I think I finally got it its elastic and flexible like rubber. Got the PH in the bracket, so see how it goes. The one side is solid surface and the flip side is a bit uneven, maybe a temp change when pressing. Once its out of the brine will post the second side to show comparison.

Maybe its just me, but it seems the curd should have knit more tightly.  But, if you get eyes, who cares?

Thats fir sure, the other side has knit solid. Fingers crossed. have enough culture for one more batch of swiss if I do it.

Neil - 09 March 2009 08:51 PM

Thats fir sure, the other side has knit solid. Fingers crossed. have enough culture for one more batch of swiss if I do it.

But man, that’s one ugly looking brute

Neil….
Good luck on seeing this one turn out.
One thing I’ve found on swiss is that the curd really needs to be in the 120 degree range when doing the initial presses. I usually press for no more than 15 minutes and then give it the first flip.
The cheese looks quite open at that point but after another two hours the curd will knit together nicely.
I think I also saw you post that you use a 9” diameter cake pan for a mold. With a 9” diameter mold you really do need to add some extra weight as well.
Again, good luck with this one. That fact that it’s elastic tells me you certainly hit the Ph targets which is very important for a swiss.
You probably already know this but at the end of a 12 hour press, your Ph should be between 5.2 and 5.4.
Looking forward to seeing how this one progresses for you.

Dave

Just making Swiss myself. To keep the knit together at as high temp as possible I made this little “heat press”  for the first two turns of the cheese so the curd would stay warm while pressing. It is sitting in a bath of hot water just below the board so that I can heat it on top of the burners. So far I always manage to close up, knit the curd nice and smoothly. I too have had problem with the knitting of the curd, this solved it for me. I think when making a small cheese the temp of the curd cools of so fast that it can create a problem.

SG Brix…..Great idea!
Pretty much the same as the “hot table” that is used in commercial applications.
I never fail to be impressed by the ingenuity of home hobbyists.
Again, great work and thanks for the idea.

Dave

The cooking temp reached 125, i have posted all the details on my website. I used about 40lbs, have to check my notes.

hers the flip side, been in the brine 12 hours, now i just coated it with sea salt and let is dry.

i cook mine @ 126

I don’t know Cheese Hole, It sure looks good from where I sit, but as I lean in and close my eyes open my nostrils and bite in, I still get nothing. There is still something missing about this whole thing, the world wide web. It sure would be interesting to meat up and have a tasting somehow.

SG Brix

That would be one hell of a party for people to bring in their pride and joy Smellavision might not be too far off
By the way its -42 outside right now so not a good time to have a party, supposed to get warmer but its been dipping again.

Would this be a good time to mention that it was +70 F. here yesterday afternoon?

Yea and today 81f here, do they get paid to live up there?

I’m looking at The Cheese Holes website for his last pix of the Swiss #6, the curd looks very large, is this before you stirred the whey or is this just before you transferred into your press? Do I maybe steer to much, since my pieces are a whole lot smaller? I don’t use a whisk but a holed paddle slowly lifting the curd up. My cheese have in general been somewhat hard, but still sliceable.

SG Brix

That was just after I cut the curds and started to stirr, they were much smaller by the end, actually i was sure I took a pic after draining, have to see were that disappeared to.

Neil

you drain ur swiss @ pH 5.3 !!!!!

you were beyond beyond any range , your cheese will never develop swiss texture..

u had to drain @ pH 6.3 - 6.4

I ended up with totally different cheese, not even close to cheddar or manchego