Did you know that it takes the same amount of time to make larger batches of cheese as it does a smaller one? The process is exactly the same, except that you double the ingredients and add some more equipment. Just like baking a cake, really. I’ve even talked to home cheese makers who make very large batches in their sanitised bath tub!
Want proof? Well over the weekend I doubled my Caerphilly recipe and made twice as much in the same amount of time. You can find my Caerphilly recipe here.
I used my 15 litre stock pot and filled it with 14.5 litres of full cream milk. Heating the milk can take a little while longer, but it doesn’t extend the cheese making process too much.
Cutting the curd was no different, I just needed a longer knife and curd cutter.
Cheddaring was just as easy. The slabs were just longer. Milling was a cinch in the larger pot. The only difference as was that I had to use two moulds, two cheese cloths, and two cheese presses. If I had a larger mould, I could have fit all the curds into just one.
You may need a little more space during pressing, but my kitchen sink was sufficient.
And here are the two wheels of Caerphilly, air drying before I put them into the cheese fridge. Each day I will wipe them over with a brine solution to help form the rind and to inhibit any mould development.
I am looking forward to when they mature in three weeks time. This cheese is so moreish! Did I ever mention that it’s one of my favourite cheeses to make at home?
So there you have it. Doubling your batches at home is easy as buying a little more equipment. The time taken is the same.
Who else makes larger batches in this manner?
If we doubled a recipe and had a large enough container for all the curds, would pressing instructions stay the same? Would it require more weight? Longer pressing?
Why do i get different cheese size with the same amount of milk ?
Are you making the same cheese each time? Each cheese has a different yield due to the differences in stirring time and pressing.
The one-gallon batch of hard cheese is a strange invention of modern urban life. No traditional homesteader would even think of starting with less than 4 gallons as it is so much work! Plus cooking the curds is so much easier with a large batch! That said I also wanted to mention your typo, “mould” is a hollow container. “mold” are micro-organisms in the fungi family–you interposed them in your post–sorry–I can’t hlelp it! I’m a school teacher ( :
Hi Gavin,
could you go into a little more detail about wiping the rind with brine? I haven't done this and the rind is as hard as a brick about ten days into the aging period. I'm a little worried.
This is Wyatt in Houston, Texas. I began doubling my recipes in much the same way a couple of months ago using the 5-gallon pot I have for beer brewing. But I make one 4-pound cheese (usually cheddar) and press it with my "Ultimate Cheese Press" from Homesteader's Supply, which accommodates the larger size. Cheesemaking takes some time, so doubling the yield is a welcome time-saver. I've even toyed with the idea of larger batches, but I think a 4-gallon batch is perfect for now.