From milk to curd, and then curd to cheese, There are many steps along the way to make the cheeses we all know and love. It’s a natural process that requires help from a craftsmen team, also known as fromagers or cheesemakers. Another term you may hear is a cheesemonger, which technically refers to someone who sells cheese. La Nica Products Inc. explains with varieties of cheese, the process of making cheese depends on the type of cheese being made. Any type of cheese making follows the general process in its earlier stages.
How is Cheese Made?
Cheese is made up using chemical and physical processes to turn milk into a characteristic curd. The process of making cheese comes in some essential steps. The treatment during curd forming, pressing, polishing, and storage conditions determine the characteristics of the cheese. Let us understand the basic steps of cheese making.
#1. Preparing the milk
Before the milk turns into cheese, it may need to be prepared for the following process.
#2. Acidifying the milk
Adding additive cultures to milk causes the milk to ferment and become more acidic.
#3. Curdling the milk
Cheese milk is pre-cooked after adding the appropriate bacterial culture to the type of cheese and mixed with rennet. Rennet curdles in the milk and create curds.
#4. Cutting the curd
Next, the cheesemaker cuts the curd and heats it with a knife, separating the curd and whey.
#5. Processing the curd
La Nica Products Inc. further explains that processing the yogurt through stirring, cooking, and washing continues to acidify and dry the yogurt.
#6. Draining the whey
Next, the whey gets removed, leaving only a mat of cheese curds.
#7. Cheddaring the cheese
The cheesemaker cuts the yogurt mat into squares and then repeatedly flips the square pieces before mixing the mat.
#8. Salting the cheese
The next process is salting the cheese. Generally called dry brine, and for others, it’s briny.
#9. Shaping the cheese
The finished curd is finally placed in cheese molds. These molds are commonly made of plastic, which determines the size and shape of the finished cheese.
#10. Aging the cheese
Aging cheese doesn’t mean leaving it around for a while. Some cheeses get aged for anywhere from several days to several years. The cheese is either pressed with its weight or commonly pressed into molds.
Takeaway:
Finally, the cheese is coated, wrapped, or packed.
Cheese Making: A Highly Controlled Process
Cheese-making is a carefully controlled process that takes time to finish. And even some subtle changes in the process can affect the texture and the taste of the finished cheese. Traditionally cheeses are aged in a cool environment with relatively high humidity levels. Another term that is used for aging the cheese is ripening. There are two basic types of ripening; internally cooked cheeses are coated with wax or some other artificial rind to protect the surface. Cheese is baked on a surface that is not closed from the outside, and so a natural rind develops with the help of bacteria.
Wrapping Up:
Cheese-making involves several main steps that are common to most types of cheese. There are also other methods of treatment that are specific to certain varieties. According to La Nica Products Inc., world-class cheese comes from stellar milk. From there, the cheese travels to the cheese plant, and the magic begins. They are the best cheese seller in Central America. La Nica Products Inc. was founded in 1988 in Miami. With an initiative to serve the best cheese products in the entire United States, they offer the most delicious cheese with top quality and hygiene.
