Fresh Homemade Mozzarella Cheese in Under an Hour

Who doesn’t love mozzarella cheese?  Whether it’s on pizza, mozzarella sticks, Caprese salad or just by itself, mozzarella can add great flavor and depth to your meal.

I tried to make mozzarella several years ago, but whether because I wasn’t using the right ingredients or just didn’t have the patience, it did not turn out – at all.  So, I decided I wanted to try again.  I planned on making pizza tonight and thought fresh mozzarella would be a great way to add to the taste and health benefits of the pizza.  (You can see the pizza I made at the end of this post.)

You can make variations to the cheese like these:

• Form the cheese into string cheese sticks, small balls, or other shapes.
• Knead in herbs or spices such as fresh chopped dill and rosemary.

It takes, at the most, one hour, start to finish to make fresh mozzarella.  But you do need to think ahead and obtain the needed supplies.   Some of those supplies are not always readily available at your local grocer.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1-gallon pasteurized, whole milk.  *If you can get raw fresh milk, that is even better, otherwise try to get a milk that has been pasteurized (not ultra) but not homogenized (this means the cream separates to the top). I found Kalona Milk at my local Sprouts.  It is pasteurized by not homogenized.  It should also be as fresh as possible, no less than 7-10 days from “best when used by” date.
• 1 ½ tsp, citric acid – this is available at your local grocer or on Amazon. https://amzn.to/4cj3Yw9
• ¼ rennet tablet. (this is the enzyme that aids in curdling) – I found on Amazon. https://amzn.to/4ed4PQO
• 1 tsp salt (or to taste)

EQUIPMENT

• Thermometer
• Rubber gloves
• Measuring spoons
• Stainless steel or strong slotted plastic spoon
• One- or two-quart, microwavable bowl
• Colander
• 1-gallon stainless steel pot or any non-aluminum pot

Tips

• Read thru all directions before beginning.
• Make sure your equipment is sterilized and clean.
• Have a timer near your stove.

Heating the Milk and Developing the Curds

 – Dissolve ¼ of the rennet tablet in ¼ cup of cold water (make sure it is not chlorinated). Set this aside.  Wrap the remaining pieces of the tablet and store in your freezer for future use.

– Measure 1 ½ teaspoon of citric acid into 1 cup of cold water. Stir until dissolves completely and set aside.

– Gently pour the milk into the pot.

– Heat the milk over a medium-low heat. Once the milk reaches 85 F, add the citric acid. Stir with a slotted spoon for 20 seconds.

– When the milk reaches 100 F, stir the rennet-water solution into the milk. Use a slotted spoon to gently stir the milk in an up and down motion for approximately 30 seconds.

– Heat the milk a little more to 105 F and then turn off the heat. Cover the pot and let it sit for 10 minutes. You should see signs of coagulation (curd formation).

– To check if the curds are ready, gently press the back of a teaspoon into the curds. If it leaves a dent, the curds are ready.  If it does not, allow the curds to sit undisturbed for another 2 minutes.

Draining the curds. 

 – The goal is to drain as much whey as possible from the curds. Always handle the curds gently.

– Place the colander over a large microwavable bowl.

– Using a strainer or a slotted spoon, gently lift the curds and let the whey drip back into the pot. Then place the curds in the colander.

– When all the curds are in the colander, gently press the curds with the palm of your hand to push out as much whey as possible. When there is almost no whey coming out of the curds, place the curds in a microwave bowl and again, press down on curds and remove as much whey as possible.

Cooking and Kneading The Curds

 – Microwave the curds for 1 minute.

– Remove the bowl from the microwave. Drain the whey and then gently fold the curds over to distribute the heat.  Continue to drain out the whey.

– Microwave the curbs for an additional 30 minutes. Drain and knead the curds again. If they are too hot to handle, use the back of a spoon to fold the curds over.  Knead the curds until it begins to look smooth, shiny and is firming up.

– Try to stretch the cheese. It must be 135 F to stretch properly.  If it isn’t hot enough, microwave for another 30 seconds.  Add the salt and any other herbs and begin to work into the cheese by stretching and folding, and repeat this movement.  Holding the cheese up, let it fall on itself.  If you prefer a softer texture, don’t stretch the cheese as much.  As soon as it is smooth and shiny shape into a ball.

– Form a ball by pulling and tucking the edges underneath the cheese and smoothing the top and sides. If you want to eat it warm, just wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.  Or, if you want to keep the shape, place the ball in a large bowl of ice water for around 15 minutes.

– Remove from the water, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate.

So here is a photo of the pizza I made using my fresh mozzarella.

The cheese melted so nicely and had a great flavor.  The pizza crust is just my sourdough discard, spread thin, on a cast iron griddle that was heated for 10 minutes in a 450 F oven.  It was fabulous!!

It would be so much fun to have a mozzarella cheese and pizza making party.  Invite friends over, make the cheese and then the pizza.

I hope you take the time to try making mozzarella cheese.  It was much easier than I thought it would be and so exciting to see (and taste) the final product.

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