I got a half gallon of raw goat milk from my herd share this week so that I could try making goat cheese. This is part of my process of experimenting with goat milk before we decide if we want to get a couple goats.
I found a recipe online which looked very simple. It started by heating up the milk to 180°. The recipe only calls for 4 cups of milk but I had 6 1/2 so I just adjusted all the ingredients up.
Once the milk reached 180° I turned the heat off and remove the pot from the stove top.
Next you add the acids. For goat milk you have to add both lemon juice/citric acid and white vinegar. First you add the lemon juice. For my adjusted quantity of milk I needed 9 tablespoons of lemon juice. I stirred that in and it looks like this.
Next came the vinegar. I used about 1 1/2 ounces.
After you add the two acids and stir to mix, leave it sit for about 10 minutes. When you come back after that time you can see the curds beginning to separate.
Now here is something I learned in my first attempt at goat cheese making. The recipe said to pour the mixture through a strainer line with two or three layers of cheesecloth. I used two layers but when I poured my liquid through it, I lost a lot of curds. I think next time I make it I might try using a thin weave Cotton towel.
Anyway, you pour the mixture through the lined strainer.
Now is the time to add salt. I used about a teaspoon and very gently mixed it in. Then you gather up the ends of the cheesecloth and tie them with a piece of twine. Hang your cheese from the kitchen faucet so that it can drain into the sink for about an hour.
After that our scrape your cheese into a container. You can stir are in herbs if you like. Put it in the refrigerator to cool and set. Then enjoy!
My first attempt did not make very much cheese because I lost so many curds through the cheesecloth. The process is so easy though. Now that I have learned it's important to have a very close weave on the straining cloth, I'm anxious to give it another try.
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