Homemade Mozzarella

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One thing about my Tbug and my husband, they humor me, a lot. When I get some crazy idea in my head I want to try and make something, because I never have, they go along with it. Our most recent challenge… making Homemade Mozzarella. It’s pretty sweet we made our own cheese. I’m not real sure it tastes like Mozzarella, but the original recipe had a Pesto sauce on top of it, so that might be the difference.

1 1/2 teaspoons citric acid powder dissolved in 1/4 cup cool water. Available here.
1 gallon whole milk- Also- do not, under any circumstances, use ultra-pasteurized milk for this cheese.
1/4 teaspoon regular strength rennet dissolved in 1/4 cup cool water (or 1/8 teaspoon double strength rennet OR 1/4 tablet vegetable rennet, crushed and dissolved in the 1/4 cup water.) Available here
1 teaspoon cheese salt, optional (cheese salt is just any salt that is not iodized or flavored.)

Pour the gallon of milk into a large stainless steel or other non-reactive stockpot. Sprinkle the citric acid over the top and stir in gently. Heat milk to 88°F. Don’t panic when the milk starts to curdle. That’s the idea!

While pot is still over heat, stir the diluted rennet in gently making sure to stir all of the milk (don’t just top-stir!) Once the milk reaches between 100-105ºF, kill the heat. WALK AWAY FROM THE PAN for about 5 minutes. I mean it. Do not touch that pan.

When you come back, the curds (the white part) should’ve pulled away from the sides of the pot and you should see lots of whey (yellowish clear liquid) on top and around the sides. If the whey is still milky looking, wait a couple more minutes. This is not a bad thing… All milk is different.

Now comes the fun part. Scoop the curds out of the pot with a slotted spoon and put them into a microwave safe 2 quart or larger sized bowl. Gently press the curd together against the side of the bowl with your hand. You’ll probably have lots of whey coming off the curd. Drain the whey off back into the stockpot and DON’T THROW IT AWHEY, er, AWAY, that is!***

***Whey is incredibly healthy for you. Use it in place of milk when baking bread to really improve both the health quotient and the texture of your loaves. I’ve heard it said that chilled whey, mixed with fresh squeezed lemon juice and sugar makes a refreshing drink. Um, sure. I’m not quite there yet, but I do use it in my bread when it’s available and it is wonderful!

Put the bowl of curds into the microwave and nuke on high for 1 minute. Use your hands to hold the cheese in the bowl, and drain the extra whey back into the stockpot. Make like you’re kneading delicate bread dough and use your impeccably clean hands to gently fold the cheese back on itself over and over. Again, drain any excess whey back into the pot.

Return the bowl to the microwave and zap it for 35 seconds more. Knead the curds and drain the whey again.

Return once more to the microwave and give it 25 more seconds. Drain off the whey, add salt, if using, and knead until the curds are shiny and stretchy like taffy. You can continue to microwave it in small 10-20 second bursts if the curds cool down to the point where they’re snapping or breaking rather than stretching.