Learn how to make Colby cheese at home by following our simple but delicious recipe.
Colby cheese is a semi hard cheese, founded in the village of well….Colby, in Wisconsin. Colby is similar to Cheddar but does not go through the cheddaring process.
Instead the curds are washed with cold water which replaces the whey making the cheese softer. This reduces the acidity making for a milder cheese.
Colby Cheese Ingredients
- 10 litres whole cows milk
- 1/4 teaspoon mesophilic starter
- 5ml Rennet diluted in 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons non iodized, kosher or cheese salt
How To Make Colby Cheese
- Warm milk to 30c
- Add culture, stir thoroughly
- Leave to ripen for 1 hour
- Add diluted Rennet
- Leave to set for 45 minutes – 1 hour, until you have a clean break
- Carefully cut the curd into 1cm cubes
- Leave to rest for 10 minutes
- Very slowly heat the curds up to 39c over 30 minutes
This should mean an increase of about 2 degrees every 5 minutes.
Stir regularly to prevent the curds from matting and to scald them all - Maintain the curds at 39c for another 30 minutes
Again, stirring regularly to prevent matting - Leave to for 10 minutes
- Pour out the whey, until it’s just at the level of your curd
- Begin slowly adding in cold water until your curd and water is down to 23-25c
A lower temperature will give you a softer cheese - Maintain the curds at this temperature for 15 minutes
Stir gently so the curds pick up the cold water - Pour the curd out into either a sterilised cheese cloth over a colander
- Allow to drain for 15 minutes
- Break the curd up into walnut size pieces
- Add the salt and mix thoroughly with the curd
- Press in a cheese press with cheese cloth lined mold at 10kg for 15 minutes
- Remove, flip and redress
- Press at 20kg for 20 minutes
- Remove, flip and redress
- Press at 25kg for 1 hour
- Remove, flip and redress
- Press at 30kg overnight, or for 12 hours
- Remove and un wrap cheese and air dry for 1-3 days
Air dry at room temperature, turning twice a day
Cheese should be dry to the touch after a few days
Storing Colby Cheese
Wax or vacuum pack and age for 1 month.
Aging Colby Cheese
Colby should not be left to age for too long or it can become too dry.
Do you have any questions or comments about how to make Colby cheese at home? Join the discussion over at the Curd Nerd Forum.
We would love to hear from you! We hope you enjoy this mild colby cheese recipe as much as we do.