Preparacion de Cuajada

Filling Vat with Milk

Following pasteurization, the vat is filled with milk. This vat holds up to 1,750 gallons of milk.

Set Temperature

The milk temperature is raised to 88° F in order to prepare the milk for the addition of the culture.

Culture is Added to Milk

Culture is added to the milk and is allowed to ripen for 60 minutes. When making traditional cheddar cheese, color is added about 50 minutes after the culture and about 10 minutes before the enzyme. No color is added for Jack, Fontina, Havarti or White Cheddar cheeses. The coloring added to the cheddar cheese is Annatto which is a natural coloring derived from a tropical American tree whose seeds are used to produce a food coloring.

An Enzyme is Added to the Milk

An enzyme is added to the milk, causing it to coagulate and become curd. The process between the time the enzyme is added to the milk and the time the curd is cut takes approximately 35 minutes.



We use two vegetarian approved enzymes in the production of our cheese. The actual type used will depend on the type of cheese made and the customer. We use a Chy-max enzyme and Hannilase. Hannilase enzyme is produced by the fermentation of Mucor miehei. It is organic and vegetarian approved.

Coagulation of Milk into Curd

Milk temperature is critical during this stage. For every degree you increase the temperature, the time before you cut the curd shortens. Our target time for the coagulation of the milk into curd is 35 minutes. However, raising or lowering the set temperature of the milk can modify the set time.

 Cutting the Curd

The coagulated milk is cut into 3/8-inch cubes by pulling curd knives with 3/8-inch wide stainless steel wires through the coagulated milk. These cubes will become cheese curds. At this point the whey starts separating from the curds. Whey is the liquid portion of the milk that does not become cheese. At Loleta Cheese we recycle the whey back to the dairies as a nutritional supplement for our cows.

Resting and Healing of the Curd

The curd is very delicate immediately after it has been cut. The whey and the curd begin to separate. The curd is gently stirred by hand using a cheese squeegee to separate the curd from the surface of the vat and move the curd around in the mixture of curds and whey to allow the surface of the curd to heal before the start of the cooking process.

Cooking the Curd

During the cooking process, the mixture of curds and whey are gently cooked by raising the temperature from 88° F or 90° F, depending on the type of cheese, to 100° F over a period of 30 minutes. It is important that this process be carefully monitored and that the temperature does not rise too quickly.

Draining the Whey

After the curds and whey have reached the desired temperature, pH, and time targets, the whey is drained off. At this point, the cheese making process will vary depending on the type of cheese being made.

Vacuum Packing Cheese Curds
 
The block of cheese curds is placed in a vacuum chamber machine. The vacuum chamber machine removes the air from the pouch and seals the package. The packaged cheese curds is put in a cardboard box and labeled. The boxed cheese curds is then placed in the cold room to age to the desired flavor. The aging temperature is between 40-42° F. Aging can range from several days up to 21 days