How to make your own cheese

Homemade cheese is possible: getting Comté will obviously require a lot of skill and patience, but simple cheese, like dung, is within everyone's reach. Here is the recipe for making a good cheese with classic materials and ingredients.

In theory, it is possible to make any type of cheese from a simple base of milk and rennet. In fact, refining Comté or Camembert cheese for several months requires experience and strict storage conditions that are rarely accessible to everyone. On the other hand, obtaining a base of cheese fresh, faisselle, chaource, dung or ricotta is very easy.

The basic ingredients for making cheese

  • Raw milk from cow or sheep. Please note: no UHT or pasteurized milk. The more your milk is high in fat, the creamier the cheese.

  • Of ferments lactic: get it whey a faisselle or a petit-commerce Swiss. Allow 0.5 to 1% whey compared to the mass raw milk, about 5 to 10 g for a liter of milk, or a petit-suisse for a liter of milk.

  • Rennet (a natural coagulant extracted from the abomasum), which can be obtained in pharmacies or from a cheese maker. There are different kinds depending on the type of cheese you want to get. Otherwise, you can use another coagulant such as vinegar or lemon juice.

  • Fine salt.

  • A large saucepan.

  • A thermometer with probe, on sale in the kitchen utensils shops.

  • An empty strainer or mold with small holes at the bottom.

Homemade cheese recipe

  • 1time step: sowing the milk. It should ideally be done at room temperature (between 20 ° C and 22 ° C). Mix fresh milk with whey or petit-suisse. For the latter, it must first be diluted in a little milk to make it liquid and incorporate it more easily. Let sit 24 to 48 hours to curdle the milk. To skip this step, you can buy already fermented milk.

  • 2e step: renneting. Heat the curd to 35 ° C (checking the temperature with the thermometer) and add the rennet or lemon juice. Cover and let stand 24 hours at room temperature.

  • 3e step: draining. Pour the preparation into a fine mesh colander over a salad bowl or baking dish with small holes. Leave to drain for 24 hours.

  • 4e step: salting. Place the cheese on a cloth and salt it (count about 2 to 3 grams of salt per liter), then repeat the operation after turning the cheese over.

  • 5e stage: maturing. This stage is the most delicate and the longest. The cheese should be stored in a cool, well-ventilated place (for example, a cellar with a fan) and turned daily with a little salt each time. You can also add herbs or pepper.

Refining will be more or less long depending on the type of cheese you want and the storage conditions (temperature and humidity). The more salt you add, the more the cheese will dry and shrink. In 7 days, you get a fresh crottin cheese. After 14 days, a crust fine begins to form. After a month of ripening, the outer crust is hard and the inside becomes dry.

Rice, emblematic food of Asia Long or round, rice is mainly grown in Asia; its culture has also developed on other continents, such as in the Camargue, in France. Rice cultivation in Asia dates back over 10,000 years. Rice grows in humid and sunny regions, in paddy fields, especially rice terraces. It represents the first cereal cultivated in the world for human consumption. © cifor, CC by-nc 2.0

Quinoa, rich in protein Quinoa, or Chenopodium quinoa, has been cultivated for more than 5,000 years on the highlands of South America. Like beans, potatoes, chickpeas and corn, quinoa was the staple food of pre-Columbian civilizations. Its culture was revived in the 20th century. Quinoa is particularly rich in vegetable proteins. © Bioversity International, CC by-nc 2.0

Soft wheat, the first cereal Soft wheat (Triticum aestivum), also called wheat, is the first cereal cultivated in France, which is the first producer and exporter of soft wheat in Europe. Wheat is used to make bread and cookies. Its starch can also make it possible to produce glucose, used as an additive in the food industry. © Half full heart, CC by-nc 2.0

Corn, native to America Corn, originally from Mexico, was the staple food of Native Americans before the arrival in America of Christopher Columbus. Today, corn is also grown in Asia and Europe, where France is the leading producer. The production of corn is mainly used for animal feed, but also for the manufacture of popcorn, flours, oil, and biodegradable products using its starch. © doug CC by-nc 2.0

Barley, the origin of malt Barley is known for promoting good digestion and for providing fiber, B vitamins, selenium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, copper and magnesium. It contains eight essential amino acids and has a favorable action on blood sugar, cholesterol and intestinal flora. Barley is used to make alcoholic beverages by producing malt. © Rasbak, CC by-sa 3.0

Triticale, a cereal close to wheat Triticale or Triticum secale resembles wheat. It is an annual plant of the Poaceae family (grasses), which in fact corresponds to an artificial hybrid (amphiploid) between wheat and rye. Triticale is mainly grown as a feed grain for animal feed. © Anita CC by-nc 2.0

Oats and their flakes, for food and feed Oats, or Avena sativa, native to Asia and the Middle East, have spread to Eastern and Northern Europe. In France, it is consumed for its flakes. The use of oats in food is mainly of Anglo-Saxon origin (Scottish porridge for example) or North European. Oats are also used for animal feed. © M a n u e, CC by-nc 2.0

Sorghum, native to Africa Sorghum is grown for both human (grain sorghum) and animal (forage sorghum) food. It can be eaten in grain like rice, or reduced to flour. In western countries, it is used to make cookies to taste it. The stems of two-tone sorghum are chewed just like sugar cane. © David A. Nafría, CC by-sa 3.0

Rye, famous for its bread The rye forms a bearded spike reminiscent of that of wheat. In human food, rye flour is sought after for the production of bread, in particular for its dietary value. This black bread, which used to be the poor man's bread, is rich in B vitamins, potassium and phosphorus. © Jyrki Salmi, CC by-sa 2.0

Spelled, the wheat of the Gauls Spelled (Triticum spelta), also called "wheat of the Gauls", is a variety of ancient wheat. Robust, it adapts to poor soil. It is marketed under the name of small spelled (engrain) and large spelled and is used in the manufacture of breads, pasta, cookies. © Cookooree CC by-sa 3.0

Millet, small round cereal Millet, or Panicum miliaceum, forms small, round seeds. A sacred plant in Asia, it was widely consumed in medieval Europe. This food grain is grown mainly in dry areas, especially in Africa and Asia. It is also used for animal feed. © Thamizhpparithi Maari, CC by-sa 3.0

Buckwheat or buckwheat, a flowering plant Native to Northeast Asia (Mongolia, China, Manchuria and Siberia), buckwheat forms small white or pink flowers grouped in tight clusters. Buckwheat flour can be used in particular for making Breton pancakes but also couscous. © Mojave Wildflowers, CC by-nc 2.0

Finger millet, coming from Africa and cultivated for its seeds Originally from East Africa, finger millet is an annual plant of the Poaceae family (grasses). It is cultivated for its edible seeds and has a relatively short cycle, which allows rapid production. The finger millet grows in a warm climate and has low water requirements. © Bioversity International, CC by-nc 2.0

Starch, an ancient cereal The starch or Triticum turgidum L. subsp. dicoccumest is, along with the spirit, the oldest cereal domesticated by humans, around 7,500 BC, in the Near East. It was widely cultivated in Antiquity. It is a tetraploid wheat. © LepoRello, CC by-sa 3.0

Italian foxtail or millet of birds The foxtail of Italy (Setaria italica), also called millet of the birds or miliade, is a plant of the family Poaceae (grasses), cultivated in China, in India, in Indonesia, in Korea, in the South of Europe and in East Africa. Foxtails are also sometimes weeds of other crops. © Jebulon, DP

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