Making Fresh Goat Cheese is Easy.
Ever wanted to make your own cheese but just didn’t have the time, materials or knowledge to do so? Well, this is the perfect cheese for beginners because it doesn’t require rennet or cultures. It’s very mild and soft, similar to ricotta. Use it to spruce up a weeknight salad, spread it on crostinis with olive tapenade or try this recipe for grilled radicchio with goat cheese and herbed tomato dressing.
Kitchen Experiments: Make Goat Cheese at Home
Ingredients
- 1/2 gallon (8 cups) goat’s milk
- 1 teaspoon citric acid
- 1 teaspoon cheese salt
Instructions
All you need for this mild cheese is a 1/2 gallon of goat’s milk, 1 teaspoon citric acid, 1 teaspoon cheese salt and a few supplies like cheesecloth, a thermometer and a colander.
First, mix 1 teaspoon of citric acid with 1/4 cup water. Whisk until dissolved.
Heat goat’s milk to 190 degrees F in a pot over medium heat.
Turn the heat to low and pour in the citric acid solution. Stir thoroughly.
Heat for one more minute, keeping temperature at 190 degrees F (be sure the temperature does not exceed 195 degrees F). You should see some curdling. Remove from heat and cover with a lid. Let sit for 10 minutes undisturbed.
Strain the curds through a cheesecloth-lined colander, set over a large bowl to catch the whey.
After the curds have drained for 5 to 10 minutes, gently stir in 1 teaspoon cheese salt (non-iodized salt). Taste, and add more salt if necessary.
You can add fresh or herbs at this point if you’d like. We divided the mixture in two, and added minced chives to one half.
Use right away as fresh crumbly goat cheese, shape into a log and roll in wax paper, or place in molds and refrigerate until firm.
Unmold and serve!
