I read somewhere, the source escapes me at the moment, on a process of using a toothpick to determine the right time for curd cutting.
Basically, after adding the rennet, you place a sterilized toothpick on top of the milk. You determine the time from placement to when it stops turning or moving around. Multiply this time by 2 1/2, which gives you the total time to curd cutting.
Anyone ever tried this method? If so, how’d it work for you?

never done it before

I use the method were I wait for the curds to separate from the sides of the pot, that way I know the acid has formed

Neil - 11 February 2008 03:28 PM

I use the method were I wait for the curds to separate from the sides of the pot, that way I know the acid has formed

I totally disagree with you Neil, what r u doing is fine when u r making fetas, blues, Camemberts only, because u need more acid to be formed in this stage..

but when u come to cheddar, Gouda , and other hard cheeses, u will end up with weak cheese (lots of calcium loose, and crumbled texture (like ur last swiss)...

the clean break is when u break the curd with a knife cleanly…. and this could be in 30mins to 90 mins or more depending on temp, rennet, and milk used

see this

Nabil, you wrote: but when u come to cheddar, Gouda , and other hard cheeses, u will end up with weak cheese (lots of calcium loose, and crumbled texture (like ur last swiss)…
First, I have to say that I like your adamant scientific approach in regards to ph readings!
So my question has to do with making Cheddar.  When you test for a clean break, do you also test the whey ph at the point of the break also? If so, what reading are you looking for at that point? If the reading you get is not where you’d like to see it, do you then hold off on cutting until you get the proper reading?
In my studies on the subject of clean break, it is stressed that problems occur further down in the making if you cut to early or go to long before cutting. Emphasis is always placed on getting that clean finger break before cutting, yet one would think that a proper ph reading for the particular cheese in question would also confirm the proper time. Unfortunately I don’t see anything said about measuring ph at this point to confirm. Would you have any figures you might be able to share with us if you do indeed measure at this point?

Well bloomed cheese is what I mainly make and the last Gouda came out the best Ive made from a non bloomed cheese. My point is, when we have limited resources we can create our own system that works for us, one can judge from how many successes to failures one has. At the beginning it was 1 our of 4 success, now its 5 out of 6 successes, so i must be doing something right. I thingk half the fun is the exploration of making cheese, allot of new cheeses made are from mistakes or blazing a new trail.
Im not knocking measuring PH and doing things scientific, following things to the letter, Things do not always follow the rule of thumb, especially when u dont specialize in 1 or 2 types of cheeses. Their are many roads to Rome, they didnt have temp control and meters back then and they made great cheeses.

Yeah , u are right Neil, and i was trying to say that some cheeses will get hurt if u wait to cut until the whey separated .... clean break is a CLEAN break, so it breaks cleanly ....

Rick"54” , for cheddar, as i said before only draining (6.1) and pressing (hooping) (5.2)  pH points are most critical.
In general, clean break has nothing to do with pH (acid) number. in feta, blue , white, they leave it to develop more acid before cut, because they need the cheese to go very low pH (highest acid).

LOL, if u travel to all the Cottage cheese makers, u might find they all have dif ways. Yes, a clean strong break is very important, does not always acure though. Cant recommend strong enough the DVD’s “Cheese Slices”

Nabil- In your clean break photo, I don’t see any whey welling up around your finger. Typically when I test for a clean break, I have some whey that comes up around my finger or knife. Should that not be the case? Maybe since I’m still pretty new at this, I’m getting hung up on minutia….

I think I know what you mean. I use my finger and place it at an angle about 1.5 - 2 inches. When I bring my finger up the curd breaks in a straightish line on either side of my finger but there still is a little bit of softer curd that can be seen under the surface, and some whey.

Yeah, that’s typically what I see too. I think it’s probably normal to see some whey as long as the curd itself breaks clean….

something u might want to check out and see if it works for u. When I put my thermometer in, when its ready the whey fills in the hole when I take out the thermometer, so separation has started. Another indication that the curds may be ready.

after u test the clean break, u will see inside the hole a little whey after a min or so, if the whey too much as Neil said above (filled instantly by whey) then u probably a little late (acid already start to accumulated) and the separation is fast which is wrong for some type of cheese

So if I see whey right away, I’ve allowed it to sit too long?

Not necessarily, unless u have a PH meter u can only guess so the presence of a “clean break” and whey expelling is the time to cut the curds. Again, experience.