Cottage Cheese Question

[SandyM]

As a kid, I used to eat cottage cheese almost every day (which is odd, for a kid, I know).

I've sort of let it go by the wayside, because I haven't been able to find the right "texture" as I remember it.

The cottage cheese we used to get was small (I imagine that is the "small curd"?), and it was nearly dry - hardly any liquid in it at all.

I've tried large curd, small curd, low fat, full fat - I cannot seem to find the kind I used to have anywhere.

For me, it's the texture, silly. If it's too watery or large chunks, I cannot eat it.

Maybe it's a regional thing. I grew up in New York. I know on the milk thread, some people were saying they couldn't find ½º milk in their stores, but it's very popular here in Michigan.

I'd appreciate any feedback.

[AdGirl]

actually kelli, paneer isn't really cottage cheese. it's just what indian restaurants write in the menus so people who aren't familiar with it will have some sort of idea... it's actually just "homemade" cheese, not aged at all. whole milk boiled slowly and then cut with lemon/juice and drained until dry.

sorry, had to share http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Kelli Kerrigan]

I make paneer all the time. (saag paneer is one of my favorites, as I can't get enough of spinach.) Is cottage cheese aged? I just had a conversation last night about how much I hated the cheese in Paris. And I'm not sure why.....I'm clueless how some cheeses are made. maybe I'll ask on another post. Thanks for the reply.

[Luiza]

Farmer's Cheese! Rings a bell. This is probably what I was talking about.

Here is an excerpt on cheese-making from CheeseNet http://www.wgx.com/cheesenet/index.html

"The least sophisticated cheeses are the fresh, unripened varieties typified by Cottage Cheese. These are made by warming the milk and letting it stand, treating it with a lactic starter to help the acid development and then cutting and draining the whey from the cheese. The cheese is then packed and marketed without further ripening. This is the simplest, most basic form of cheese.

Cheeses that undergo a ripening process (also known as a curing, maturing or ageing process) are all treated with rennet. Before the ripening process begins, they go through a sequence of operations which, while following the same general pattern, varies from cheese to cheese. Basically, this sequence is:
1. Milk is warmed
2. A starter culture and rennet are added
3. The milk coagulates into a single huge curd
4. The curd is stirred and cut to drain off whey
5. The curd is heated, sometimes pressed, to remove more whey
6. The curd is moulded and shaped into a cheese, salting taking place before or after this process
7. The cheese is matured under controlled conditions."

Incidentally, rennet is "a substance obtained from the stomach linings of young calves which contains a coagulating enzyme which speeds the separation of liquids and solids". Many Romanian cookbooks have a special chapter on cheese-making (and one on slaughtering the pig at Christmas, but that's another story), and everytime I was perusing it I was wondering whether vegetarians eat aged cheeses. Vegetarians on this board, what do you say?

Luiza

PS Grace, I saw quark in a plastic container next to the cottage cheese at my grocery store (in Montreal) some time ago. I remember it because I laughed a lot when I saw it, thinking physics and particle accelerators. I think it was a big brand; I'll check on my next visit to see if it's still around.

[This message has been edited by Luiza (edited 02-15-2001).]

[Luiza]

Sandy, I'm not quite clear what a small curd is (or what a curd is, for that matter). I used to eat a kind of mushy, non-watery cottage cheese as a kid (With sour cream on top. For breakfast.) I found something similar at my supermarket in Montreal, but it's more solid. It's not in a plastic tub, but in a foil, like butter. The thing is, I don't remember what it's called. I don't think it said "cottage cheese" on it. I will check next time I'm in a grocery store, which will be in a few days.

I'm not convinced this helps at all, but just in case... Don't lose hope http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

And maybe somebody can enlighten me in the meantime what that solid cottage cheese is called. Or I might die of curiosity before I end up at a grocery store http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

Luiza

[Joyce]

Could you be referring to "Farmer's cheese"

[SandyM]

I don't think I've ever seen Farmers Cheese here in Michigan. I'm heading back to Buffalo this weekend - I'll check it out.

[Grace]

Sandy, there is a Farmer's Cheese product made by lifeway ( www.lifeway.net (http://www.lifeway.net) ). It sounds very close to what you describe. Hope that helps!

[This message has been edited by Grace (edited 02-15-2001).]

[SandyM]

Thanks Grace. Have you had it before? Does it taste like cottage cheese?

[Grace]

Yes Sandy, I've had it before. It's a little less salty than cottage cheese, but otherwise, pretty much the same, to me. In Germany they have stuff called "quark". It's smooth and they eat it like yogurt (but it's not sour like yogurt). They also use it for baking a lot. I use farmer's cheese that I process in the food processor as a replacement for quark. It's not that expensive, I would give it a try and see if it's what you're looking for. Let me know if you do, as I'm curious now!! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[SandyM]

Great - thanks Grace!!!

[Kelli Kerrigan]

There is Indian cottage cheese called Paneer.
It is more solid like tofu. Or could it have been more like ricotta? I bet the Farmers Cheese is the closest guess. You could always drain the small curd cottage cheese to be more to your liking.

[JLS]

I eat low salt cottage cheese and it seems to have a "no curd" texture.

[Grace]

Oooooh Luiza, you lucky girl! I'm in Chicago, and it simply doesn't exist here (although I'll be REAL happy if someone can prove me wrong!).

Mix it with a little sugar and some fresh or frozen fruit, or make tzatziki with it....it's awesome baked into cakes (I have a few recipes if anyone needs them)...I'm sooo jealous. I've even had some of my friends "sneak" this back from Germany with them in their carry on luggage! It's the first thing I buy when I go to Germany. Ah well, if you can give me the name of the manufacturer, maybe there is a mail order source for this? Thanks for the info though...