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1. Cookie

   How to Make Cheese Curds

   Most everyone knows the old nursery rhyme about Little Miss Muffet, but few know that the curds and whey she was eating was an old fashioned form of cottage cheese, known as pot cheese. Simple to make, most households used excess milk to make cheese curds for eating.

   Things You’ll Need:

   * 1 gallon raw milk
   * Large stainless steel pot with cover
   * Wire mesh colander
   * Cheesecloth

   Step 1 Pour the milk into the pot and cover. Place the pot in a warm area of your home. This could be near a heater vent in the winter or on a covered porch during the summer.

   Step 2 Let the milk sit for several days or until curds form. This can take anywhere from 1 to 3 days depending on the temperature. Check daily.

   Step 3 Drain the curds in a cheesecloth lined colander. Tie the corners of the cheesecloth and let the cheese bag hang for 15 to 20 minutes.

   Step 4 Untie the bag and put the curds into a container that can be covered and refrigerate for up to one week.
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   Making Homemade Curd Cheese

   You need little by way of equipment to make curd cheese: a 2 – 6 litre pan, or larger (depending on the quantity of milk), a stirring paddle or wooden spoon, a colander, and some new cheesecloth. You will need the following ingredients for an easily manageable home batch of panir.

   • 4 litres fresh milk
   • 3-4 cups yogurt, or 4-6 tablespoons lemon juice or white vinegar, or 2 teaspoons citric acid dissolved in ¾ cup water

   Pour the milk into a heavy-bottomed pan that allows plenty of room for boiling.

   Set it over high heat and bring the milk to a full foaming boil, stirring often to prevent scorching and sticking.

   Reduce the heat to low, and, before the foam subsides, drizzle in the lemon juice, vinegar, citric acid solution, or spoon in the yogurt. Very gently and slowly move the spoon through the milk in one direction. After 10 or 15 seconds, remove the pan from the heat and continue to gently agitate the milk until large lumps of soft curd form. If the cheese has not formed after 1 minute place the pan over the heat momentarily until the casein (milk protein) coagulates and leaves pale yellow-greenish whey. If necessary, add a little more acid agent. The greenish colour of the whey is due to the presence of whey-soluble proteins Riboflavin and Lactoglobulin.

   As soon as the cheese has formed, remove the pan from the heat, cover it and set it aside for 10 minutes. If you want a very soft cheese, gently pour in 1 or 2 cups of hot water. When the cheese has settled under the surface of the whey

   it is ready to drain.

   Line a colander with 2 or 3 thicknesses of cheesecloth or some clean white cloth that has been dipped in water and wrung dry. Drape the corners and edges of the cloth over the sides of the colander. If you want to collect the whey, set the colander over another pan; otherwise place it in a sink. Many sweet-makers in Bengal use this soured whey to make further batches of cheese, but you need a significant amount more than lemon juice to do the job – you need one part whey to four parts milk.

   Remove the large lumps of cheese with a slotted spoon and place them in a colander. Gently pour the smaller pieces and remaining whey into the colander.

   Gather up the corners of the cloth and twist it around. Hold the bag of cheese under a gentle stream of cold running water for 5 to 10 seconds. Gently twist the cloth to squeeze out the excess whey.

   Drain the whey slowly, allowing the curd to compact under its own weight, by hanging the bag over a bowl to drain. Otherwise, for a quicker result, you can place the bag of cheese under a weight until firm.

   Unwrap the cheese and use as directed, or wrap in paper-towel-lined plastic wrap, zip-lock bags or plastic containers and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
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