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Agricultural Gazette of N.S. W. 



[Feb. 2, 1920. 



" Brick " Cheese-making for the Household. 



Requests for instructions in local cheesemaking for household purposes are 

 frequently addressed to the Department. The officers of the Dairy Branch 

 answered a recent correspondent in the following terms : — 



Take perfectly sweet milk night and morning, heat to 80 deg. F. and add 

 rennet at the rate of 4 ounces per 100 gallons of milk ; a small quantity of 

 colour should also be added, about 1 drachm to every 16 gallons of milk. 

 Cut the curd when firm into cubes about the size of a pea and then heat it — 

 if a small quantity, by placing a bucket of hot water in the curd, stirring it 

 gradually until the temperature reaches about 112 deg. and taking about 

 forty-five minutes to do so. Allow the curd to settle until it becomes 

 firm with a rubbery feel ; then draw ofi the whey, and (when this is completed) 

 stir the curd well with the hands to draw out the superfluous whey. A 

 small quantity of salt should be mixed through the mass, say at the rate of 

 1 ounce to 7 lb. of curd. The curd is then placed in moulds lined with cloth. 



The Mould used (or making " Brick " Cheese. 



These moulds are generally made of wood, such as kauri or red pine ; they 

 should be about 10 inches long, 5 inches wide, and 8 inches deep. Shallow 

 furrows should be scored with a saw on the inside of the moulds at intervals 

 of about 3 inches to allow the whey to escape more readily. When the curd 

 is placed in the inould a wooden folder slides easily into the mould and a 

 brick is placed on the folder. The cheese should be on a wooden table. 

 After about half an hour the mould should be turned, and the weight and 

 folder placed on the reverse side; turning should be done twice, at an interval 

 of about an hour. In twenty-four hours the cheese is taken out of the mould 

 and salted; this consists of rubbing a small quantity of salt on the outside. 

 Salting should be done for about three days, the cheese being turned each 

 day. The cheese is kept in a cool place and turned daily until sufficiently 

 ripe, which should be in about six weeks' time. 



" Much valuable information is published in the Gazette, and it is of great 

 value to the farmers." — A Moorabooldool Reader. 



