Our cottage cheese recipe will show you each step to making a wonderfully flavored and versatile homemade cheese.
Easy to make at home, cottage cheese can be used in numerous ways to add a healthy source of protein to your foods with less fat and calories.
Read on to learn how to make cottage cheese at home and the many ways to use it!
Cottage Cheese Ingredients
- 4 litres fresh skimmed cows milk
- 1/4 teaspoon mesophilic starter (I use Chr. Hansen’s R704)
- 1/4 teaspoon of Rennet diluted in 1/4 cup water
How To Make Cottage Cheese
- Warm milk to 22c
- Add culture and stir in thoroughly
- Add diluted Rennet
- Leave to set for 4-6 hours at a temperature no less than 20 degrees celsius
The curd will be a softer curd - Cut curd into 1cm cubes
- Leave to rest for 10 minutes
- Increase temperature by half a degree every 5 minutes until the temperature reaches 27 degrees celsius
Stir regularly to prevent the curds matting - Increase temperature by one degree every 5 minutes until the temperature reaches 32 degrees Celsius
Stir regularly to prevent the curds matting - Increase temperature by one degree every 1 minute until the temperature reaches 43 degrees Celsius
Stir regularly to prevent the curds matting - Maintain the temperate at 43 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes until the curds are cooked and have firmed up right through
Stir gently every few minutes during this time - Leave to rest for 5 minutes
- Pour the curds into a colander lined with cheesecloth.
- Gather the corners of the cloth and tied into a draining bag.
- If you want a sweeter, less sour cottage cheese wash the curds by dipping the bag in and out of a bowl of cool water
- Let the bag drain for 5 minutes
- Rinse the bag in a bowl of ice water to cool the curds
- Let the bag drain for 5 minutes
- Untie the bag and put the curds into a bowl
Break up any curds that have matted into larger pieces - Add salt, herbs or fresh fruit for taste
Cottage Cheese Storage:
Will store for 1 week in the fridge.
How is Cottage Cheese Made?
Cottage cheese is made by warming milk and then adding cultures to create curds. The drained curds are then washed to remove residual acids, which also improves the taste. Then they are mixed with salt, herbs or fruit to improve the flavor as desired.
How to Make Cottage Cheese Taste Good
There are several ways to hide cottage cheese in foods to get the nutritional benefit even if the texture is off-putting for your or your family.
For example, adding it to baking is a great way to hide it. Mix cottage cheese, lightly beaten eggs and flour for a muffin base to add your favorite ingredients like cubed ham and cheddar cheese for a wonderful grab and go breakfast muffin!
Mix with eggs as frittata base and add some spinach, dill, nutmeg, and onion for a great, healthy breakfast.
Add cottage cheese to frozen bananas with a half teaspoon each of cinnamon and vanilla and a pinch of salt. Puree the ingredients in a food processor. Serve immediately topped with pecans or freeze for 15 minutes if you’d like a firmer texture.
What to Put in Cottage Cheese
There are many different ways to enjoy cottage cheese just by adding one or two simple ingredients!
Fruit! Add some fruit –fresh, canned or frozen! Bananas, pineapple, berries, melon, peaches, and apples all make great add-ins to cottage cheese.
If you like whole grain toast for breakfast, add a tablespoon to a half cup of cottage cheese and mix well. Spread it on your toast for a healthy and filling breakfast. Quick and easy too!
Other easy add-ins are cinnamon and walnuts, your favorite spice blend, or pesto!
Cottage Cheese Uses
Cottage cheese is often used as a substitute for meat and cheese in recipes by the health conscious.
For example, replacing ricotta cheese in lasagna recipes or mayonnaise in tuna salad.
You can use cottage cheese as a base for overnight oats or stir it into hot, cooked oatmeal. Mix honey, vanilla, oats, cottage cheese, and almond milk together and refrigerate overnight (or 6 hours). Top with fruit or berries and nuts for a wholesome breakfast.
Mix it with eggs to use as a base for a frittata or crepes. Or use it as a substitute for sour cream. Blend it in your blender or food processor to create a smoother texture if you like and spread it on a bagel with some jam.
Cottage Cheese Nutrition
Cottage cheese is generally considered to be a healthy protein source as it is also low in fat.
The level of fat and sodium will differ depending on how much milk fat is used and how much sodium the maker uses.
Dieters and health enthusiast are usually fans of cottage cheese. It aids in weight loss because it is high in protein which helps satiety levels while being low in calories.
Additionally, the protein contained in cottage cheese is casein protein which is slow to release nutrients and makes it a great snack at nighttime.
Cottage cheese is a great source of calcium that helps maintain tooth and bone health. Calcium is vital in the prevention of osteoporosis making cottage cheese a good way for women to up their calcium intake.
It is safe for pregnant women to consume.
Per 1 Cup of Low-fat Cottage Cheese
- Calories 163
- Carbs 6.1 gm
- Fat 2.3 gm
- Protein 28 gm
Also contains:
- Vitamin A (beta-Carotene)
- Calcium
- Phosphorous
- Sodium
- Vitamins B1, B3, and B6
Small amounts of:
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Potassium
- Zinc
Cottage cheese also contains Vitamin B12, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid, pantothenic acid, and thiamin, all of which have numerous health benefits.
What is Cottage Cheese?
Cottage cheese, also known as curds and whey, has been an inexpensive and healthy protein source for hundreds of years!
Dates as far back to 3100 BC in ancient Mesopotamia as discovered on wall carvings in an ancient temple. Shows the process they used to create a very similar substance to cottage cheese. The process continued in many varieties throughout generations and civilizations.
Rome’s empire picked up many forms of cheese and cheese making and as the empire grew the knowledge traveled with them, spreading throughout Europe and then on to the Americas with the settlers from England.
As pioneers moved westward, they relied heavily on cottage cheese as a protein source, a practice that again became very important during World War I in an effort to preserve meat rations for soldiers.
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Do you have any questions or comments about Cottage Cheese? Join the discussion over at the Curd Nerd Forum. We would love to hear from you!
Excellent, I was wondering what else I could make with my R704 culture. About how much cottage cheese would 4l of milk make please?