Sunday, April 20, 2003


more mozz

i'm beginning to think making mozzarella is the ultimate italian process: the less you do to it, the better it is. i've done this a couple of times now -- more results!

first, whole regular supermarket milk -- not ultra-pasteurized -- is crucial. all the organic milk in my supermarket sez ultra-pasteurized on it. avoid it.

second, add cream to the whole milk. 1 pint of heavy whipping cream added to the recipe (1 gallon of milk) noticeably improves flavor. this morning the only cream i could find was ultra pasteurized. so i tried it anyway. the recipe still worked -- but you can't use anymore ultra pasteurized stuff than 1 pint.

it's probably much better to get high-quality raw milk and cream, which can be found sometimes at the health food stores.
of course, fat is what we want, which is why buffalo milk -- it's got much more fat than even unseparated cow's milk -- is so delicious. anyway, get as much non-ultra-pasteurized fat into the pot as possible.

third, heat gently. overheating/heating too quickly seems to help make the cheese tough. stir the curd as lazily as possible.

fourth, getting some lipase helps make the cheese softer/less rubbery, and it gives it a sweet but very light tang. i am ordering some lipase myself next week.

fifth, knead as little as possible, just until shiny and smooth. too much kneading also contributes a rubbery result. and try not to squeeze all the whey out of the cheese. otherwise you get something sort of like havarti in texture. . .

sixth, make sure to add some salt to the cheese.

you'll get about 14-1/2 to 15-1/2 oz. cheese. it's delicious warm. but after about 4 to 6 hours it does toughen up, which is why i now understand why anna del conte in her big book of italian cooking scorns "old" mozzarella.

to keep it soft longer, divide the cheese into balls, cover them with spring water (mozzarella hates chlorine, gives the cheese a bad flavor) and add some salt. this helps keeps the nicer texture. for best results, buy some calcium chloride to add to the spring water. this also retards spoilage and lets you keep the cheese for more than a day or two.

you'll be hearing more as i refine my technique. . .

posted by fortune | 5:09 PM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 0 comments