Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?
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I love learning new and interesting skills and also love to expanding my knowledge base, especially with things I enjoy eating. Quite a few years ago I started making cheese but really did not get into it because I did not have a “cheese cave”. Having built a curing chamber which hold the perfect temp and humidity I am now aging cheeses. It does take patience but that is part of the fun.
So far I have (aging):
- A Cheddar
- A Colby
- A Pepperjack
- A Gouda
- A Baby Swiss
And I am about to entertain the idea of making a Parmesan. All the cheeses are in different stages of aging. Because I am a hobbyist and not a connoisseur you will see that my cheeses are vac sealed instead of cloth banded, waxed, or aged using a natural rind. Maybe as I expand the hobby I will venture to see if it is true that different methods offer different tastes but for the time being I am happy with just creating my cheeses.
If you enjoy the hobby, please feel free to post some pictures of your creation or cheese cave
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I love learning new and interesting skills and also love to expanding my knowledge base, especially with things I enjoy eating. Quite a few years ago I started making cheese but really did not get into it because I did not have a “cheese cave”. Having built a curing chamber which hold the perfect temp and humidity I am now aging cheeses. It does take patience but that is part of the fun.
So far I have (aging):
- A Cheddar
- A Colby
- A Pepperjack
- A Gouda
- A Baby Swiss
And I am about to entertain the idea of making a Parmesan. All the cheeses are in different stages of aging. Because I am a hobbyist and not a connoisseur you will see that my cheeses are vac sealed instead of cloth banded, waxed, or aged using a natural rind. Maybe as I expand the hobby I will venture to see if it is true that different methods offer different tastes but for the time being I am happy with just creating my cheeses.
If you enjoy the hobby, please feel free to post some pictures of your creation or cheese cave
Dr_Pain I was given a kit for a present and have done some. Like you I have been building a curing chamber. I haven’t proceeded much but I will as time and opportunity permits.
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Dr_Pain I was given a kit for a present and have done some. Like you I have been building a curing chamber. I haven’t proceeded much but I will as time and opportunity permits.
YooperDog said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain I was given a kit for a present and have done some. Like you I have been building a curing chamber. I haven’t proceeded much but I will as time and opportunity permits.
That is awesome! What kind of cheese have you made so far. Always looking to try my hand at different varieties. The cheeses I make most often are:
- Basic white cheddar cheese curds to make poutine
- Whey ricotta (from the left over whey from making cheese) to make ricotta gnocchi or just eat it plain
- Fresh Mozzarella.
The cheeses in the opening posts were more recent (last 4 months or so) creations because I finally had my curing chamber dialed in.
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YooperDog said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain I was given a kit for a present and have done some. Like you I have been building a curing chamber. I haven’t proceeded much but I will as time and opportunity permits.
That is awesome! What kind of cheese have you made so far. Always looking to try my hand at different varieties. The cheeses I make most often are:
- Basic white cheddar cheese curds to make poutine
- Whey ricotta (from the left over whey from making cheese) to make ricotta gnocchi or just eat it plain
- Fresh Mozzarella.
The cheeses in the opening posts were more recent (last 4 months or so) creations because I finally had my curing chamber dialed in.
Dr_Pain My grandsons love cheese curds so I got a kit and had them help me make some. They had a lot of fun doing it and gobbled them up in no time. I have often thought of trying other types but have enough projects already. Limburger would be fun to try!
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Are the cheese fridge conditions similar to meat aging?
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Are the cheese fridge conditions similar to meat aging?
Ridley Acres said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Are the cheese fridge conditions similar to meat aging?
The “cheese cave” has the same conditions as a curing chamber (50-55F and 80% humidity). I have a couple of controllers on my conversion: One that controls the unit (and kicks the compressor on when the designated temp is reached) and another one that controls the humidifier and dehumidifier I have in the unit.
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This is the current state of the unit. I have salamis, salumis and pepperonis in the meat locker along all the cheeses
Dr_Pain so I see you have some sausage in there, but if you only had cheese in there would the humidifier be needed since your cheese is vac sealed? Edit: I do see at least one cheese that isn’t vac sealed
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Dr_Pain so I see you have some sausage in there, but if you only had cheese in there would the humidifier be needed since your cheese is vac sealed? Edit: I do see at least one cheese that isn’t vac sealed
Ridley Acres said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain so I see you have some sausage in there, but if you only had cheese in there would the humidifier be needed since your cheese is vac sealed?
Awesome question! I have all semi-hard cheeses in there so once they are finished drying you can wax them, cloth band them or in my case vac seal them. I do have a Baby Swiss exposed but as soon as the Proprionic Shermani is done doing its thing I will vac seal it also.
The humidity is only important if you do a natural rind (which I may do for my parmesan…upcoming) or if you so soft cheeses like brie, camembert etc… Those are basically put in a container that “breathes”. But I am not the expert on those because I have not made any. Just info from researching!
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Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
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Those look like a fun and interesting project. Might be on a list of things to try
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Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
Dr_Pain said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
We are hoping to get into dairy goats next year, and my wife is really into aged cheese so I will likely pick up a single door soda cooler and do the same as you. I’d like to be able to hang a whole pork leg and an assortment of charcuterie along with cheese.
(Note: I was born in Northern IL and yes I say soda) -
Dr_Pain said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
We are hoping to get into dairy goats next year, and my wife is really into aged cheese so I will likely pick up a single door soda cooler and do the same as you. I’d like to be able to hang a whole pork leg and an assortment of charcuterie along with cheese.
(Note: I was born in Northern IL and yes I say soda)Ridley Acres said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
We are hoping to get into dairy goats next year, and my wife is really into aged cheese so I will likely pick up a single door soda cooler and do the same as you. I’d like to be able to hang a whole pork leg and an assortment of charcuterie along with cheese.
(Note: I was born in Northern IL and yes I say soda)I’ll be doing a Prosciutto de Parma sooner than later and I will have enough space in my rig
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Ridley Acres said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Most of the people that I see interested in cheese ONLY pick up a wine cooler from FB market. I wanted to do charcuteries and eventually soft cheeses so I had to go with absolute temp and humidity control.
We are hoping to get into dairy goats next year, and my wife is really into aged cheese so I will likely pick up a single door soda cooler and do the same as you. I’d like to be able to hang a whole pork leg and an assortment of charcuterie along with cheese.
(Note: I was born in Northern IL and yes I say soda)I’ll be doing a Prosciutto de Parma sooner than later and I will have enough space in my rig
Dr_Pain Prosciutto is my target on the bucket list. I’m so looking forward to doing it. You look like you have a head start, so plenty pictures please.
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YooperDog said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain I was given a kit for a present and have done some. Like you I have been building a curing chamber. I haven’t proceeded much but I will as time and opportunity permits.
That is awesome! What kind of cheese have you made so far. Always looking to try my hand at different varieties. The cheeses I make most often are:
- Basic white cheddar cheese curds to make poutine
- Whey ricotta (from the left over whey from making cheese) to make ricotta gnocchi or just eat it plain
- Fresh Mozzarella.
The cheeses in the opening posts were more recent (last 4 months or so) creations because I finally had my curing chamber dialed in.
Dr_Pain my foray has been into making mozzarella
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Dr_Pain Prosciutto is my target on the bucket list. I’m so looking forward to doing it. You look like you have a head start, so plenty pictures please.
Chef said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain Prosciutto is my target on the bucket list. I’m so looking forward to doing it. You look like you have a head start, so plenty pictures please.
You know I will. Prosciutto is a year commitment. I have a slight mental block but I will get it done -
YooperDog said in Any cheesemaking hobbyist amongst you?:
Dr_Pain my foray has been into making mozzarella
Mozzarella is so rewarding. Citric acid and 30 minutes of actual work and bam you have a product
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