Chevre
A Soft French Goat Milk Cheese
Prep Time40 mins
ripening and draining1 d
Total Time1 d 40 mins
- 1 gallons Goat milk not ultra pasteurized
- 1/4 tsp calcium chloride diluted in 1/8 cup of distilled water (not necessary if using raw milk)
- 4 drops liquid rennet diluted in 1/8 cup of distilled water (use 20% less rennet if using raw milk)
- Flora Danica mesophilic culture 1/8 tsp for 1-2 gallons
- cheese salt you wat 1% of the total weight after the cheese is finished draining.
Preparing the milk
Bring your milk up to 68F (20C) - 72F (22C).
Add the calcium chloride (if using pasteurized milk) and stir in for 1 minute.
Sprinkle the mesophilic culture over the top of the milk and allow it to rehydrate for 3 minutes. Once rehydrated stir with an up and down motion for 5 minutes to mix everything well.
Add the diluted rennet to your milk and stir with an up and down motion for 60 seconds.
Cover and let it sit at room temperature (68f - 72f) or (20c-22c) for 18 - 24 hours. Your target ph is between 4.6 and 4.7.
Place curds in molds
Once you hit your pH target (if you are checking for that) and you have a clean break with your curd mass, begin to cut 1/2 inch horizontal cuts then 1/2 inch vertical cuts through your curd mass. Then gently scoop out the curd and place it in a cheese cloth lined colander.
Tie the cheese cloth to form a bundle and hang so that it can drain Allow the cheese to drain for 18 - 36 hours (depending on what you want the final cheese texture and taste to be like). Room temperature should be 68f - 72f (20c - 22c) while it's draining.
If you want a creamy and sweet chevre then allow your cheese to drain for 12-18 hours.If you want a dryer and tangy chevre then allow your cheese to drain for 24 - 36 hours.
Molding your cheese
You can technically mold your cheese at any time during this process but I find that molding the cheese after salting is the easiest way. For this I just scoop my soft cheese into the molds and place them in the refrigerator covered. After a few hours I'll flip the cheese and refrigerate again. Once the cheese has properly firmed up I'll remove them from their molds and wrap in cling film.
This cheese can be frozen