Craft your own fresh, silky mozzarella cheese with this artisanal recipe. Using simple, quality ingredients, this process transforms milk into a delightfully stretchy and flavorful cheese. Perfect for cheese enthusiasts and DIY foodies, this recipe offers a satisfying experience in cheesemaking.
Why You'll Love This:
- Fresh and Natural: Made from scratch with wholesome ingredients.
- Customizable: Adjust the salt to your taste or experiment with lipase for varied flavors.
- Versatile Use: Ideal for salads, pizzas, or as a delicious snack.
- Rewarding Process: Experience the joy of creating your own cheese.
Ingredients:
- Milk (1 gallon/3.78 liters): Preferably raw, low-temp pasteurized, or non-homogenized. Avoid ultra-pasteurized.
- Citric Acid: 1 1/2 tsp, dissolved in 1/2 cup water
- Lipase Powder (optional): 1/8 tsp, dissolved in 5 tbsp water
- Rennet: 1/4 tsp, dissolved in 4 tbsp water
- Cheese Salt or Sea Salt (optional)
Instructions for Mozzarella:
- Dissolve citric acid in water in a small bowl.
- In a separate bowl, dissolve rennet in water. Do the same with lipase powder, if using.
- Pour milk into a large pan. Stir in the citric acid and lipase mixtures.
- Heat the milk to 95°F (35°C) over medium heat.
- Remove from heat, stir in the rennet mixture for 20 seconds. Cover and let it sit for 5-7 minutes.
- Cut the curd with a sharp knife, then gently heat to 105-110°F (40-43°C) while stirring.
- After removing from heat, continue stirring for 1-2 minutes.
- Scoop the curds into a strainer to separate from the whey, transferring the curds to a bowl.
- Squeeze the curds with hands to remove excess whey. Reserve the whey in a jar.
- Optionally, add salt to the curds. Microwave the curds for about 30 seconds until they reach 145-155°F (62-68°C).
- Stretch and fold the cheese until smooth. You may need to repeat this process a few times.
- Shape the cheese into a ball. Caution: The cheese will be hot, consider using food-safe gloves.
- Place the cheese in room temperature water and then refrigerate for about an hour.
Enjoy your homemade mozzarella in your favorite dishes or as a delicious standalone treat!