Queso Fresco: How to Make It

"The poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese."

-G.K. Chesterton

Cheese-making belongs to that class of mysterious household arts from which many shrink alongside homemade croissants, folding fitted sheets, and whether balsamic ought to be stored in the fridge or pantry. How does one make cheese? is the question many seem to hold at arm's length as if proper admittance of such a question might mark one as an eccentric. Surely it can't be terribly difficult if Bedouin trampers can make it in their wine-skins while trotting about camel-back … and yet there was that one article discussing the vehement battle fought to secure the name of a certain type of cheese as belonging only to cheeses made in a certain set of caves somewhere in France. So maybe it is difficult?

I have tried my hand at making goat's cheese before to small failure. It wasn't that the cheese didn't work so much as the fact that it didn't taste like the cheese I had eaten elsewhere. It didn't taste like chevre. Huge surprise, considering I didn't buy chevre culture (or any culture at all). It turns out that the cheese one can make without cultures and rennet is loosely called “queso fresco” which sounds like Spenglish for “fresh cheese” which is the essential character of the thing. We have begun a goat share program which has helped with cutting down on the gallons of excess milk that seem to collect around the house, but there was still plenty of extra and Mama requested that I preserve our lives by making cheese in the few days I am home between iGovern camps.

She had purchased cheese cultures and rennet last year but it seems that you are supposed to store those accoutrements in the refrigerator, not a kitchen drawer. Ehehehe. Then it was queso fresco again for me. I rolled up my mental sleeves, Mama laid out the cheese-making things, and there I was. The secret about queso fresco is best said in the words of the blogger at Serious Eats: “It's almost as easy as making a pot of tea. Except you need cheesecloth.”

In faith, she's right. All you need to make goat cheese is unpasteurized (or very lightly pasteurized) milk, a large pot, some vinegar or lemon juice, and some cheesecloth. Heat one gallon of milk, stirring occasionally, till wisps of steam come off the surface, or to 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove from the heat, stir in 1/2 cup of the vinegar or lemon juice and let it sit for a while till curdles form. Strain the curdles into a cheese-cloth-lined colander, then tie the corners of your cloth into a bag and "hang" your cheese by sliding a wooden spoon through the knots and dangling it to drip by weight so it isn't a soggy mess. Then you take it down, mush a lot of fabulous flavors into it, and voila: you've made queso fresco.

I have made five batches in the fifteen hours, resulting in some pretty darn fabulous combinations. First three batches were:

Mediterranean Herb

(cheese salt, fresh basil, oregano, and thyme)

Garlic & Cracked Pepper

(flaked pink sea-salt, micro-planed garlic, cracked peppercorns, a dribble of olive oil)

Pistachio & Chives

(cheese salt, minced chives and chopped pistachios)

And because I was feeling adventurous with today's batches, I took a fruity botanical route with:

Apricot-Cayenne-Mace

(dried apricots, sprinkles of dried ginger, cayenne, and mace, and chopped borage flowers)

Boysenberry

(macerated boysenberries in honey, cheese salt)

Mama went to the store today and brought home crackers and sweet cherries and we had a royal feast upon her return. I cannot wait to get back in town and try out our other flavor combos we brainstormed today (lemon-dill and orange-basil?). I also received the good news that Mama ordered three new cultures as well as citric acid which means that we'll be able to make mozzerella and real chevre among other things. Ohhhhh yessssss. And if it couldn't be any better, my friend Brittany (whose company I've been able to enjoy in our home this week) read to me an essay by Chesterton on "The Neglect of Cheese in European Literature". It is hilarious.

Let the hunger games begin.