It must be left at room temperature to sour for two days.

3) Pour the specified amount of milk into a deep saucepan and bring it to a boil. Then you need to reduce the heat and pour in the same whey that has been turning sour for 2 days. Mix well and cook over low heat until the cheese rises to the top.

4) Next, you need to strain the cheese and separate it from the liquid. Add salt to the cheese and stir. After this, the resulting mass must be placed in gauze and hung over a container or over a sink. This must be done to allow the remaining liquid to drain.

5) After 30 minutes, remove the cheese from the cheesecloth, place in a clean bowl and place under a press. The water that has separated from the cheese must be drained. The cheese should remain under pressure for at least 3-4 hours in the refrigerator.

2. Hard homemade cheese without eggs

This cheese recipe, like the previous one, is ideal for vegetarians whose lifestyle involves excluding eggs and animal enzymes from their diet. This recipe, similar to the first one, is very simple.

Ingredients: Milk (same as in the previous recipe, it is better to take fattier milk) – 1 l, butter – 100 g, cottage cheese (preferably farm or homemade) – 1 kg, salt – 1-2 tsp. baking soda – 0.5 tsp. turmeric – ¼ tsp. ground black pepper - ¼ tsp. asafoetida – 1 pinch (seasonings are indicated in the recommended amount, you can add or reduce the amount, focusing on your own taste sensations).

1) Milk must be poured into a deep saucepan, placed over high heat, and brought to a boil. Add cottage cheese in the specified amount to boiling milk and bring to a boil again. Immediately after boiling, the stove must be turned off.

2) The contents of the pan must be strained through cheesecloth. The liquid that separates during straining must be drained. Next, you need to continue working with the mass that remains in the gauze. You can hang the gauze for 10 minutes to drain the liquid, or simply squeeze the workpiece well in the gauze with your hands.

3) The butter must be melted in a frying pan. Then add the resulting curd mass to the pan, mix well, break up the lumps. It takes a couple of minutes to fry the mixture. While stirring, add salt, soda and seasonings. The result should be a mass of viscous consistency.

4) Hot cheese must be transferred to a mold and cooled for several hours. It is better to use a silicone mold, since the cheese comes away from its walls better. After the cheese has cooled, you can eat it.

3. Mozzarella at home

If you need to learn how to make Mozzarella cheese at home from milk, you are exactly at the right place. There are 2 options for making this cheese at home. One of them is using rennet (an enzyme of animal origin), and the second is from dairy products with vinegar. The most successful of these two options is undoubtedly the first. But vegetarians should not eat this cheese, as it contains rennet. This recipe contains pepsin (an animal enzyme); you can buy it at the pharmacy.

Ingredients: Milk (necessarily full fat, at least 6%) – 2 l, water – 1.5 l, lemon juice and salt – 2 tbsp each. each, pepsin – ¼ tsp. or on the tip of a knife, but if you get a little more, don’t be afraid - this enzyme is safe for the human body.

1) Add pepsin to half a glass of water (preferably warm or room temperature).

2) Pour milk into a deep saucepan and place over medium heat. You need to heat the milk to 70 degrees. Then diluted pepsin and lemon juice are added.

3) Next, the process is very fast - the whey will begin to separate immediately. There is no need to wait for it to boil. Immediately after the whey is completely separated, you need to carefully drain it (the whey will still come in handy). The remaining hot mass must be squeezed out by hand.

4) Pour water into another pan and heat to 90 degrees. Immediately after heating, remove the pan from the stove, add salt to the water and stir. Then you need to place the cheese in water for 2 minutes to make it softer. Remove the cheese from the water, stretch, knead, while dipping the cheese into the water several times for a couple of minutes. The cheese mass should be smooth and homogeneous.

5) The resulting mass should be placed on a board, kneaded with your fingers, and then folded into an envelope and sent back into hot water.

6) Spread cling film on the table, put the cheese mixture on it and roll it into a “sausage”. Wrap the resulting “sausage” tightly with film and tie it with a string in several places to form small balls.

7) After cooling, remove the cheese from the film and transfer it to a container with the whey that remained at the very beginning of cooking. Homemade Mozzarella must be stored in whey in the refrigerator.

How to make cheese at home from milk: preparing soft cheese

As a rule, soft cheese is the easiest to prepare compared to hard cheese. Let's look at a couple of delicious cheese recipes that can be easily prepared at home:

1. Philadelphia cheese

This cheese is not cheap in stores and is used quite widely. Many people are accustomed to finding this delicate cheese in rolls, but it can also be used in the preparation of creams for baking.

Ingredients: Milk (necessarily full-fat, otherwise you won’t get cheese) – 1 l, kefir (low-fat, or even low-fat) – 0.5 l, chicken egg – 1 piece, salt and sugar – 1 tsp each. each, citric acid - 1 pinch or on the tip of a knife.

1) Pour milk into a saucepan and put it on fire. Stirring constantly, add sugar and salt, bring the milk to a boil.

2) Immediately after boiling, add cottage cheese to the milk and stir. You need to cook until the mass curdles. After this, strain the mixture, put it in cheesecloth and hang it in a container or over the sink for 10 minutes to drain off the excess liquid.

3) At this time, while the curd mass is draining, you need to beat the egg and a small amount of citric acid. Then carefully add the gauze mixture and continue beating. The cheese should be smooth and fluffy.

If desired, before putting the cheese in the refrigerator, you can add chopped herbs to it. Such delicate cheese must be stored in the refrigerator, but no more than one week.

2. Mascarpone at home

There are many variations in the preparation of this cheese, and all of them do not involve cooking. This is a “cold” cheese, the lightest of all homemade cheeses. Ideal for making cream cheese. There is no milk in the ingredients in this recipe, but it will be better if the cottage cheese, which is necessary for making this cheese, is made from farm milk at home.

Ingredients: Cottage cheese (fat) – 200 g, cream (fat, 33%) – 200 ml.

1) Granular cottage cheese does not have the right consistency for cheese, and the curd mass is inferior in fat content and sometimes includes unnatural components in its composition. Therefore, the cottage cheese used must be rubbed through a sieve 2-3 times.

2) Then you need to add cold cream to the cottage cheese. Using a mixer or blender, beat the cottage cheese with cream at low speed. The cheese will be ready as soon as the whipped mass becomes homogeneous. Stores in the refrigerator for up to one and a half to two weeks.