View thermophilic starter
Category:Ingredients
This culture is added to warmed milk. The culture will begin to create lactic acid in the milk, raising the acidity (lowering the PH), a vital step toward achieving curd formation, but also impacts the eventual consistency and flavor of the cheese.
This culture is available in powdered form. It can also be cultured and use over and over, but I’ve never done that. In a pinch, you can use yogurt as a thermophilic culture.
This culture is used in cheeses that involve higher temperatures (up to 130°F) in their recipes.
I sprinkle one package of powdered culture on top of up to 2 gallons of warmed milk to begin the ripening process. Let the powder sit on top of the warm milk for a minute or two and then gently, but thoroughly, stir it into the milk.
Most recipes then call for you to allow the milk to set and ripen for a specific time period at a specific temperature before adding rennet to being the coagulation process.
If someone could help out with more detailed information, feel free to edit or add to this article.