Gruyere Cheese

Method

• Warm the milk to 32°C or 90°F.
• Add the thermophilic culture and stir well.
• Cover the milk and let it rehydrate for about 5 minutes.
• Stir well.
• Cover the milk and let it ripen for about 10 minutes.
• Add the diluted calcium chloride and stir well.
• Add the diluted Rennet and let it set for an additional 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a clean break is achieved.
• Cut the curd into 1cm cubes and let it rest for 10 minutes.
• Stir the curd with a whisk to cut it further, resulting in pieces slightly larger than grains of rice.
• Gradually heat the curd to 46°C or 115°F, stirring every 5 minutes and maintaining a slow temperature increase over a 1 hour period.
• Let the curd settle for 5 minutes before draining off the whey up to the level of the curds.
• Carefully move the curds onto a cloth-lined mold and press them at 11kgs for 1 hour.
• Flip and redress.
• Press the curds again at 22kg for 12 hours or overnight.
• Remove the cheese from the mold and soak it in saturated brine for 10 hours, turning it at 6 hours.
• Pat the cheese dry and air dry it at 10°C for 2 weeks or until the surface is dry.
• Rub salt on the cheese and transfer it to a cheese cave, washing it with brine 3 to 4 times a week for the first 2 to 3 months to control mold growth.