Cantal Cheese Making Recipe Instructions
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Acidify & Heat Milk
Using 7 Gallons of Milk heated to 90F, then add 1/4 -1/2 tsp MA 4002 culture or 1 packet of C101 Mesophilic Culture. Let ripen for 30 minutes.
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Coagulate with Rennet
Add 3 ml calf rennet for coagulation in 60 minutes.
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Cut Curds
The curd is then cut to 1/2" size and stirred for 20-30 minutes, after which it is allowed to settle to the bottom.
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Remove Whey
Whey is removed, leaving 1-2" above the curd. A plate is then placed over the curd and a weight is appplied (20-25 lbs)
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Dry & Press Curds
The remainder of the whey is removed and the curd is wrapped in cloth and moved to a draining table and the weight reappplied.
At 30 min intervals the curd is unwrapped and cut into 2" strips and turned over, re-wrapped in cloth and the weight reapplied. This cycle is repeated 3-6 times with increasing weight to get a cheese of appropriate dryness.
The curd should be kept at 80-90F during this period
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Cut & Ripen Curds
The curd mass then is broken ito 3-4 inch blocks and left to ripen overnight.
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Salting
The curd mass is then broken into small pieces as per cheddar (3/4-1"). The cheese is then salted at 1.8-2.5% by weight according to final moisture.
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Pressing
curd now goes into a cloth lined form with follower and weight is applied, 25 lbs at first and turned 3-5 times increasing the weight to a final press weight of 250-300 lbs.
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Aging
Ripen for 3- 9 months at 54F and 80-85% RH% keep the rind clean by brushing.