Today I am going to share with you how I made kefir cheese. It’s easy! All you need is a little time to make it happen.
To begin with, I have some cheesecloth, a bowl to catch whey, a strainer, and my kefir.
I place the strainer in my bowl.
Then lay the cheesecloth over the strainer. You need this simply because you are still working with a loose solid. It may run all over the place if you don’t have something to keep it steady.
See, my kefir looks a bit like yogurt and is a bit runny in spots.
I tie up my cheesecloth, trying not to squish or smash the kefir, but to make the bag snug so it will force out the whey.
Find yourself a nice place to hang for several hours. You want to drip out all the whey. It takes a while. So put it in a spot that it’s not going to be disturbed.
See all the whey above? It kind of astounds me just how much is in there!
Here we are later that evening with the drained kefir, now kefir cheese! You can totally leave it as is or you can give it some more flavor.
I’ve added 2 tsp chives, 1 tsp garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
Mix thoroughly, and smash the clumps of garlic powder if you have to… I did.
Scoop out on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll up.
Now the cheese is ready to ripen in the fridge while the flavors marry! You can eat it the next day, or if you can’t wait it is perfectly fine to eat immediately. The flavors won’t have had time to intensify, but it would still be good! 🙂
You can eat this on crackers, savory bagels, with veggies or chips, on a sandwich, alongside your meal. On smashed cauliflower or potatoes. Lots of ideas, lots of options!
Now don’t forget about your liquid gold here! Keep this! It is a valuable bi-product of milk and cheese. Whey is fantastic! It is super nutritious! Use whey to drink (some do, I don’t yet), use it for fermenting, or even feed it to your chickens! Very good for that! They will love it!
So there you go! You are well on your way to becoming a master cheese artisan. 🙂 I hope I’m well on my way too. LOL! I’m going to try my hand at feta today. I’ll let you know how that goes soon.
Have a great day, friends!
Blessings!
xoxo
Dear Chas,
I have fermented kefir for a while now and have wanted to do cheese, but wasn't ever quite sure what I was doing. Your post cleared that up for me. It is the aging of the 'cheese' that I had somehow missed. Shaping it into a log will be helpful too.
As a side note, my kefir looks whiter and not as thick. Can there be variation like that?
Or is something amiss?
Thank you for sharing these tips. You always keep it fresh and interesting.
Agape always,
Jen
Just curious…Do you make your own kefir? (Have you already posted on that? Or, if you haven't…would you? 🙂 )
Hi Jen!
I am not sure about the color, my Jersey milk is very white, so it could just be the milk. There are times it gets slightly creamy yellow, but most often it is white. I let my kefir ferment til it is quite thick, almost a yogurt texture. It takes anywhere from 36-48 hours usually, sometimes a little longer depending on the temp of my house… which can vary depending on the temp outside.
I hope that helps! 🙂
Blessings,
Chas
Hi Veronica!
Yes, I do. After promising this recipe to someone, I realized I never explained how I make kefir. Duh! 🙂 I should have don't that first.
I will share the process next week. And if you don't have grains, when mine double up again, I'd be happy to share with you!
Blessings,
Chas
Can't wait!! 🙂 This is one of those things I have wanted to learn how to do for so long, but didn't know anyone who actually made it (I've been buying mine). (So, no, I don't have grains…If you're willing to share, I would definitely appreciate it!)
~Veronica