We MADE Mozzarella from Scratch!

We made home made mozzarella! I never thought one could MAKE cheese, but we did it! We took our direction from a site called barefootkitchenwitch.com, and had no problem following her directions. Plus, she's a very funny writer which made the experience even more enjoyable! We also used www.cheesemaking.com, because we wanted to use the microwave method vs. the oven method. OK so let's get down to business. Below is step by step directions on how to create your own delicious mozzarella and some of our own photos!




So here's what you need:
1 1/2 level teaspoons citric acid dissolved in 1/2 cup cool water
1 gallon pasteurized whole milk
1/8-1/4 teaspoon lipase powder
1/4 teaspoon liquid rennet (or 1/4 rennet tablet) diluted in 1/4 cup cool, unchlorinated water (we had some trouble actually finding rennet, they don't sell it everywhere. Try a baking shop or some type of specialty store)




1. While stirring, add the citiric acid solution to the milk at 55 degrees F and mix thoroughly. My fiance is a cheese making master! He is also wearing a Spiderman apron. OK back to cheese.

2. Heat the milk to 90 degrees F over medium/low heat (The milk will start to curdle)

3. Gently stir in the diluted rennet with an up-and-down motion, while heating the milk to between 100-105 degrees F. Turn off the heat. The curds should be pulling away from the sides of the pot, they are ready to scoop out (about 3 to 5 minutes for this). See photo below! These curds are ready to go!

4. The curds will look like thick yogurt and have a bit of a shine to them, and the whey will be clear. If the whey is still milky white, wait a few more minutes

5. Scoop out the curds with a slotted spoon and put into a 2-quart microwavable bowl. Press the curds gently with your hands, pouring off as much whey as possible

6. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Pour off whey.

7. Knead and reheat for 30 seconds, if needed. We had to do this step a few times, you want it to be HOT.

8. Knead the curds as you would pizza dough while still in the bowl. Many people recommend gloves while doing this, but Greg just did it with his hands ha! Drain any excess liquid.

9. Remove curd from bowl and continue kneading, return to microwave if needed. We did keep microwaving it a few times, the curds are hard to knead if it's not hot enough. Look how beautiful it is!!!!!

10. Stretch!!!!!!!!!!! Stretch!!!!!!!!!!! Stretch!!!!!!!!!!! This part is SO fun.

11. Da da da DAAAAAAAAAAAA! Cheese has miraculously appeared! Knead it back into a ball (or a few smaller balls) and it's ready to eat! Nice and warm and delicious!

12. To harden the cheese up a little bit (only if you want to) put in a water bath for a bit and store in a Ziplock bag in the refrigerator

Greg and I were SO proud of ourselves for doing this! It's a fun project to do if you're into cooking or baking, and the cheese really does taste store bought. We did salt our cheese a bit, but you don't have to. Our friends and family quickly caught on and starting requesting that we bring cheese when we came to visit. It really doesn't take long, I think it took about 40-45min for the whole process. Well, I hope this was helpful! Now start making your own! =)