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Homemade Mozzarella

Practice makes perfect mozzarella.

    Kelly Price

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    14 Comments

    • mrmambo

      Kelly, can you freeze leftovers? I know it’s probably not for the best, but I’m thinking of using it for pizzas in weeks to come and it’d be great to have some stocked up.

    • JacobC

      Thank you! I attempted to make mozzarella a couple of months ago and it was far from a resounding success. These tips have encouraged me to try again.

    • Christine Liu
      Christine Liu

      Hi mrmambo, we wouldn’t recommend freezing it, but we love the thought of fresh cheese on pizza! JacobC, glad you found this step-by-step recipe helpful. Please let us know how your next batch comes out. Don’t be discouraged, as practice makes perfect.

    • zibu00

      Is there a brand of vegetable rennet that the test kitchen has had good success with?

    • jamie c

      The text recipe and the 18-step directions start off differently. Do you recommend heating the milk/cream to 90F before adding citric acid solution or vice versa?

    • Christine Liu
      Christine Liu

      Hi Jamie, we regret the inconsistency. It actually doesn’t matter too much what order you go in, but it’s easier to add the citric acid from the beginning so you know for sure that it is well-incorporated. This recipe is already great, but we’re actually updating the recipe to be even more foolproof (we live for re-testing!), so stay tuned for the newer version.

    • musical_rach

      We followed this recipe for our first time making mozzarella, and it turned out well. There were some oddities to the recipe though. We didn’t get 1.5 lbs of mozzarella that the recipe states…only 13 ounces. What would cause that? Also the 18-step directions say to add 3 Tbs of kosher salt, but the text recipe says 6 Tbs. We did the 6 Tbs and it turned out good.

    • Christine Liu
      Christine Liu

      Hi musical_rach, apologies for the confusion. It is indeed 6 tablespoons salt, and we amended the caption accordingly. Thanks for the sharp eye.

    • musical_rach

      Christine – What would have caused us to get only 13 ounces of mozzarella vs the 1.5 lbs that the recipe is supposed to yield? I’m curious if this is a technique error or just different formulation of varying ingredients. Small differences I can expect, but I found it strange that the recipe yielded just over half of what it was supposed to. Thanks!

    • Christine Liu
      Christine Liu

      Hi musical_rach — I just conferred with the cooks. The recipe yield depends a little on the type of dairy used and a lot on the type of rennet used (newer animal rennet versus older animal rennet versus vegetable rennet). The yield will also vary depending on how well the stretching step goes: you an get a higher yield by working quickly with the right temperature whey. Sometimes if the whey is too hot, you’ll lose more cheese bits. Hope this helps. Yay DIY!

    • musical_rach

      Fascinating! Thank you for the info! For reference (and I just remembered), we used vegetable rennet b/c for the life of me I could not find animal rennet in a store in central Oklahoma. I think I’ll try ordering some online. Thanks again!

    • bozemaje

      Question about milk. I am hunting around for a good milk source (my first attempt at this was a flop, so I’m starting with making sure my ingredients are right). One dairy that I contacted said that the issue for them typically wasn’t the pasteurization but the homogenization and that I would need to find non-homogenized milk. What is your experience? Do you use regular “grocery store” milk in your recipe?

    • Kit

      Just wondering if the temperatures are Fahrenheit?

    • Christine Liu
      Christine Liu

      Yes—all the temperatures indicated in all of our recipes are in Fahrenheit.

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