Using Saturated Brine Solution In Cheese Making

Most cheese recipes require salt to be added, rubbed or soaked in at some stage in the cheese making process.

Salt is an important part of cheese making and has multiple purposes including assisting in drawing out whey, preserving the cheese and protection against undesirable moulds.

Bathing your cheese in a brine solution is a common instruction in cheese recipes for adding salt, particularly for cheeses that have a short aging time, and it is an efficient and reliable way to do so as the salt absorption is quick and it is easy to get an even coverage.

 

Brine Solution For Home Cheese Making

 

While brine solutions can be made up with different ratios of salt to water, anything less than 18% salt concentration is considered too low to keep the nasties at bay and the upper limit of salt concentration is considered to be about 24%, after which you get to a point of creating saturated brine.

Saturated brine is anything over 26% salt (or between 70-90% saturation) and some cheese making recipes call for this strong brine solution to be used.

 

Cheese Brine Solution Ratio

Knowing if you’ve mixed exactly the right concentration of brine solution can be difficult but the following is a pretty accurate guide:

Using A Saturated Brine Solution In Home Cheese Making

 

Instead of trying to measure or guess the recommended brine concentrations for a particular recipe it can seem easier to simply make up a saturated brine.

But just be aware that a saturated brine will pull moisture from the surface much quicker and can cause a hard rind to form which may slow or prevent further salt uptake or effect the surface of a cheese which wouldn’t normally have a hard, thick rind.

 

Saturated Brine Solution Signs

It’s fair to say that without testing equipment, anything less than saturated brine can be hard to quantify, where as it’s easy to conclude you have mixed a saturated brine by the following signs:

  • When adding the salt it stops absorbing into the water and starts to form a salt layer on the bottom of the vessel.
  • After leaving the solution for a short period there is salt creep on the jar
  • When you put your cheese into the solution it floats rather than sinks

When brine bathing ensure you regularly turn your cheeses over so that all surfaces are exposed to, and are able to absorb the solution. This is particularly important with saturated brine given the cheese will float and the upper surface will sit above the brine level.

 

Cheese Brine Temperature

Also, try to use your brine at temperatures of between 10-12 degrees Celsius if possible. This improves the salt absorption, pulling more moisture from the cheese and improving rind creation.

Brine that is too cold won’t be taken up as easily and may cause too much moisture to be left in the cheese. Brine that has been left to get too warm may nurture bacteria you don’t want to encourage.

 

Reusing Brine

Brine can be used repeatedly and some say that it can actually improve the characteristics of a cheese as the brine picks up whey and particles from each cheese and imparts its flavour into each subsequent cheese.

If you do choose to reuse your brine, don’t forget to add more salt back in as required, so that you maintain your salt concentration levels and if you are concerned about undesirable bacteria in the brine, just boil and cool it before using and storing.

 

Brine Storage

Store your brine in the fridge in a sealed container but as mentioned, bring it back to room temperature before using for your next cheese.

 

Do you have any questions or comments about how to use brine for your Home Cheese Making? Join the discussion over at the Curd Nerd Forum. We would love to hear from you!

 

Curd Nerd Forum

11 thoughts on “Using Saturated Brine Solution In Cheese Making

  • Pingback:QA4 - I've Stored My Feta In Brine And Now It's Too Salty! | Curd-Nerd

  • 31/10/2011 at 2:16 am
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    I accidentally made a brine solution of 1kg salt to 25 litres of water. the cheese is quite damp and no rind is forming . Do I rub the cheese with salt or do I make a stronger brine an resubmerse the cheese. They weigh 3.5 kgs.
    Anna

    • 12/11/2011 at 11:01 am
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      Hi Anna. Thanks for dropping by. I’m not sure which cheese you have made but assume it might be a Feta. The Brine solution you have made is definitely too diluted. You could take the cheese out, rub it down with salt and leave it out to form a rind and you might be able to save it. If it is a hard cheese you have made, you can rub it with salt and then leave it out to air dry and allow the rind to start to form. For hard cheeses the brine solution is as much about getting salt into the cheese to preserve it as it is for creating the rind. Let me know if you need more advice!

  • 03/07/2012 at 3:50 am
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    This may be insane, but I have some delicious brine from feta cheese. I hate to throw it out. Can I use it in soups? (I’m vegetarian, so brining a turkey isn’t going to come up for me)

    • 09/08/2012 at 5:37 pm
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      Hi Susan

      Absolutely!! Some people find it to be an acquired taste but in certain soups it actually goes really well.

      Give it a try and let us know what you think.

  • 03/04/2013 at 10:15 am
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    Please tell me how much salt should be added with the repeated use of brine?

    • 21/05/2013 at 11:20 am
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      You should add back as much salt as is needed to saturate the brine again. The most simple way to work out saturation is when after adding the salt it will no longer dissolve into the brine or, when having left it overnight, you experience salt creep (salt crystalising on open surfaces of the jar).

  • 29/01/2014 at 7:48 am
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    Hi,
    I am making havarti and the recipe says to rub the cheese with a brine solution every 2-3 days. What is the best way to do that?

    • 03/02/2014 at 3:41 pm
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      Hi Katie. I use a sterilised piece of cheesecloth, wadded up, dipped into the brine and then rubbed onto the cheese. I have also used sea sponges for brine rubbing.

  • 03/02/2014 at 2:20 am
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    Asking you kindly to inform me the right solution salt brine to keep haloumi cheese for short time.

    • 03/02/2014 at 3:37 pm
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      Follow this link to an article on using brine in cheese making. Hopefully it helps but if you still have questions, please let us know : )

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