Best Homemade Mozzarella Cheese Recipes

HOMEMADE MOZZARELLA CHEESE

Steps:

• Combine 1/4 cup water and rennet in a small bowl; mix well.
• Combine remaining 1/2 cup water and citric acid in another small bowl; mix until dissolved.
• Pour milk into a large pot set over medium heat. Stir in water-citric acid mixture. Heat milk, stirring occasionally, until it registers 90 degrees F (32 degrees C) on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes.
• Remove milk from heat and stir in rennet mixture in a figure-8 motion for 30 seconds. Stir counterclockwise for 30 seconds to still the milk. Let stand, covered, until milk sets into curd, 5 to 10 minutes. Press edge of the curd gently with a palette knife or the back of a spoon to check for firmness.
• Slice vertically into the pot to cut curd into 3/4-inch cubes with a palette knife. Stir curds gently, but leave cubes mostly intact.
• Return pot to the heat; cook over medium heat, stirring curds gently, until temperature reaches 109 degrees F (43 degrees C), about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Ladle curds into a colander set over a large bowl using a slotted spoon. Press curds gently to extract liquid whey. Pour drained whey back into the pot.
• Heat whey to 185 degrees F (85 degrees C), about 5 minutes. Wearing gloves, tear off a piece of curd and place on a slotted spoon. Dip curd into hot whey for 5 to 10 seconds. Stretch, fold, and knead the curd. Repeat until mozzarella is smooth and elastic. Knead in salt and form curd into a ball. Repeat dipping and kneading process with remaining curd.
• Allow mozzarella to cool. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator.

30 MINUTE FRESH MOZZARELLA CHEESE HOMEMADE

Steps:

• Crush the rennet into the water and stir to dissolve.
• Pour milk into a non-reactive pot (no aluminum or cast iron).
• Place over medium heat. Sprinkle the citric acid over the milk and stir a few times. Heat milk to 88°F; milk will begin to curdle.
• At 88°F, add the rennet solution and continue stirring slowly every few minutes until the milk reaches 105°F Turn off the heat. Large curds will appear and begin to separate from the whey (the clear, greenish liquid).
• With a slotted spoon or mesh strainer, scoop the curd into a large glass bowl. (If it's still too liquid, let it set for a few more minutes). Press the curds gently with your hand and pour off as much whey as possible.
• Microwave curds on high for 1 minute, then drain off all the excess whey.
• With a spoon, press curds into a ball until cool.
• Microwave two more times for 35 seconds each, and continue to drain the whey and work cheese into a ball.
• In the meantime, place the whey over medium heat and let it heat to about 175°F.
• When cheese is cool enough to touch, knead it like bread dough until smooth. When you can stretch it like taffy, it is done. You can sprinkle 1 to 2 teaspoons salt into the cheese while kneading and stretching it. The cheese will become stretchy, smooth and shiny. If it is difficult to stretch and breaks easily, dip it into the hot whey for a few seconds to make it warm and pliable. Then pick it up again and stretch it into a long rope. Fold over and stretch again. Dip in hot whey as needed to make the cheese pliable.
• When the cheese is smooth and shiny (this takes just a few minutes), it is ready to eat. Shape it into a log or golf-size balls, then store in a solution of 2 teaspoons salt to 1 cup water.

HOMEMADE SMOKED MOZZARELLA CHEESE

Steps:

• Reconstitute powdered milk by stirring into 15 cups cold water; stir until dissolved.
• Combine reconstituted milk, heavy cream, and citric acid in a large pot over low heat. Heat to 90 degrees F (32 degrees C), about 15 minutes.
• Dilute 1/4 teaspoon rennet in remaining 1/4 cup water. Pour into the pot and stir, about 45 seconds. Continue to heat mixture until it reaches 100 degrees F (38 degrees C), about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Let mixture stand until temperature climbs to 105 degrees F (41 degrees C), about 3 minutes, and sets into curd. Pull edge of the curd gently with a thin knife or spoon to check to make sure it is set.
• Slice vertically into the pot to cut curd into 1-inch squares. Transfer curd to a microwave-safe bowl using a hand-held strainer or slotted spoon, draining out as much liquid (whey) as possible.
• Heat the curd in the microwave on high for 1 minute. Drain off whey. Stretch curd mixture and fold, repeating until it cools and becomes difficult to stretch.
• Reheat in the microwave for 30 seconds. Drain whey. Stretch and fold the curds repeatedly.
• Repeat this process one more time, kneading salt and liquid smoke into the cheese. Shape into a ball and place in a bowl of cold water. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm.

HOMEMADE MOZZARELLA CHEESE

Steps:

• Pour the milk into a large deep pan and set over a low heat until it reaches 38C on a thermometer. Remove from the heat, add the yogurt, mix well, then cover with a lid and leave for 25 mins.
• Add the rennet, stirring very gently, then cover again and leave for another 15-20 mins.
• Remove the lid and check if the curds have coagulated and separated from the whey. Use a large whisk or a knife to break up the curds very gently to create pieces around the size of a hazelnut.
• Heat a larger pan half-full with water over a gentle heat to 40C. Put the pan containing the curds into the larger pan to create a bain-marie and check the water temperature frequently to ensure it stays at around 40C. Top up the water from time to time if needed.
• After 2 hrs 30 mins, remove the curds from the pan using a slotted spoon and leave to drain in a colander for about 15 mins. Cut the curds into small pieces and put in a large heatproof bowl.
• Empty the pan of water, then refill and heat to 85C. Pour the hot water over the curds and mix with a wooden spoon for 30-40 seconds. Strain off almost all the water and again, add water at 85C to cover.
• Fold and stretch the curd in the water using the wooden spoon. Keep working until the curds start to become elastic. Now work the curds by folding and stretching by hand (the water will be hot so wear rubber gloves) until they become smooth and elastic.
• Take smaller pieces of the curd and shape into balls. Immediately put in a tub of cold water and chill in the fridge. Can be kept in water, covered, and chilled for up to a week.

HOMEMADE MOZZARELLA CHEESE IN 30 MINS

Steps:

• 1. We start by dissolving ½ teaspoon of Lipase powder in ½ cup of cool water; it needs to sit for about 20 minutes before adding to the milk. Therefore, I do this as I am preparing my ingredients and tools. The Lipase is optional but it gives the cheese a better flavor.
• 2. I pour two gallons of milk in to a CLEAN stock pot (stainless steel DO NOT USE an aluminum pot)and bring it up to 55F over a medium heat stirring constantly; this step goes quickly so be sure to have your thermometer in the milk most of the time. When the milk reaches 55F, add 3 teaspoons of Citric Acid and your Lipase. (Citric acid can be found in a home brew store if you do not want to order from www.cheesemaking.com)
• 3. Heat the mixture to 90F over medium to low heat you will see the milk start to curdle. Off to the side I have waiting in a glass ½ teaspoon plus 2 drops of rennet mixed with ½ cup of water. When the milk hits 90F I add the rennet mixture. Gently stir in an up and down motion, while heating the milk to 105F. Turn off the heat. The curds should be pulling away from the pot and they are ready to be scooped out. (rennet can be fount at the grocery store in tablet form use 1/2 tablet, once again you can order www.cheesemaking.com)
• 4. Scoop out the curds with a slotted spoon or a Chinese spider (that is what we use) put into a microwave safe bowl. Press the curds with your hands, pouring off as much whey as possible.
• 5. We then microwave the curds on high for 1 minute. Drain off the whey again. Gently fold the cheese over and over as if you are kneading bread. Again, microwave for 30 seconds on high drain off whey and add 2 teaspoons of salt. We use cheese salt but kosher salt is ok.
• 6. When the cheese is smooth and shiny we roll, it into medium size balls and place them in a bowl of water and ice to cool. Once cool we pat dry and wrap in plastic. This makes about 2 pounds of cheese. We also make ricotta cheese for the remaining whey...but that is another post!!
• 7. WARNING - if you are making cheese do not bake or cook with yeast for 24 hours prior, the cheese will fail. Also you must use a stainless steel pot not an aluminum one; once again your cheese will fail!