The very first cheese I want to write about is “Gouda.” It is one of the most popular and tasty cheeses we meet in our supermarkets and even more delicious when we make at home, with all-natural ingredients. I am glad that I have a chance to show you how this aromatic product can be made at home with your own hands.
Ingredients:
- 2 gallons of whole milk cow’s milk
- ¼ teaspoon mesophilic lactic acid culture
- ¼ teaspoon calcium chloride, dissolved in ¼ cup of water
- ½ animal rennet, dissolved in ¼ cup of water
- ¼ gallon non-chlorinated water, heated to
- Saturated salt brine: 3 pounds salt dissolved in 1-gallon water
Equipment:
- Large Stockpot
- Thermometer with at least 6-inch stem
- Curd knife with at least 10-inch blade
- Cheese form (based on size preference)
- Cheesecloth, size of about 1 square foot
- Cooling rack
- Baking sheet
Procedure:
In a stockpot, heat the milk to reach F and stir milk gently so that it hears evenly. After the milk is warmed up add mesophilic culture and stir gently again. Cover the stockpot and wait for 40-45 minutes. The next step is to add calcium chloride and stir for about 30 seconds gently. After you are done let sit for another 10 minutes. Add the rennet and stir for 30-40 seconds. After done let sit for another 50-70 minutes. During the process maintain milk temperature at about . Once the time is up, you see the texture of the milk hardened, now you need to cut the curd into ½ inch-thick pieces using the knife mentioned above. When done let it sit for at least 5-7 minutes. Then stir for 15-20 minutes, you will notice that curd is soft, but decreasing in side by ¼ while stirring. Then you need to remove the whey and replace it with pre-heated water to and stir gently another 15-20 minutes. Next you need to drain curd. For this step you need to pour excess whey from the stockpot and gently start pressing and grabbing curd with your hands into the cheese form. Place follower in the form and apply some pressure so that remaining whey is pressed out from the curd. Once the liquid is completely out, leave the form for at least 6 hours in dry dark area where the temperature does not exceed . The last step after six hours is to flip the cheese in form and let sit another six hours.
This is all it takes to make delicious Gouda cheese. When you remove the cheese from the form you can place it in a refrigerator for 15-20 minutes and serve after that.
For a drink pairing red semi-dry wine or strong and Trappist ale beer is the best choice.