The process of making cheese at home. Cheese equipment at home

Many owners of part-time farms are thinking about how to make cheese at home, and how to make money on it. After all, it is difficult to drink milk even from two cows on your own, and selling it is not profitable, since the nearest market is often not close. It is much more profitable to produce some product from milk and sell it already. In this article, we will tell you how to make delicious homemade cheese, and how much income such a business can bring.

Contrary to popular belief, quite simple, and there are no problems in making it at home - no special equipment is required for this. So, for the preparation of most varieties of hard, soft, processed and pickled cheeses, the simplest utensils are enough:

• pan (3-7 liters, preferably aluminum);
• metal strainer (an ordinary colander with small holes will do);
• several containers (any bowls);
• a couple of tablespoons;
• cutting board (preferably large);
• spoon with a long handle.

Since some recipes require you to knead the hot cheese mass with your hands, silicone protective gloves may also be required.

Cheese making

All varieties of cheese are prepared according to one of two technologies: mixing milk with special coagulation enzymes, or melting. The first technology involves making cheese directly from milk (the enzyme separates milk into whey and), and the second - from milk and cottage cheese.

fermentation

This technology involves the use of special bacteria or enzymes. They are used to speed up the process of curdling milk and separating it into milk and curd. You can buy these components either in spice stores, where, however, they are not often found, or in pharmacies. For example, pepsin, a synthesized digestive enzyme, is great for making cheese.

Here is a step-by-step recipe necessary for making mozzarella cheese from milk using this technology:

Ingredients:

• milk: 2 liters (preferably full fat);
• enzyme: depending on the properties (if you take pepsin, then a quarter of a teaspoon is enough);
• lemon juice: 2 tablespoons;
• water: 1-2 liters;
• salt: 1-2 tablespoons.

Cooking method:

1. The enzyme must be dissolved in water (stir until completely dissolved).
2. Milk must be heated to 70 degrees Celsius.
3. The resulting solution and lemon juice should be poured into warmed milk and wait until the whey separates.
4. While the whey is separated, you need to prepare a saline solution and heat it up to 90 degrees.
5. Without bringing the mass to a boil, the whey must be drained.
6. The hot cheese mass remaining at the bottom of the pan should be lowered for two to three minutes into a 90-degree saline solution.
7. After removing the cheese mass from the solution, it must be laid out on a large cutting board and kneaded with your hands.
8. Dip the mashed mass again into saline for two to three minutes, and then remove it and knead again.
9. Form the finished product.
10. Pack the cheese and prepare it for storage.

Melting

This technology involves obtaining cheese mass by melting dairy products. Here is the recipe needed to make hard cheese using this technology:

Ingredients:

• milk: 3 liters (preferably not fatty);
• cottage cheese: 2 kilograms (it is best to use homemade cottage cheese, preferably dry);
• butter: 150 grams;
• egg: 2 pieces;
• salt: 2-3 tablespoons;
• soda: half a teaspoon;
• garlic, paprika, nuts, herbs, seasonings and spices: to taste.

Cooking method:

1. Mash the cottage cheese and put it in a saucepan.
2. While stirring, pour milk into a saucepan with cottage cheese, heat over low heat to 90 degrees.
3. Reduce the heat even more and, stirring the mixture, simmer it for about 10 more minutes.
4. When the mixture is on the verge of boiling and becomes more plastic, strain the cottage cheese through a strainer. If needed, you can leave it for a while to stack.
5. Melt the butter (you can use the same saucepan where the cottage cheese was).
6. Mix eggs, soda and salt in a separate container. If desired, greens (including dried ones), paprika, finely chopped garlic, nuts, and so on can be added to this mixture.
7. Put the cottage cheese into the melted butter and pour the egg mass into it.
8. Simmer, stirring constantly, over low heat for about 10-15 minutes, until the mass becomes homogeneous and thickens. It should turn yellow and become viscous.
9. Turn off the heat and let the cheese mass cool down a bit.
10. Transfer the resulting cheese into a mold (any container will do), and refrigerate under pressure.

Subtleties

Regardless of which of the technologies you prefer, in order to cook cheese correctly, you should know a few subtleties.

— storage: homemade cheeses are stored in the refrigerator (4-5 degrees Celsius) for no more than 7-8 days. Optimally - wrap the head of cheese in a cotton towel.

— only quality products: homemade cottage cheese and milk are best suited for making cheeses; it is better to refuse store-bought pasteurized products.

— fat benefits: the higher the fat content in the finished product (the higher the quality and fat content of the original products), the more tender it will be.

— size matters: the highest quality cheese is obtained if its mass is more than half a kilogram (the more, the better).

— press for hardness and taste: to make the cheese harder, it must cool under pressure, and the stronger the pressure, the harder the product will be. In addition, taste characteristics also depend on the press - the longer you keep hard cheese under oppression, the more saturated its taste will be in the end.

To whom to sell

The easiest way is to sell the finished product to small supermarkets - many stores will accept cheese for sale at a price about a third lower than the market price.

If you have achieved significant success in cheese making and have developed an interesting recipe, you can try to offer your products to restaurants. It is difficult to judge how profitable this will be, since you will be able to position your cheese as a unique author's product - you can ask for more market value for it.

Also, cheese can be distributed independently at farmers' markets and fairs - this will bring maximum profit, but will require time and availability of transport. In addition, the short shelf life of cheese imposes certain restrictions on the amount of goods that you can take with you to the market.

Profitability

A small farm with two cows producing about 20 liters of milk a day can produce about 5 kilograms of cheese a day. The average cost of cheese on the market is 600-900 rubles per kilogram (depending on the variety and additives). Thus, net profit can reach 80-90 thousand rubles per month.

Now that you have figured out how to make homemade cheese, it's time to move from theory to practice. With consistently high demand, cheese making is one of the best options.

Cheese is a tasty and nutritious dairy product that has been in great demand among customers for many years. It is present in the diet of almost every family. Everyone knows about the beneficial properties of cheese, this fermented milk product is quickly absorbed by the human body, saturates it with useful substances: proteins, fats, calcium and phosphorus salts, as well as amino acids.

A variety of cheese varieties allows each person to choose a product that suits their taste (processed cheese, cottage cheese, hard cheese of various types). Such a large demand for fermented milk products will certainly give rise to great competition in this field of activity. But, despite this, there is certainly a point in organizing the production of cheese at home.

How to start a cheese making business?

There are a lot of profitable ones that need to be realized. Today we will take a closer look at one of them. Whether you are an experienced entrepreneur or a novice businessman, the first step is to start drawing up a detailed business plan for the production of cheese at home. A competent business plan will help you assess the demand and competition in the chosen area, determine the amount of financial investments and the payback period of the business. In addition, you will be able to predict the main difficulties associated with food production, which will help you avoid serious mistakes during the implementation of a business idea.

Paperwork and business registration

To start your own cheese production at home, you need to collect all the documents and register legally.

First of all, you should choose the substantive form of activity. You have two options - registering as an individual entrepreneur or creating a legal entity (LLC). If you plan to produce cheese at home and sell it in small batches, then it is easier to register as an individual entrepreneur. If you open a cheese factory, register as a limited liability company.

Scheme: Classification of cheese varieties

Product certification

Cheese is a food product, therefore, as well as subject to mandatory certification.

To obtain a permit for the manufacture of cheese, you will need to collect the following documents:

• Application;
• Contract;
• Constituent documentation;
• Phytosanitary registration certificate;
• Label layout;
• Veterinary certificate.

It is also required to obtain permits for food production from the sanitary and epidemiological service.

Depending on the volume of production, other permits may be required, so the process of collecting and submitting documents is individual. If you are poorly versed in legal intricacies, then entrust the collection and execution of permits to a qualified lawyer.

Production technology

There are many varieties of cheese, but all of them are conditionally divided into soft and hard varieties. At home, it is quite possible to produce both types of cheese.

The production technology directly depends on the type of cheese. There are many different recipes, and for sure every housewife has her favorite.

Technology for the production of hard cheeses. Hard cheeses are made from the curd mass, which is separated from the whey. After that, the finished mixture is placed under a press for a long time (depending on the variety), until the cheese acquires its usual taste, as a rule, this process lasts about a month, but can be longer.

Soft cheeses take a lot less time to prepare, but they don't last more than a week, so they're not very profitable in mass production. Hard cheese varieties are more popular among the population.

Equipment for the production of cheese at home

The price of equipment for the production of cheese differs significantly depending on the scale of production. At home, you can use the simplest and most affordable equipment, but if you plan to start mass production of cheese, you will have to buy professional equipment.

Necessary equipment for the production of cheese at home:

• Capacity for long-term pasteurization, with a volume of about 100 liters;
• Paraffiner, with a volume of at least 50 liters;
• Cheese press;
• Forms for cheese mass;
• Fridge;
• Furniture (table, chairs).

Purchase of raw materials

The appearance and taste of the finished product depends on the quality of the raw materials. Therefore, you should not save, you should buy milk only from trusted manufacturers. In order to mass-produce cheese at home, you need to enter into contracts for the supply of milk. Naturally, you can keep your own or cows, but then the business payback process will be much longer.

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Financial investments and profit

The business of making cheese at home is quite promising and profitable, subject to all the nuances. Everyone can start making cheese, it is enough to purchase equipment and hire employees.

Main financial costs:

1. Registration of documents and registration of their activities;
2. Acquisition of equipment for the production of cheese;
3. Purchase of raw materials;
4. Staff salaries;
5. Room rental (for mass production, you will need a large room).

Profit

Your profit depends on the number of sales and the cost of products. Naturally, the higher the quality of the cheese, the higher its cost, therefore, as an option, you can start producing elite varieties of cheese.

Before deciding on the cost of products, analyze the pricing policy of competitors and draw the appropriate conclusions. Remember that a quality product is not cheap, but you should not overprice, otherwise only a certain part of the population will be able to buy your products. Thus, immediately decide for which category of the population you will produce cheese. After all, as you know, today on the market, there are products of various types, cheap, which mainly includes substitutes and preservatives, and expensive, elite, made exclusively from natural ingredients.

Advertising

The production of cheese, as well as or beer, requires a certain amount of advertising. There are a lot of manufacturers of fermented milk products today, the buyer has the right to choose, therefore, in order to compete in the market, your product must be not only of high quality, but also affordable. The ratio of quality and price is very important for consumers, stick to this rule and then you will succeed. At the initial stage, it is very important to attract the attention of buyers with an affordable price and high quality, this will be the most successful advertising.

To date, entrepreneurs are not often found who, in order to increase their capital, settled on such a direction as cheese production at home. And all because in order to implement such an idea, in addition to desire, you will need to purchase special equipment and raw materials, which cost a lot of money, and also spend time. Due to the fact that the quality of mass-produced cheese leaves much to be desired, such a business idea as the creation of a mini workshop for the manufacture of this dairy product at home has a chance to develop, as cheese lovers will prefer a quality product anyway.

Today in stores on the shelves you can see a large number of different varieties of cheese from processed to hard varieties. Such a variety allows the buyer to choose the most suitable product both in terms of taste and pricing policy. At any time, the demand for cheeses remained high, so the competition in this market segment is strong. However, even allowing for this factor, a business based on cheese making will be a profitable investment.

To implement the idea, it doesn’t matter at all whether the entrepreneur has work experience or is just starting his career, in any case, you need to start implementing the idea from drawing up a business plan. Cheese production will be an effective and profitable investment, provided that a competent business plan is drawn up. It will help to assess not only the demand for the product, but also the competition in this market segment, the volume of financial injections and the payback period of this business idea. In addition, proper planning will help to make optimal forecasts for the bulk of the difficulties during the production of cheese and will not allow serious mistakes to be made during the implementation of the idea.

For the preparation of such a fermented milk product as cheese, sour milk is used as a raw material, which, according to a certain technology, is kept from one to thirty days. At the initial stage of the development of the enterprise, you should not take on the production of expensive elite cheese. It is recommended to find a recipe for a variety of this fermented milk product that is generally loved by customers and, adhering to the technology exactly, try to cook it. Each subsequent batch will surpass the last in taste characteristics, and by constantly tasting cheeses, you can develop an idea of ​​\u200b\u200bthe true taste of a good cheese that will appeal to customers and provide a permanent clientele.

Room for a cheese factory

A mini-workshop of small volumes, processing up to a hundred kilograms of milk per day, can be freely located on an area of ​​​​two dozen "squares". The equipment is not voluminous, so it will not be difficult to place it in a small area.

The main thing is that the room meets the following parameters:

free access to hot and cold water;

good ventilation of the room;

carried out sewerage;

heating.

Also, the room should have access to daylight. In addition, only metal or plastic furniture is used in food production. It is desirable that the walls are tiled, and the remaining places are painted with paint that does not contain harmful substances in its composition that can adversely affect the quality of the products. In no case do not use the basement for a cheese factory.

Preparation of documents for business registration

Before starting to implement your business idea and start production, you will need to collect a number of documents in order to register your mini-workshop at the legislative level.

This can be done in two ways:

You can choose any of the two substantive forms of activity. If we talk about our case, which involves the production of cheese as a business mini-workshop and the subsequent sale of small batches of the product, then it is better to use the IP system. Only in the case of mass production and sale of large batches of cheeses is it recommended to register your business using the second method.

Even the creation of a mini-workshop for cheese making requires a quality certificate. Such a requirement is put forward to any food production.

Any cheeses belong to a number of food products, therefore, before starting production, you will need to obtain permission, for which you need to provide: an application, a contract, constituent documentation, a sanitary certificate, provide a layout of the future product label and a veterinary certificate. In addition, the release of any food product requires a permit from the sanitary and epidemiological service. It is possible that other documents will be required during registration, so it is better to entrust this process to a legally savvy person who understands all the intricacies of this issue.

Compliance with the technology of cheese making

We have already mentioned a large number of varieties of cheese, which are divided into hard and soft. Cheese production as a business at home implies the ability to produce any kind of cheese. And the technology will depend on the chosen variety. If we talk about hard cheeses, then they will need curd mass, from which whey is separated at a certain stage. Then the resulting dehydrated mixture is laid out in special molds under oppression. The time spent under the press is determined by the technology of preparation of the cheese variety, which should be the result. The process can take over a month.

Soft varieties of cheeses do not require so much time, but they can be stored at a certain temperature for no more than 7 days. Therefore, for mass production, such cheeses are not profitable due to the high probability of spoilage of the product. But hard varieties in any country are in great demand among buyers.

However, it is the quality of raw materials that most influences the taste characteristics of the final product. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that the purchase of milk is carried out only from trusted suppliers who guarantee that it is received only from healthy animals. Check milk samples for the presence of antibiotics, which can significantly impair the quality of the cheese, and for acidity, which should not fall below the 6.8 mark. The optimal fat content is 3.5%.

If you work with certain suppliers of raw materials, then it is advisable to write each of these points in more detail in a cooperation agreement, which should indicate the volume of supply, price and method of delivery of raw materials to the enterprise.

Now let's talk in more detail about the equipment that will be required for cheese making in home mini-workshops.

Purchase of special equipment

When deciding to start making cheese, you need to take into account that you will not only have to find a place for the workshop and purchase raw materials, you will need to purchase special basic and auxiliary equipment, which you can’t do without. The main one includes a vat made of stainless steel with a volume of at least 50 liters. According to the technology, a vat with cheese mass is heated using an electric heating element or a gas burner. Cooling is carried out in the process of circulating a stream of cold water around the perimeter of the vat.

Additional equipment includes: presses, filters, salt pools, molds for future cheese, racks and shelves, ripening chambers. The guarantee of quality is the equipment offered by Italian manufacturers. They can offer a service such as arranging a turnkey mini-workshop. The equipment is suitable for processing any kind of milk (goat, sheep or cow).

Today, cheese production in Russia is developing and many entrepreneurs install domestic equipment in their mini-workshops, which is no worse than Italian in quality, but its pricing policy is more acceptable. It is worth remembering that not only the taste characteristics of the final product depend on the equipment, it is also important to monitor the quality of the raw materials that are purchased for production. Do not save on this and buy milk only from trusted suppliers who care about the health of livestock.

Subtleties of cheese making

It doesn’t matter what kind of cheese you decide to make. There are several stages in the preparation of raw materials that every technologist needs to know.

Initially received milk must undergo a sterilization process.

Next is the preparation of raw materials. It is divided into two equal parts. The first part is pasteurized in a cheese maker at a temperature of +68˚С, after which it is sharply cooled to a temperature of + 38˚С. The second part is immediately cooled in special equipment (cooler) to +4˚С.

Cooking. In the second (chilled part of the raw material), you need to add rennet, which is extracted from the stomachs of dairy calves. This enzyme helps in the curdling process and the formation of curds. It is sold in powder form and should be handled with care. For 100 liters of milk, no more than a gram of such a powder will be required. At the end of the coagulation process, the enzyme remains in the curd. The next process is to pour the milk into the cheese maker to mature and complete the curdling process. Here the temperature will already depend on the type of cheese chosen. Hard cheeses are cooked at a high temperature, but not for long. The temperature regime should not go beyond 28-36˚ C, which prevents the cheese mass from quickly compacting and accumulating lactic acid microflora within 2-4 hours.

Cheese shaping. After the milk is completely curdled, the cheese mass is separated from the liquid and you can begin to divide it into parts according to fractions. And here, too, there are differences depending on the type of cheese. Semi-hard cheese does not take much time to ripen, so cheese grains the size of a walnut are deposited for it, while for hard varieties it will be necessary to grind the mass to the size of a peanut. Elite hard cheeses are made from grain no larger than a pea. After preparation, the mass is laid out in a mold and sent to the press tables. During the pressing process, it is recommended to turn the cheese heads from time to time in accordance with the technology. After compacting the cheese, it is laid out in a salt pool, after soaking in brine, the heads are transferred to the rack, where they undergo their final maturation. The ripening room should be equipped with a good exhaust and ventilation system, while the temperature in the room for optimal cheese ripening should not go beyond +4 - +12 ˚ С.

Serum use. It is not recommended to pour out this useful product after making cheese. Send fresh whey back to the dairy. Dilute it with milk, add apple cider vinegar and bring the mixture to a temperature of +92 ˚ C. As a result, you can get juicy and soft cottage cheese, which is ready for sale.

Profitability of the cheese production workshop

If we compare the financial injections and the profit received, then if we adhere to all the technological nuances, the production will not only be profitable, but also promising. After acquiring the necessary equipment and hiring qualified employees, you can open your own mini-production.

The main financial expenses for launching production include:

sole proprietorship and business registration;

Purchase of main and auxiliary equipment;

purchase of quality raw materials.

The profit will depend on two factors: the volume of sales and the price of the product. It goes without saying that the price should be directly proportional to the quality of the fermented milk product. Therefore, in order to increase revenue over time, it is recommended to transfer production to the production of elite (expensive) varieties of cheese.

Before setting a price for your product, it is worth monitoring competitor companies and their products. Only in this case it is possible to draw the right conclusions and set an adequate price. Naturally, good cheese cannot be cheap, but you should not overestimate the price either. Otherwise, only a small number of people who do not mind spending a tidy sum for a piece of cheese will be able to purchase your products. It is advisable to find something in between cheap products made from substitutes and preservatives and expensive products that are made only from natural ingredients.

Product promotion

For cheese production, the business plan is just as important as product advertising. Due to the fact that there is a lot of competition among fermented milk products, the product must not only be of high quality, but also cost accordingly. Only the right balance of quality and price will ensure massive sales and regular customers.

Sales of goods

Even before the release of products, distribution channels for products should be established. To do this, through the conclusion of contracts, you can sell cheese to several places (shops) at once. Look out for nearby supermarkets and other large grocery stores that guarantee a large flow of customers. Another good marketing ploy would be the opening of a branded cheese shop near the place of production. It is also possible to establish cooperation with wholesalers or restaurants, cafeterias and other catering establishments that require a constant supply of fresh cheese.

You can find additional points of sale after a careful study of the specifics of trade enterprises located near your mini-workshop.

Now we can say with confidence that the production of cheese at home is a real opportunity to make good profits with minimal funding. To do this, you just need to conscientiously fulfill your tasks, adhere to the accuracy of the technological process, and arrange your mini-workshop in accordance with all standards. And by opening a small company store, right next to the cheese factory, you can get a number of regular customers who will help the development of the family business by buying your products!

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Cheese prepared at home will not only be cheaper, but also better in taste, more nutritious than store-bought, because it does not contain preservatives.

WHAT IS CHEESE

Cheese is one of the most nutritious food products obtained by special processing of milk. During the processing of milk to produce cheese, lactic acid bacteria and enzymes act on milk, and as a result of complex biochemical, microbiological and enzymatic processes, the resulting product acquires new, in comparison with milk, very valuable taste and nutritional properties.

COOKING CHEESE AT HOME

Cheese prepared at home will not only be cheaper, but also better in taste, more nutritious than store-bought, because it does not contain preservatives. Since the ripening process of the cheese occurs satisfactorily only in a piece weighing at least 0.5 kg, it is impossible to make cheese in smaller quantities.

Homemade cheese contains all the nutrients found in milk, but in a concentrated form. Half a kilogram of hard cheese contains the same amount of protein, calcium, riboflavin and vitamin B as 4.5 liters of milk. In addition, during the production of cheese, the content of vitamins increases. If you want to make cheese in large quantities, you will have to collect the milk for a week or longer, and store the milk in the refrigerator. However, if it is more convenient for you to work with 12-15 liters of milk, then it should be said that cheese in the appropriate amount can easily be made in an ordinary kitchen. To do this, you will need the following:

Milk;
- rennet or other starter;
- appropriate equipment. The preparation of milk is described in detail in the second section of this book. Here we consider the production of rennet and the necessary equipment.

PREPARING rennet at home

In the absence of factory-made rennet powder, you can prepare the enzyme yourself. To do this, the extracted rennet is cleaned during slaughter of lambs or calves, the ends of the holes are tied, inflated with air and dried in the shade or in a room at a temperature of +18 - +20 degrees C.

Packets of dried abomasums are wrapped in dark paper and stored until consumed.
It is better to take abomasums for the enzyme 2-4 months after drying, since mucus may appear from fresh ones in the solution.
Before cooking, the ends of the rennet are cut off.
Several rennets are placed on top of each other, with the wide end of one to the narrow end of the other. Finely chopped, like noodles, pour brine. 5% salt is added to drinking water for brine - 50 g per 1 liter - and boiled, cooled to +30 - + 32 degrees C.
Abomasums are soaked and infused in a clean enamel bowl in a warm place. After 2-3 days, the sourdough is ready.

CALCULATION OF THE REQUIRED AMOUNT OF rennet

To calculate the amount of rennet required to coagulate milk, you need to determine its strength in seconds. To do this, take a sample of 0.5 faceted glass from prepared milk (+31 - +33 degrees C), stirring quickly, pour one teaspoon of rennet solution into it and notice in the second hand of the clock when a clot forms.
Knowing the strength of the rennet solution in seconds, the need for it is calculated. Assume that 20 kg of milk is needed to make cheese. This milk must be curdled in 20 minutes, or 1200 seconds. The test showed a fortress of 60 s. You will need a solution of rennet:

20x60x0.1 = 0.1 l (or 100 ml)
1200

EQUIPMENT NECESSARY FOR PREPARING CHEESE IN HOME CONDITIONS

Most of the equipment for making cheese at home is always at hand, and the missing part is easy to purchase or make yourself. Such equipment and materials include the following:

Cheese mold;
- piston;
- press,
- two large pots;
- filter (colander);
- thermometer;
- a spoon with a long handle;
- a long knife;
- two pieces of gauze the size of one square! meter each;
- bricks (6-8 pieces);
- paraffin (0.5 kg).
Let's take a closer look at the main of these accessories.

CHEESE MOLD

The simplest form for cheese can be made using a one-liter tin (for example, from under tomato paste), in the bottom of which you need to make holes with a nail. The torn edges of the holes should be on the outside to avoid deformation of the cheese. The inner walls of the form are lined with a piece of fabric, then the form is filled with cheese mass and closed with a cloth from above - this way the mass will be prepared for pressing. Excess liquid will exit through the holes.

PISTON

The piston is a necessary part of the press. It is a circle of plywood about 1 cm thick or a piece of board of such a diameter that allows it to easily move inside the mold. The piston presses the cheese mass to the bottom, squeezes out excess whey, forming the density of the mass.

PRESS

You can buy a press, you can use a lard salting press, you can make it yourself in one day from several scraps of boards and a mop handle.

To make a press, take a piece of plywood or board 2 cm thick and 25 cm wide. Saw it into two pieces about 5 cm long each. Drill a 2.5 cm hole in the center of one part. The squeezed whey will flow through it. In the other, drill 2 holes opposite each other, also with a diameter of 2.5 cm, stepping back from the edges of the board 5 cm. These holes should be of such a size that will allow the mop handle to move freely through them.

Cut the handle into 3 parts: 2 x 45 cm and one 38 cm. Nail each 45 cm piece of the handle to the bottom board, stepping back from the edge 5 cm, focusing on the holes for them in the top board. Nail the third piece of the handle to the top board in the center of it, and attach the piston to the bottom end of the handle.

Attach 2 wooden blocks to the bottom of the structure, or put a press on 2 bricks, raising it to a height that allows you to place a container under it to collect the squeezed whey. A coffee can, some boards, and a mop handle can serve as material for making a press.

FILTER

The filter can be made from a large tin container with holes in it, but a colander or a large sieve will be more convenient to work with.

THERMOMETER

It is best to have a floating thermometer, which is used when cooking butter, although any other that is immersed in liquid will do.

GENERAL TECHNOLOGY FOR PRODUCING CHEESE IN HOME CONDITIONS

The cheese mass is placed on the upper board in a container (form) lined with cloth, which is then placed under the press. The ends of the fabric cover the mass from above. The piston is inserted into the container, and 1-2 bricks are placed on the top board. The loaded piston weakly squeezes the cheese mass, squeezing out the whey.

The load can be increased to 4 bricks to get a denser cheese. As a container, two containers for hot water with a volume of 24 liters and 36 liters are used, inserted one into the other (like a boiler). It is recommended to use them because of their low weight and enamel coating of the walls, otherwise aluminum will interact with the acid contained in the curd.
The 24 liter container holds at least 20 liters of milk. It is easy to handle and deep enough to cut the curd with a long kitchen knife.
To make cheese, you need raw goat's or cow's milk, sourdough, rennet, and salt. If desired, you can tint the cheese with orange food coloring.
Raw whole milk from a goat or cow produces the fattest cheese. You can also use skimmed milk. Preservatives are often added to preserve milk. This alone impairs the curdling of milk. In this case, it is better to use pasteurization.

Never use powdered milk. Firstly, it undergoes appropriate processing, and secondly, it produces a “skinny” cheese. Use only fresh, high quality milk from healthy animals.
Do not use the milk of animals that were given antibiotics less than three days ago. Even a small amount of antibiotics in milk inhibits the formation of acid in cheese. Raw or pasteurized milk can be stored in the refrigerator for several days. Before use, it is heated to room temperature and aged until the formation of a mature curd mass containing lactic acid, i.e. until sour. -Sour milk should only have a slightly sour taste, because. in the future, in the process of maturation, the amount of acid will increase. It is best to use the milk of morning and evening milkings. Cool evening milk to 15 degrees C, otherwise too much acid may form when warm milk is added. Refrigerate your morning milk in the same way before mixing it with your evening milk. If you use only morning milking milk, then it should be cooled to a temperature of 15-18 degrees C and kept for 3-4 hours. Otherwise, the required amount of acid is not formed to obtain the desired taste, and the cheese will have a weak consistency. If you are milking one cow or several goats, store the milk mixture in the refrigerator until you have collected 12-15 liters of milk.

If you decide to make cheese, select 10-12 liters of the best milk. Remember that low quality milk produces the same quality cheese.

From 4 liters of milk, about 0.5 kg of hard cheese is obtained, a little more than soft cheese, or about one liter of homemade cheese. Certain types of sourdough starter must be used to induce sufficient acid production to produce a good quality cheese.

Different starter cultures determine the different flavors of the cheese. You can use buttermilk, yogurt or special starter powders. You can make your own homemade sour starter by leaving two cups of fresh milk at room temperature for 12-24 hours to curdle or sour.

A more complex, but much more interesting "sourdough" can be made by adding 1/8 of a yeast stick to one cup of warm milk and leaving this mixture for a day. Then pour off half and add one cup of warm milk again. Every day for a week, pour half of the mixture and add one cup of warm milk instead. Keep the starter in a warm place. On the last, seventh day, add two cups of warm milk to the mixture and leave it for another day. and is ready to use.

If you make cheese regularly, leave two cups of soured milk from each previous batch of cheese. You can keep them covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Let the milk sour so that a curd forms and the whey can be separated, which takes 18-24 hours. Some prefer the taste and texture of homemade cheese made without rennet.
It is noticed that in very warm weather, milk begins to deteriorate before it has time to curdle. In winter, milk curdles for a long time.
After you have made the cheese a few times, you will learn how much salt to put in. Adding salt is necessary to get a good taste of the cheese. You can use regular table salt.

Perform each technological operation carefully, and after a little training you will become a real cheese master. Over time, you will comprehend the intricacies of cheesemaking (the stages of milk maturation and their influence on the taste of the future cheese, the duration of heating the cottage cheese and its effect on the structure of the product, the amount of salt, how the number of bricks for pressing is related to the moisture content, and also how the aging time of the cheese is reflected in the sharpness of its taste). All these details are reflected in the properties of the final product and determine the variety of taste and structure. The more you learn about this, the better the cheese you produce will be.

MAIN TYPES OF CHEESE PRODUCED IN THE HOME

Three main types of cheese are prepared at home:

Solid;
- soft;
- actually homemade.

In addition, there are recipes for homemade processed cheeses.

HARD CHEESE

Produced on the basis of cottage cheese, separated from whey, washed and pressed. The resulting cottage cheese in the appropriate amount is placed under the press and aged until the taste appears. Well-pressed and aged cheese is obtained within a month. You can consume hard cheese immediately, but it will taste better if you keep it longer. The longer the exposure, the sharper the taste of the cheese. The heavier the applied load, the denser its structure. The best hard cheese comes from whole milk.

SOFT CHEESE

It is done in the same way as a hard one, but the holding period under pressure is much shorter. This cheese is also not paraffin-coated and only aged for a week or not at all. Usually soft cheese can and should be eaten immediately after production or in the coming weeks. It cannot be stored for as long as solid due to its high liquid content. Soft cheeses can be made from both whole and skimmed milk.

HOME CHEESE

Homemade cheese is a soft cheese made from separated cottage cheese with a high water content and cannot be stored for a long time. It is usually made from skimmed milk, but it can also be made from whole milk. This cheese is the easiest to make compared to other types.

TECHNOLOGY FOR PREPARING HARD CHEESES

1. Heat milk to 32 degrees C and add 2 cups of starter culture. Stir thoroughly for 2 minutes to evenly distribute it. Cover the container with milk and leave in a warm place overnight. Try milk in the morning. If milk has a slight sour taste in the morning, go to the next step. If you are not using rennet, skip the next step and let the milk stand for 18-24 hours until curd and whey form.

2. To milk at room temperature, add 1/2 teaspoon of rennet or one tablet dissolved in 1/2 cup of cold water. Stir the mixture thoroughly for 2 minutes. Cover the container with milk and leave for 30-40 minutes until the milk curdles.

3. As soon as a dense curd clot forms and a little whey separates, you can start cutting the clot. With a clean long knife, cut it into 3x3 cm squares, lowering the knife to the bottom. Make the first cuts every 3 cm, cutting the cheese into ribbons. Then tilt the knife as far as possible, cut the mass perpendicular to the first cuts. Then turn the pan a quarter of a turn and do it all over again. Mix the pieces thoroughly with a long-handled wooden spoon or a paddle and cut those pieces that are larger, mixing carefully, trying not to destroy the pieces.

4. Place the smaller container in a larger one filled with warm water and heat the curdled mass very carefully, raising the temperature every 5 minutes by 2 degrees. Heat the water to 38 degrees C for 30-40 minutes, then maintain this temperature until the mass reaches the desired density. Stir gently to prevent the cubes from sticking together and forming a single lump. As the cubes become denser with heat, reduce the mixing frequency to help prevent sticking. Check the piece for tightness by gently squeezing it with your hand and quickly releasing it. If it breaks easily into pieces and the cubes do not stick together, then the mass is ready. Usually this state is reached after 1.5-2.5 hours from the moment the abomasum is introduced into milk.
It is very important that the cheese is firm enough when you squeeze out the whey.
If the density is not enough, the cheese will have a weak pasty texture, sour or other undesirable taste. If the density is excessive, the cheese will be dry and tasteless. Once the mass has become sufficiently dense, remove the container from warm water.

5. Pour the curdled milk into a large container lined with a filter cloth. Then remove the cloth with the contents and transfer to a colander. It is convenient to use a five-liter container with holes as a colander. When most of the whey is gone, transfer the curd from the cloth to a container and tilt it from side to side for a while to let the rest of the liquid out. Stir occasionally to avoid the formation of a solid lump. To achieve a better separation of the liquid, mix the mass with your hands. When the mass cools down to 32 degrees C, it acquires the density of rubber and creaks while chewing a small piece - you can add salt. Save your serum. It is a highly nutritious product and a good livestock feed supplement. Many drink it themselves or cook food on it.

6. Pour one or two tablespoons of salt into the mass and mix well. As soon as the salt dissolves and the mass cools down to 30 degrees C, spoon the cheese into a mold lined with cloth from the inside. Be sure to make sure that the mass has cooled down to 30 degrees C.

7. When you have filled the cheese form with the curd mass, connect the ends of the fabric lining the form at the top. Then insert the piston and put everything under the press. Start spinning with 3-4 bricks in the first 10 minutes.
Then remove the plunger and let the whey accumulated inside drain out. Reinsert the piston and add another brick. Repeat until the number of bricks reaches 6-8. When the mass has aged under a load of 6-8 bricks for an hour, the cheese is ready for wrapping.

8. Remove the bricks, remove the piston and turn the mold upside down to remove the mass. Pull firmly on the fabric to make it go easier. Remove the cloth from the formed mass, then immerse the mass in warm water to wash off the fat from its surface. Use your fingers to level and smooth any holes and cracks, achieving a smooth surface. Then wipe dry.
Now cut a piece of fabric 5 cm wider and longer than the girth of the cheese so that you can wrap it with a little margin. Wrap the cheese tightly using two pieces of cloth in a circle so that the ends overlap. Put the cheese in the mold, put the piston on it and press down with 6-8 bricks. Leave it like this for 18-24 hours.

9. Remove the cheese from the press. Remove the wrapping cloth and dry the surface with a clean, dry cloth. Look for holes or breaks in the piece. Rinse with warm water or serum until hard. Seal holes and breaks in the head by dipping them in water and smoothing them with your fingers or a knife. Then put the cheese in a cool dry cabinet. Turn it over and wipe it daily until the crust dries. This usually happens within 3-5 days.

10. Heat 250 g of paraffin in a flat dish to 80 degrees C. Its depth should be such that you can immediately lower half the head of cheese. Heat paraffin only in a water bath, never using fire. Place the head in hot paraffin for 10 s. Pull out for 1-2 minutes and let harden. Then fuse the other half. Make sure that the entire surface of the cheese is evenly covered with paraffin.

11. Turn the head of cheese daily. Wash the closet weekly, ventilate and dry it. After about 6 weeks of aging at a temperature of 5-15 degrees C, the cheese will acquire a dense texture and a delicate taste. You get a sharp taste from cheese if you keep it like that for 3-5 or more months. The lower the storage temperature of the cheese, the longer the aging time. Taste your cheese occasionally. It is possible to cut the cheese into four equal parts before paraffin pouring and use one of them for testing. How long to age the cheese, decide for yourself, guided only by your own taste.
As a rule, Colby cheese is ready in 30-90 days, cheddar - no earlier than 6 months, Romano - about 5 months. Some cheeses are aged for only 3-5 weeks. You will find out the duration of exposure by noting for yourself the time during which the cheese acquired the taste you like.

HARD CHEESE RECIPES

First recipe
Add 2 cups of starter culture to 4.5 liters of warm cow's milk. Cover and put the vessel in a warm place for 12-24 hours, until the milk turns into curdled milk. Follow the basic instructions from point 4 while heating the curd. Squeeze out the whey, as described in paragraph 7, bypassing paragraph 6. Remove the cheese from under the press, add 4 tbsp. tablespoons butter and 3/4 teaspoon baking soda. Chop with a knife until the cottage cheese turns into crumbs, and the oil and soda mix well. Place the mass firmly in a bowl or clay pot, pressing it to the bottom, and leave it in a warm place for 2.5 hours. Then transfer the mass to a mold for heating cheese, after adding 2/3 cups of sour cream and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Start heating slowly. Once the mixture is hot, start mixing. When all the additives are evenly distributed in the mass, pour the mixture into a well-greased pot or bowl and refrigerate. This cheese is ready to eat as soon as it cools. It can also be aged for 2 to 3 months.

Second recipe
This is a salty cheese made from sheep or goat milk such as feta cheese, Adyghe, Ossetian and other pickled cheeses. To make it, follow the directions, including step 7 - pressing the cheese, but skipping step 6 - adding salt. Press the cheese for 1 - 2 hours, then remove from the mold, cut into cubes and immerse in a salt solution (1/4 cup of salt per 1 liter of water). Leave the cheese in the solution for 24 hours. Then strain the cubes, pat dry and place under pressure again for 18 hours. The cheese is aged in a dilute salt solution (1/4 cup salt per 2 liters of warm water) for 8-10 days. A well-aged cheese is white or creamy in color.

RECIPES FOR COOKING SOFT CHEESE

Soft cheese is usually delicate in texture and does not keep for long. It has a short holding time. It is not paraffin-coated, but wrapped in wax paper and stored in the refrigerator until use. With few exceptions, soft cheeses are eaten within a week or so; as long as they taste the best.

The simplest soft cheese is ordinary cottage cheese. Most cheeses have a creamy texture because they are made by straining the whey through a cloth bag. Making soft cheeses is not as difficult as making hard ones. Here are the most common soft cheese recipes.

First recipe
Bring 5 liters of milk to a boil. Cool to lukewarm and add half a liter of buttermilk and 3 beaten eggs. Stir gently for 1 min, then let stand until a thick precipitate forms. Strain everything through a tight bag to glass whey. After 12 hours, you will get delicious cheese.

Second recipe
Add 1 cup of sourdough starter to 2 cups of warm milk. Let the mixture stand for 24 hours. Then pour in 2 liters of warm milk and let the mass curdle during the day. After that, heat in warm water in a water bath for 30 minutes and pour into a tight cloth bag. Let the serum drain. After one hour, take the cheese out, salt to taste and wrap in wax paper! This cheese can be used immediately for sandwiches or with dry biscuits. Keep it in a cool place until use.

According to this recipe, along with 1 teaspoon of salt, you can add 1 liter of sour cream to the mass, and then hang this mixture for filtering in a cold place for 3 days.

RECIPES FOR COOKING HOME CHEESE

Homemade cheese can be eaten immediately after preparation as a low-calorie food by itself or with the addition of sour cream. It tastes best chilled, but has a limited shelf life of one week when refrigerated.

First recipe

Heat 4.5 liters of milk to 24-26 degrees C and add 1 cup of starter. Cover and keep in a warm place for 12-24 hours, until a curdled mass forms and a little whey on top.
Now cut the clot with a knife lengthwise and across into centimeter cubes. Place the container with the mass in a large bowl with warm water. Heat up to 40 degrees C, stirring constantly so that the mass does not stick together. Do not overheat - carefully monitor the temperature! Monitor the hardness of the curd particles by periodically tasting the mass. Someone likes soft cottage cheese, and someone prefers hard granular, so when the mass seems ready to you, pour it into a colander lined with a cloth and strain for 2 minutes. After removing the cloth from the colander along with the contents, place it under a stream of warm water and, gradually adding cold, rinse off the serum. Place the mass in a bowl, add salt, cream to taste and chill well before drinking.

Second recipe

Pour 1 cup of starter into 4.5 liters of fresh milk. Cover and leave overnight in a warm place. In the morning, add 1/2 rennet tablet dissolved in 1/2 cup water. Stir 1 minute, cover and let stand 45 minutes. Cut the clot into centimeter cubes, then heat in a water bath to 40 degrees C. Then continue as in the first recipe, when the mass heats up and reaches the density you need.

COOKING PROCESSED CHEESE AT HOME

To make cheese, you will need 3 liters of milk, 1 liter of sour cream, 5 eggs, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of salt and sugar.
From the accessories you will need cutting boards and a stone for oppression.
Milk must be boiled, and sour cream must be beaten with eggs so that a homogeneous mixture is obtained.
Salt and sugar are added to boiling milk, and when it boils, you need to pour the sour cream mixture into it in a thin stream. The resulting mixture should be heated over low heat, while stirring it until curtailing. When a dense clot forms in the pan, you need to remove it from the heat and immediately throw it into a colander lined with gauze in two layers.
When the whey is partially strained, the cheese mass is tied with gauze, the ends of which are straightened, and placed between two clean cutting boards, after which they are pressed down with a stone. When all the whey has been removed, the cheese can be considered ready. Whey can be used to knead dough for pancakes. The resulting cheese cannot be stored for a long time. It keeps in the refrigerator for two to three days.

A profitable type of business in Russia is the production of cheese. This useful product will always be in guaranteed demand, as it is an important part of a healthy diet for every person. The cheese business can become a promising, sought-after business. This became especially relevant in the context of sanctions, when the Russian government restricted the import of these products from abroad.

Many entrepreneurs start this business already having the necessary knowledge and experience. They know many of the nuances and features of this production process. Others start their cheese making business from scratch.

Creating a business plan

The first step in starting a business should always be writing a solid business plan. It establishes the main directions of all your further actions in order to develop production. This document makes it possible to determine the size of the initial financial investment, formulate the correct assortment, correctly think over the pricing policy, plan the volume of goods produced and the possibility of its sale, predict consumer demand, and identify problems that may arise.

During the development of a business plan, you should determine strategic priorities in pricing, as well as consider searching for a niche in the sales market. To do this, you need to study the consumer demand for this product on the market in all its segments. Initially, the sale of cheese can be carried out in the region where the enterprise for its production is located. Later, when volumes are increased, it is possible to expand the sales market.

Registration of permits

It should be borne in mind that in order to open cheese production as a business, it is necessary to issue numerous permits, including obtaining certificates of various kinds.

First of all, you need to get the main document giving the right to conduct business - a registration certificate. You will receive all permits from the relevant authorities.

Product range

You need to decide the main question: will your company produce new varieties of cheese products or well-known, in demand. Your choice will determine the business development strategy.

Given the manufacturing process, natural cheeses are classified into fermented milk and rennet products. The production of the first occurs by fermenting milk using sourdough. In the manufacture of cheeses of the second type, milk is coagulated with rennet.

What types of cheese are traditionally presented in Russian retail chains?

• Solid rennet: Dutch, Russian, Parmesan, Edam.
• Soft sour-milk cheeses or rennet.
• Pickled, which contain a lot of table salt: cheese, Adyghe, sulguni.
• Semi-solid rennets: Roquefort.

Cheese business and start-up capital

It takes a lot of money to start a cheese making business. Therefore, to begin with, in order to accumulate start-up capital, you can choose various available business forms in this domain:

• produce, supply and perform primary processing of milk and butter;
• carry out the melting of cheeses;
• produce fillers and flavorings for cheese products;
• ensure the preparation of raw materials and deep processing of milk;
• store and age cheeses in refrigeration and climate control systems;
• create specialized packaging for different types of cheese;
• implement wholesale supply in the retail network.

Definition of pricing policy

To determine the price range acceptable to consumers for your product, you need to study the prices of competitors. And only after that you can set the final figures. This is very important, as a mistake in this business will entail significant losses, which will nullify all your efforts to open a cheese business.

Making cheese at home

This low-calorie product can be prepared at home, but does not last long. To prepare it, you need to heat 5 liters of milk to 26 ° C. After adding 200 g of sourdough, then it must be covered and kept in a warm place for a day. Cut the curdled layer into centimeter cubes and place in a container that needs to be heated, stirring constantly, in a water bath to 40 ° C.

Bring the mass to the state you need (soft or hard). Then the product is washed with warm water in a colander lined with a cloth. Transfer the finished cheese to another container, adding cream and salt to taste. Cool down.

This recipe for making delicious homemade cheese is suitable for treating family and guests. The production of 0.5 kg of such cheese at home will cost you 300 rubles. But this method is not suitable for organizing a cheese business, since it requires continuous technological conveyor production.

Cheese product manufacturing technology

This process occurs under the influence of microflora and enzymes. For example, Russian hard cheeses are made from high quality cottage cheese. It is separated from the whey, squeezed and kept for about one month under pressure. The finished product will be denser if a heavy weight is used. For cheese to be of high quality, it must ripen at a low temperature. Hard cheese is more in demand among consumers than soft cheese varieties.

The highest quality cheeses are made from whole milk. For the manufacture of a soft product, the same technology is used, but the stage of its pressing is either excluded or lasts less - no more than a week. Soft cheese contains a lot of liquid.

Stages of cheese production

1. First, the milk is prepared for curdling. After weighing and performing quality tests, it is cleaned, cooled, pasteurized and separated.
2. Then cheese grain is produced in special boilers and baths. The milk is heated, leaven, enzyme, calcium chloride are added and the cheese grain is kneaded.
3. To ripen it for up to 14 hours, it is kept at the right temperature and enzymes are added so that it curls up in about an hour.
4. The finished protein clot is additionally processed to make it elastic and durable. Excess moisture is removed from it during the heating process. The finished cheese grain acquires the required density.
5. Further, at a low temperature, cheeses are molded from the finished mass in cheese containers, which have a characteristic pattern in the form of empty round eyes. The finished product is given the desired dimensions and shape of a cylinder, ball, square, rectangle, etc.
6. Then this product is subjected to pressing, after which it acquires a perfectly smooth, even surface without pores.
7. After that, the molded cheese is salted in special containers, pools filled with a saturated solution of table salt. Soft cheeses are there for a very short time, hard cheeses - for several days.
8. The salted cheese product is dried on special racks and sent to ripen in special chambers, where it is constantly turned over, and the surface is covered with a protective coating of paraffin or a polymer film.

Equipment and raw materials for cheese production

All necessary equipment for each stage of the production of the cheese product must be purchased: refrigerators, baths, containers, etc. It is necessary to equip production facilities for the phased creation of products that meet the requirements of regulatory documents.

Since natural milk is used as the raw material, the cheese maker must conclude detailed contracts for its supply with farmers and dairy farms. These documents specify all the necessary requirements for the quality of milk, the volume of supplies, the procedure for payment and the method of delivery.

Profitability calculation

It is reasonable to open a profitable business in those regions of Russia where you will be able to profitably and constantly purchase raw materials.

One of the expenditure items will be the payment of wages to employees.

To purchase a cheese factory, together with equipment and raw materials, investments of about 30 million rubles are required, which you can recoup within about four years. Not everyone has the opportunity to find such funds.

Therefore, a good option may be to purchase a mini-workshop for the production of cheese, the price of which is about 100 thousand rubles. This enterprise, which has small areas up to 15 m², is capable of producing about 20 kg of cheese per day from 200 liters of milk. Taking into account raw materials and electricity, the initial costs will amount to approximately 130 thousand rubles. The profitability of such a mini-workshop will be up to 25%.

In the context of sanctions, not only the production of products from our own raw materials, but also farming becomes relevant. Read further in ours about how profitable goose farming is.

Later, you can purchase a larger mini-workshop with a price ranging from 190 thousand to 770 thousand rubles. with a capacity of up to 200 kg per day, the profitability of which is about 32%.

Organization of a cheese business is a complex, troublesome business. Here you can not do without suppliers of raw materials, specialists and workers. Strict adherence to production technology is required. Production facilities and equipment should be maintained in good condition. Considerable funds are needed as start-up capital.

However, if all the necessary conditions are carefully observed, a conscientious cheese producer will not only have a good income, but also an excellent reputation among consumers of this healthy and tasty food product.