Rennet where to buy denver

Only raw, whole milk will work for making cheese curd, says Frank Bonanno. Find Colorado dairies at Realmilk. Rennet contains an enzyme rennin that curdles milk. Originally, farmers made rennet from the stomach lining of calves, but anymore there are plenty of nonanimal sources that coagulate just as well. The crystals are extremely acidic; they aid in coagulating the cheese and impart a back-of-the-tongue tang that gives cheese a subtle bite.

Lemon or lime juice may be substituted — but double the amount so that their acid causes the same chemical reaction in the milk. A mail order source is lehmans. Hey, Dani, no, you didn't steer me wrong! This was indeed at Vitamin Cottage, the one on Wadsworth just north of Hampden. Thing is, it's the only Vitamin Cottage that carries it, because the store manager makes cheese. I finally got to this one today. Thanks much for pointing me in the right direction!

Thanks, db! Rennet is a key ingredient in cheesemaking, but it can be tricky to find. Most people don't realize that the majority of rennet is not vegetarian as it is an enzyme extracted from the stomachs of goats, lambs and calves. It is comprised of chymosin , an enzyme that curdles milk as part of digestion, which is why it is found in the stomachs of dairy-consuming young animals. It is possible to find vegetarian rennet , which is derived from plants or microbes, but the default type of rennet is animal-based.

Plant rennet is derived from sources such as artichokes or thistle. Microbial rennet is often derived from Mucur Miehei , a type of mold. Although microbial rennet is obtained from the mold, it is still vegetarian as there is no mold in rennet itself. Vegetarian rennet works just as well well for most cheeses as rennet sourced from the stomachs of goats, lambs and calves. The default type of rennet is calf rennet because some of its residual components aid in the breakdown of proteins, making it the ideal rennet for cheeses which are aged longer.

Cheeses made with microbial rennet which are aged longer than 6 months can have a mildly bitter taste due to some of the more complex proteins in the vegetarian rennet. Certain properties of plant rennet can also impact the flavor of the end result cheese. Whether this impact is positive or negative depends on your personal cheese flavor preferences. Rennet is available in powder, tablet or liquid form.

They all work equally well to coagulate the milk. Liquid rennet is the easiest type to work with because it can be the most precisely measured.