Chevre starter culture or mesophilic culture and rennet
Instructions
Put one gallon of goat's milk into your stainless steel pot.
Heat the milk to 86 degrees fahrenheit. Remove from heat.
Sprinkle your packet of culture/rennet across the top of the milk and let it sit for about two minutes.
After two minutes, stir in the culture until it is thoroughly dissolved. Thirty second or so should do it.
Cover your pot with the lid and let it sit for around 12 hours, until it has gotten thick. You should be able to see a difference between the curd and the whey. The whey will be a light yellow liquid on top, and the curd will be a white mass beneath it.
Line the colander with cheesecloth. If you are using store bought cheesecloth, I'd do 4 layers.
Place your colander and cheesecloth over a bowl to catch the whey that runs out. Gently scoop the curd from the whey (you can use a slotted spoon but I just use my hands) and place it in the colander.
Tie up the ends and hang it from a cupboard so the whey can drain from the cheese. I use a hair tie wrapped around the top for hanging.
Let it hang anywhere from 6-8 hours, depending on the texture you like your chevre to be. A longer hang time will give you a dryer, crumblier cheese.
Remove it from the cheese cloth and place it in a bowl. Salt to taste. Start with a tablespoon and mix that in well. Taste it, add more if you want it saltier.
Optional: Shape the Cheese
At this point you could place it in a mold of some kind to give it a shape. If you are going to do that, line your mold with cheese cloth, then press the cheese in.
It is best eaten within a week or you can freeze it for six months.
Notes
First, this recipe is going to sit for 12 hours, then sit for around 6 hours. Try to start this recipe so you aren't having to get up at 4 o'clock in the morning to finish your cheese.