I’m really excited to share this because it’s so simple! This is actually an Indian recipe for making paneer, an almost tasteless crumbly white cheese, which, excitingly….can be flavoured however you like!
I’ve always fantasised about making my own cheese because cheeses are so expensive here! The only cheap cheeses are cheese slices which probably are not even real cheese and they taste like plastic.
There are only 2 ingredients that you need to make this basic cheese, milk and lemon juice! Excited yet?
Utensils you need:
- 1 tea towel or muslin cloth
- 2 pots
- Something heavy like a chopping board or stone mortar (to weight the cheese down)
The ingredients:
- 1 litre of fresh milk
- 100 ml of lemon juice (or acid like white vinegar)
# – First pour the milk into a pot and bring it to boil on medium heat. Stir sometimes.
# – While the milk boils, set the teatowel over the other pot, like this…
# – When the milk starts bubbling, pour in the lemon juice bit by bit while stirring.
# – As you stir, you will notice that the milk begins to curdle. Looks like bashed up tofu. Stir for another minute or two.
# – Pour the content into the tea towel set up earlier to strain.
# – When you lift the tea towel up, you can see what’s left behind is a clear yellowish liquid. This is called whey. Some people use it to boil rice or something but I just discarded it…
# – Turn the pot upside down and place the drained curd (still in tea towel) on top.
# – Weigh it down with something heavy for 2 hours. You can do this in the sink cause it’s wet. Check out my style…
# – After 2 hours, cheese. DONE!
# – You can use it straightaway but if you want a less crumbly cheese you could knead it a few minutes to soften the texture, which I did. If you want to flavour it, you should chuck in the flavourings at this point…parsley, garlic, dried fruits…make it happen!
# – Wrap it up in clingwrap if you’re not going to use it immediately.
# – Keeps for 5 days in the fridge.
Told you it’s simple. It’s crazy simple!!!!
I’ve always wondered why we can’t make local cheese <3
actually there is a local cheese manufacturer called Friendly Farms in langkawi! i’ve tried their mozarella before..pretty good! but they sell mostly to hotels & businesses.
you tried the mozzarella from friendly farms already? how was it? they posted it to you?
yeah i have! got it from le meridien actually, it was in the goody bag haha. it’s nice but only 3 marble sized balls in one packet!
it really DOES looks simple!
it is! just make sure the milk is real milk, check the ingredient list and make sure it says only ‘MILK’, not reconstituted milk powder etc etc .
with this easy cheesy making recipe, i can be more cheesy when it comes to cooking! XD
word! :D
Wow!! Imma try this! Genius you! Btw I tried your fried rice recipe with pork bits (instead of sliced ham), yummmehhh… Thanks for all the lovely recipes!
thanks pat! glad you like the fried rice recipe! :D
awesome! *chants* now i can have homemade cheese~ lalalalala~
make it happen! :D
Awesome !! looks so simple and cheap to prepare!!!
yeah it is cheap to prepare that’s for sure!
As always, awesome technique for the modern women. Now if only I can get my wife to wake up now and read this. Hmm.. maybe tomorrow ! XD
hahah hope u get to eat homemade cheese soon!
Nice!! What do use that for? Any tips? An Indian friend told me her family makes yoghurt at home all the time. They start with any milk and spoon in some natural yoghurt and leave it overnight, voila whole batch of yoghurt. I have yet to look up the portions and proper recipe though. You should try that too :)
yeah! i’ve read about homemade yogurt too but it’s not so easy. apparently if it’s not done properly could get a bad case of the runs. it’s on the agenda but going to research more first hehe. thanks for the suggestion!
Hi Kim, any idea what kind of food you can make with this kind of cheese? Cheese is so expensive here! :(
i made the cheese cause the bf wanted me to make palak paneer (spinach and cheese) but i can imagine you could cut it, coat in breadcrumbs and deep fry or sprinkle it over salad too.
This was just what I needed. I have been wanting to make my own paneer for a while. Now, if I could just find the time….
make it happen kristen! :)
It’s 1.15am, I feel like I wanna run out to 7-11 to go buy milk and try this!
haha, make sure the milk is real milk, not reconstituted milk solids etc ya :)
It actually keeps (almost) indefinitely in the freezer – I always have 3-4 blocks sitting there just in case I wanna whip up some paneer butter masala.
Yoghurt is pretty easy too, for some reason, mine seems to last in the fridge for a pretty long time as well…