Manufacturing Outlines and Applications of Selected Cheese Varieties 279free mass. The wash water is saved along
with the whey to extract milk fat. Good
stretching entails no marbling in the appear-
ance of the curd. Improper or incomplete
stretching leads to marbling of the curd and
is associated with water at low temperature
and low curd acidity. The next step is molding
the molten curd mass, which is now carried
out in the stretching - molding machine. If
done by hand, the curd is immersed in equal
volume of hot water (70 ° C to 80 ° C; 158 ° F to
176 ° F), kneaded like dough, fused, and
stretched like taffy. The internal temperature
of the cheese should reach at least 50 ° C
(122 ° F) — but it should not exceed 60 ° C
(140 ° F) — and the pH should be in the range
of 5.0 to 5.3.
The curd is then worked more and molded
into the desired shapes and sizes. The molded
cheese form is then cooled by immersion in
cold water at 10 ° C (50 ° F) or salt solution.
The cooling process results in fi rming of the
cheese block and may take as long as an hour,
depending on the size of the cheese loaf.
It is then ready for immersion in 22% salt
solution at 5 ° C to 6 ° C (41 ° F to 43 ° F) in a
brine tank. The time allowed for brining is
one to three days, depending on the size and
shape of the curd mass. The fi nished cheese
should test 1.5% to 1.6% salt. After brining,
the cheese blocks are dried in a cold room
until drip - dry and packaged in shrinkable
fi lm. Mozzarella cheese does not require any
curing and may be shredded and used soon
after it is manufactured. However, storage in
a cold room for 10 to 12 days improves the
melting behavior of mozzarella/pizza cheese.
Mozzarella cheese is a popular cheese for
pizza and Italian foods. The functional prop-
erties of mozzarella cheese are important for
the application. Pizza made with mozzarella
displays desirable stretch, melt, browning,
oiling - off, and surface blisters. The chemical
composition of the cheese determines the
functionality of the cheese. The composition
is controlled by strict control of cheese pH,
calcium content, fat content, moisture level,about 10 minutes before agitation is started.
The curd - whey mixture is cooked by raising
the temperature of the vat ’ s contents to 40 ° C
to 42 ° C (104 ° F to 108 ° F) in 30 minutes. The
rate of temperature increase is slow in the
beginning. After the cooking temperature is
attained, the curd - whey mixture is stirred for
10 minutes and agitation is stopped. Approx-
imately 33% to 50% whey is drained out of
the vat. Stirring is resumed for fi ve to 10
minutes. The curd is allowed to settle for 10
minutes, followed by agitation for another
10 minutes. The curd is pushed away from
whey exit end and whey is drained out. The
curd is trenched and piled along the vat length.
The total stir - out period is 30 to 45 minutes.
The individual blocks of cheese curd
should be trimmed with a long knife. When
the whey TA reaches 0.19%, the slabs are cut
into 6 - to 8 - inch - long blocks and turned
every 10 to 15 minutes. The total time for
turning is about 90 minutes. Following
packing for 30 to 45 minutes, the blocks of
curd are piled two high. After 30 minutes,
they are piled three high until the body of the
curd is transformed from a soft, springy,
granular character to a plastic, smooth, and
fi brous state. At this point, the blocks tend to
fl ow a little and acquire a smooth surface,
with a few or no mechanical openings. When
the TA reaches 0.8% to 0.9%, the curd is
ready for milling.
It is milled through a mechanical cutter to
2 to 3 inches in size. Alternatively, the curd
is cut into thin ribbons by passing it through
a rotary cutter. At this point, the curd should
achieve stretching character, which is tested
by immersing curd ribbons in water at 82 ° C
(180 ° F), followed by kneading and pulling to
determine its ability to form long coherent
threads. This leads to the mixing with hot
water and stretching step.
Mozzarella cheese manufacturers use
stretching and molding machines in which
the curd particles are treated with hot water
at 82 ° C (180 ° F), followed by working the
curd to achieve a smooth, elastic, and lump -