How to make mozzarella yourself

Mozzarella is a young pickled cheese from the Italian region of Campania. Real mozzarella cheese is usually prepared from Buffalo milk (it is called "Buffalo mozzarella"). But we are more known for cheese from cow's milk as it often can be found on the shelves of Russian. This mozzarella the Italians call "Fiore di Latte" (milk flower).

To prepare the mozzarella used only fresh natural milk — from the milking before the start of cheese making, it should take no more than 12 hours. First the milk is curdled by zakachivaetsja and with the help of special enzymes, and then from the resulting cheese mass with your hands and form the cheese.

Classic mozzarella has a slightly deflating, but very soft and has an elastic layered structure. Usually it is sold in the form of a soaked in a brine, whey or plain aqueous solution of balls, the size of which affects the name of the second cheese. So, very tiny balls about the size of a pea called "perlini" about the size of cherries — "Ciliegini" and large balls the size of a fist — "Bocconcini".

In addition to traditional white balls, you can find mozzarella in the form of braids (it's called "Traccia") or rolls with various fillings — olives, various herbs, prosciutto, Parma ham, sun-dried tomatoes. Also found smoked mozzarella, which is called "Affumicata" and is stored longer than usual.

Mozzarella is considered one of the foundations of Italian cuisine. So much mozzarella used for pizza, cheese casseroles, lasagna and a variety of pies. But the white brine mozzarella — one of the main ingredients of salads and appetizers, such as bruschetta with tomatoes and mozzarella, a recipe which can be found here.

But the easiest and most popular way to eat this cheese is to prepare Caprese salad: lay slices alternately with mozzarella and fresh tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with Basil leaves.

Mozzarella — pleasure not cheap. Besides store-bought cheese is stored for long and often bitter. So today we offer you to cook the pizza yourself using our detailed step by step instructions.

We need: Rennet фермент1/4 tablets

Молоко4 l

Filtered вода1,25 glass

Кислота1 lemon,5 tsp.

, Listo taste

Olive, makopo taste

Spechio, to taste

Method of preparation:

First prepare the curd. To do this, dissolve the rennet in 0.25 cups of filtered water.

In a glass of water, dissolve the citric acid.

Pour the milk into a saucepan and heat it to 30 degrees on medium heat, add the citric acid solution.

Stir the milk with a slotted spoon and watch the temperature.

Bring the temperature up to 38 degrees and add the rennet mixture with the enzyme.

Very gently stir the milk to ensure that to the bottom of the pan nothing sticks.

When the milk reaches a temperature of 40 degrees, turn off the heat, cover the pan with a lid and let stand for 10 minutes.

Look under the lid — the curd should thicken and the whey have a yellowish tint.

Take a colander with a slotted spoon and put it in curd.

Lift the colander to drain the whey.

Press the curd with your hands.

Pressed curd separate the small pieces the same.

Type in a bowl of hot water, how can endure hands (about 80 degrees). Checking the temperature of the water, use gloves to avoid burns.

Salt water (better to use iodized salt).

Gently pour the curd into the water.

A large spoon, remove the cheese and check whether it is ready for kneading — the consistency of the cheese should be, as in the photo.

When the curd is ready, proceed to the main event and stretch and stretch.

If the cheese gets cold and hard, soak it back in the hot water. Continue to knead until the texture of the cheese will not be smooth. It may take 5-20 minutes.