Resources

As a novice cheese maker it is often hard to find good resources to use. So, in this blog I am going to list some resources that I have found very helpful in learning how to make cheese at home. The first thing I would like to say is stay away from those cheese making kits. My opinion is that they are over priced for what you get. It is cheaper and better to put together what you need and this gives you the flexibility to experiment as well. But as with all things, research is very important. So here are some recommendations.

Books

A very good book for beginning cheese makers is Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking by Gianaclis Caldwell. It gives a real good introduction to cheese making. It goes through the entire process of making cheese and gives a lot of detail, but it is not over whelming. Then it give some really good recipes to try.

Another good resource is Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll. Ricki is the so called "Cheese Queen" and her book has been a standard for about 20 years. It contains good information and is a good introductory book.

Supplies

As I have tried to show in my videos there are a few basic supplies that you will need to begin with. They are things that you should have around the house.

Instant Read Thermometer -- I have a thermapen, but I would not recommend the one I have for cheese making. You can get a good instant read thermometer from a place like Bed, Bath and Beyond for under 10 dollars.

Stainless Steel Pot -- Get a pot that can actually hold at least 2 gallons of milk. Most recipes call for this amount of milk.

Cheese cloth -- Available from several sources.

Stainless Steel strainer and spoon -- You can get a set of 5 stainless steel utensils from Amazon for about 12 dollars.

Starters, Rennet, Molds/Baskets etc. -- There are two web sites that I recommend. One is
Rick Carroll's Cheese Making Site and the other is Steve Shapson's Cheese Making Site

Cheese Presses -- A cheese press is needed for making hard cheeses. There are lots available, but for the money I would recommend the Sturdy Press. That is what I have and it works great. You can check them out at The Cheese Sturdy Press

This list of resources should get you started in making cheese at home.