Homemade Artisanal Cheese Making

Instructions

1. Heat the milk in a stainless steel pot over medium heat until it reaches 86°F. 2. Sprinkle the mesophilic starter culture over the milk and let it rehydrate for 1 minute. 3. Stir the culture into the milk using an up and down motion for 1 minute. 4. Cover the pot and let the milk ripen at 86°F for 45 minutes. 5. Dilute the calcium chloride in 1/4 cup of non-chlorinated water and add it to the milk, stirring gently. 6. Dissolve the rennet in 1/4 cup of non-chlorinated water and add it to the milk, stirring gently. 7. Cover the pot and let the milk set at 86°F for 45-60 minutes, or until you get a clean break. 8. Cut the curds into 1/4-inch pieces using a long knife. 9. Slowly heat the curds to 105°F over the course of 30 minutes, stirring gently. 10. Maintain the curds at 105°F for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 11. Drain the whey from the curds using a cheesecloth-lined colander. 12. Transfer the curds to cheese molds lined with cheesecloth, pressing gently to remove excess whey. 13. Sprinkle cheese salt over the curds, pressing it into the surface. 14. Let the cheese age in a cheese aging cave or refrigerator at 50-55°F for 1-4 weeks, depending on the desired flavor and texture. 15. Remove the cheese from the molds and coat it with cheese wax for longer aging. 16. Place the coated cheese on a cheese aging mat in the aging cave or refrigerator. 17. Flip the cheese daily for the first week, then weekly thereafter. 18. Age the cheese for a total of 4-12 weeks, or until it reaches the desired flavor and texture.