Small communities often don’t have great selection of certain items, including cheese. Cheddar and mozzarella are popular but we like more variety so I decided to try making some on board using a kit that I purchased at a farmer’s market before I left on this year’s voyage. There are many kits available online.
The process was really quite simple and successful. Now I’m back in my land-bound kitchen I am going to try other variations.
We enjoyed this soft herbed cheese with an ale in the cockpit.
1. Kits are available online. This is a simple soft cheese one, great for a first time.
2. The milk is heated to around 150 F. A candy thermometer is useful…do not allow to come to boil. The type/kind of milk affects the type of cheese. Do not use UHT milk and obviously the higher the fat content of your milk the richer the cheese. Some recommend powdered milk which I am going to experiment with.
3. The citric acid is added. It was included in my kit but lemon juice or vinegar can also be used but add their respective flavours. This is something I am going to experiment with. Curds begin to form.
4. Curds have formed. The whey evidently can be used for soups etc but we just don’t have space in our fridge for this kind of storage.
5. Pour into a colander lined with very fine cloth, allow to drain.
6. Add salt and herbs, I used an Herbs de Provence mix.
7. Wrap the cloth up around the cheese and press out the remaining liquid. Allow to sit til it is well drained and has firmed up.
8. Enjoy!