Farm-Style Cheese

Recipes from the 86 Acres Farmhouse Kitchen

Farm-Style Cheese

A fresh cheese that may just squeak a little in your teeth. It doesn't melt, but it's delicious in salads, on crackers, or as protein-packed snack all by itself.

What You Need:

1/2 gallon raw milk
1/4 cup vinegar (or lemon juice)
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cooking pot with lid
Spoon (preferably slotted)
Thermometer (or you can just estimate)
Strainer
Spatula or wooden spoon
Cheese cloth*
2 dinner plates*
A weight that fits on the plate (jar filled with water, canned food, etc.)*

What to Do:

Pour the milk in the pot and heat over medium heat to about 195° F, or just before boiling. Stir frequently to avoid burning on the bottom.
Remove from heat and pour in the vinegar. Stir well for 30 seconds. You should see the curds separating out right away.
Cover the pot and let sit for 10 minutes.
Spread the cheesecloth over the strainer, and pour in the separated milk. The whey (liquid) will go through, leaving the curds (solids). Gather up the ends of the cheesecloth and squeeze firmly to get out more whey.
Open the cheesecloth and add the salt, mixing it in with a spatula/spoon.
Enjoy the cheese curds as they are (skip to step #9), or fold the cheesecloth around the curds, shaping it into a slightly flattened block or disc.
Put one dinner plate upside down in the sink (or on a tray--for catching the liquid). Put the curd-filled cheesecloth on the dinner plate, put the other plate on top, and put the weight on top of that. Let sit for at least 15 minutes to squeeze out the extra whey and press the curds together.
Unwrap the cheese and slice into cubes if desired.
Store in the refrigerator in sealed container. Use within a week (if it lasts that long! :)

Notes

This style of cheese is known by different names according to region: paneer, farmer's cheese, queso fresco, quark, ricotta salata, pot cheese. Though they vary in details like pressing, salting, and using fresh vs. cultured milk, they all use an acid to separate the curds from the whey, unlike aged cheeses that use rennet.

*Optional, if you want to finish with a block of cheese (rather than curds). You may omit the cheesecloth in step #4 and pour the separated milk directly through the strainer.

(Based on the recipe: “How to Make Paneer Cheese in 30 Minutes” at kitchn.com)

Put your grains in the jar and fill with milk.

Leave the jar in a warm place.

Wait for it to get nice and thick with a tangy aroma.

Pour the cultured mixture through the strainer...

....sifting it with a spatula so the liquid goes through.

Voilà! Now your delicious kefir drink is in the bowl, and your kefir grains are in the strainer, ready to make another batch.

"I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied." Deuteronomy 11:15