618 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



fheddariug has continued some time. Usually, when the curd strings 

 one inch and the other physical appearances of the curd are as de 

 scribed above, the curd is ready for milling. 



57. Milling the Curd. 



Milling the curd consists simply in cutting it into small pieces in 

 order to salt it and handle it conveniently in putting it into hoops 

 for pressing into a solid mass. Several mills are on the market 

 for this purpose. . The best machines cut the curd into pieces of 

 uniform size, without tearing it in pieces. Wheo properly milled, 

 there is less loss of fat and the curd is more evenly salted. After 

 milling, the curd is piled up to flatten out the pin-holes and then 

 stirred enough to keep it from matting together, perhaps every fif- 

 teen minutes. The time for milling should come about half way 

 between removing the whey and salting the curd. The breaking 

 down or softening of the curd continues after milling, as a result 

 of further formation of lactic acid and its combination with the para- 

 casein of the curd. When the curd forms strings on a hot iron about 

 two inches long, it should be salted. During all this time the curd 

 should be kept warm. 



58. Salting and Pressing Curd. 



(1.) Salting. — 'Salt is added to curd chietiy for the flavor it im- 

 parts, but the presence of the salt produces several other effects. 

 It aids in removing whey; it hardens the curd; it checks or retards 

 the formation of lactic acid'. In the absence of salt a cheese cures 

 more rapidly and is apt to develop a bitter flavor even at moderately 

 low temperatures. Excessive salting makes a cheese mealy because 

 too dry and the cheese cures very slowly. 



A salt of fairly coarse grain is preferable for cheese, because it 

 dissolves more slowly and reaches farther into the pieces of curd. 

 When the salt is added, the curd is spread out thin in order to cool 

 to 90 degrees F., and the salt is mixed uniformly through the curd. 

 Then the curd is stirred until the salt is completely dissolved. In 

 respect to the amouot of salt to use, the usual amount is two and 

 one-half ounces to three pounds of salt for the curd made from 

 1,000 pounds of milk. A moist curd should be salted somewhat 

 more. 



(2.) Pressing. — Before pressing, the curd should be cooled to a 

 temperature between 78 degrees F. and 84 degrees F. If put in 

 press warmer than this, the fat runs out and is lost and it also pre- 

 vents the pieces of curd sticking together perfectly. If curd is 

 put in press much below 80 degrees F., the pieces do not cement com- 



