CHAPTER V
CURD-MAKING
Aside from the purely sour-milk cheeses, the coagulum or curd resulting from rennet action is the basis of cheese-making. The finished cheese, whatever its final condition, is primarily dependent on a particular chemical composition and fairly definite physical characters in the freshly made curd mass. These characters are determined by a series of factors under control of the cheese-maker. Assuming the milk to be normal in character, success depends on the use of a proper combination of these factors. The possible variations in each factor together with their number makes an almost infinite series of such combinations possible. The essential steps in the process are, therefore, presented as underlying all cheese-making. The special adaptations of each factor are considered in the discussion of the varieties group by group.
These factors follow:
A. The coagulation group:
1. Fat-content of the milk.
2. The acidity of the milk.
3. The temperature of renneting.
4. The effective quantity of rennet.
5. Curdling period or the time allowed for rennet action.