If you have milk, vinegar & half an hour you have everything you need to make ricotta cheese. And not just any ricotta cheese. It's so smooth it'll make you realize how grainy store bought ricotta is.
I have an acute cheese deficiency. Symptoms include wanting to eat cheese all the time.
It isn't something that's been officially diagnosed of course but at this point in the post it would be alright if you got a look of concern and let your chin quiver a bit for me.
I suspect you suffer from the same affliction. If so, read on so you can make emergency cheese whenever you have a symptom flare up.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Whole milk
- Lemon juice or vinegar
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
All you need to do is heat the milk, add the acid, then hold it at temperature for 20 minutes before draining. In a nutshell.
- Pour 5 cups of milk into a pot.
- Add salt.
- Slowly heat on the stove.
- When the temperature hits 185 F, add your acid.
- Stir in the acid (vinegar or lemon juice) until curds start to form, then 🛑 stop 🛑 stirring.
- Hold the milk at 185 F for 20 minutes without stirring. When 20 minutes are up, remove from heat and allow 15 minutes for curds to rise and separate.
Don't stir it. Go find a tuffet and sit until it's ready.
- Gently scoop curds up with a slotted spoon.
- Transfer to a cheesecloth lined strainer set over a bowl. Let drain for 10 minutes or so.
Hint: To make a delicious lemon ricotta use lemon as your acid and stir in the zest of one lemon after you've strained the cheese.
Milk
The only milk this won't work with is ultra pasteurized milk which as been heated to such a high degree it mangles the stuff the milk is made of which makes it unsuitable for forming curds.
Scientifically speaking.
You can use ...
- Whole milk - Best choice
- Cream - Excellent addition to whole milk (4 cups whole milk + 1 cup cream)
- 2% milk works well
- 1% & skim will work but produce only a small amount of small curds.
ACID
You can use a huge selection of acids which will all produce a different flavoured ricotta, but the most neutral tasting, plain white vinegar, will let the cheese flavour shine.
- Plain white vinegar
- Flavoured vinegars
- Lemon juice
- Citric Acid
See this heirloom tomato salad with ricotta on my website for an excellent use of your homemade ricotta.
Storage
Store in the fridge, good for 2-3 days.
How to Use it
With
Fruit - Like a bowl of peaches on a bed of homemade ricotta.
Pizza - Dollop on homemade pizza like my cast iron pizza. Just a big old blob in the centre or 1 blob per slice.
Pasta - Instead of (OR WITH) topping your pasta with parmesan cheese, drop some ricotta on it.
Homemade ricotta really is different than ricotta you buy at the grocery store. It's much nuttier and sweeter. This makes it an especially good choice with fruit.
Homemade Ricotta Cheese
Homemade ricotta is fast, easy and a lot smoother than the ricotta you're used to from the store.
Ingredients
- 4 cups homogenized milk
- 1 cup cream (any cream ... I used whipping cream)*
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons white vinegar**
Instructions
- Heat milk/cream/salt over medium heat until it reaches 185 F.
- When it reaches temperature stir in the vinegar. Stop stirring as soon as it's incorporated completely and curds start to form.
- Keep as close to 185 F for 20 minutes. Do not stir.
- Remove the pot from the heat when 20 minutes are up and let it rest so the curds and whey can separate.
- While you're waiting, line a sieve or colondar with cheesecloth.
- Remove the curds from the pot using a slotted spoon and place them in the cheesecloth.
- Let drain for 10-20 minutes. Don't be tempted to squeeze the liquid out of the cheesecloth. Just let it drain naturally.
- Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Notes
* The easiest way to warm the milk to 185 is to do it slowly over 15 minutes or so. Once it hits 185 lower the heat slightly and see if you can keep the temperature steady before adding your acid. Add your acid and keep an eye on the temperature. OR you can set your oven to 185 F if you have that option and put the pot in your oven.
* The cream is optional but helps gives the ricotta bigger better curds. You can omit it and use an extra cup of milk instead.
** Any liquid acid will work like flavoured vinegars. This will change the flavour of the finished product. USING LEMON JUICE as the acid will create a delicious lemon ricotta that you can stir grated zest into once drained.
Nutrition Information
Yield 17 Serving Size 3 TablespoonsAmount Per Serving Calories 77Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 4gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 20mgSodium 105mgCarbohydrates 3gFiber 0gSugar 3gProtein 2g
This is the kind of thing I do every once in a while. Mainly I buy my medicine in the store, but when I have milk that's on its way to being suspicious or am making something where the ricotta is going to really be noticed like in the tomato salad or on toast with figs and honey then I'll make it myself.
My other favourite ways to resolve symptoms of cheese deficiency are:
Now grab some milk and go make your medicine.
Has anyone tried this in Lasagna? I read somewhere that homemade Ricotta doesn't work as well as store bought for cooking?
can you do this with lactose free milk? Thanks
Hi Suzy. I've never done it but other people have had success so I'd say for you to give it a shot. ~ karen!
That's how Indian Paneer is made. I'm a cheese addict and really need help but I'd rather eat cheese.
Hi Karen - is there anything you can do with the liquid left overs??
Wendy, drink it, it's delicious!
You can use it in pizza dough or pancakes. It's good for the chickens so I give some to them. People use it for everything. But after giving some to the chickens, I pour it down the sink most of the time. ~ karen!
How about using Lactaid milk?
Will that work?
I have done that for my lactose intolerant husband. It came out great. I used my Instant Pot but it should work this way.
HI Barbara, I've never tried it but as long as it isn't ultra high processed it should work. And like I always say - give it a shot. There are a lot of things that aren't "supposed" to work, but when you try, it does. :)~ karen!
#1 - You do have a talented camera 'artist's eye' for laying out a pictorial scene. Sincere kudos. And 'B' - Thanks for sharing the recipe. I'll have to give it a go the next time I make lasagna.