Easy method of making mozzarella cheese.

If you heard the phrase 'as American as apple pie' you might substitute 'pizza pie' in the phrase. Pizza is now made everywhere in the US and everywhere in Europe. One key ingredient of pizza is mozzarella cheese. While, you can buy mozzarella in almost every store, the home made stuff is best, especially when just made and the cheese is  still warm. Mozzarella is a pasta filata cheese, which translates to 'stretched curd.' It is very easy to make and it takes a short time.

 

What you need to make it:

 

Heavy, rubberized gloves

Pot to hold 2 gallons of milk

Citric acid

Colander

Cheese cloth

Long bladed knife

Microwave

Glass bowl

Thermometer that can be hung on the pot.

Vegetable (or animal) rennet tablet.

 

Method

 

1. Bring the milk to 55F.

2. Add 1 TBSP citric acid and stir to dissolve.

3. Grind up the rennet and dissolve in 1 cup of non-chlorinated water.

4. Continue to heat the milk to 90F.

5. Add the rennet.

6. Stir on the top then stir from bottom to top 15X.

7. Allow to sit till milk curdles and looks like custard(10 minutes or so).

8. With the long knife cut the curd into 1/2 to 3/4 inch squares.

9. Heat the curds to 105F. Stir by quickly rotating the pot about 1/4. This will preserve the cubes of curd..

10. When curds are at the right temp (105F) scoop them onto the cheese cloth laid over the colander. Need another pot under the colander. Can save the whey for other purposes.

11. Let the whey drain and pick up the cheese cloth and sqeeze it gently to expel some whey.

12. Pour the curds into the glass bowl.

13. Microwave the curds in the bowl on high for 1 minute.

14. Discard any whey then put on a glove and kneed the curd mass (the pasta filata). This is done to distribute the heat in the pasta filata forming.

15. Repeat this step and discard some more whey and kneed the curds again.

16. Add 1 tbsp. non-iodized salt. Microwave 30 seconds and kneed one more time. Pull the pasta filata. It should be satiny and smooth.

17. Some people dump the pasta filate into ice water to cool it, but it can be put into a small bowl and refrigerated.

Supposedly it takes 30 minutes to make this cheese, but it takes me longer.