210 THE BOOK OF CHEESE 



coagulation by rennet, may be called a necessary evil. 

 There is an unavoidable mechanical loss which may be 

 greater or less according to the mill used. If the curd 

 has been properly handled so that the water in it has 

 become thoroughly assimilated (properly incorporated), 

 this loss will be reduced to the minimum. If the curd 

 contains free moisture and many of the particles have 

 soft interiors, a stream of white whey will run down the, 

 vat as the curd masses are cut. Some samples of such 

 white whey will test as high as 15 per cent fat. This 

 not only causes a loss in yield but in quality of cheese, 

 according to the amount of fat lost. White whey is an 

 indication of loss of fat. If the proper amount of 



moisture is present 

 and is so thoroughly 

 incorporated in the 

 curd that it can be 

 separated only by 



FIG. 43. A curd fork. evaporation, the ideal 



condition has been 



reached. While milling, the cut curd should be stirred 

 as fast as milled to prevent matting again and to allow 

 odors to escape. This stirring is usually performed with 

 a curd fork (Fig. 43) . At the same time the temperature 

 will be lowered. The milled curd should be spread evenly 

 over the upper three-quarters of the bottom of the vat. 

 The flavor of the curd that has been made from tainted 

 milk can be very much improved by stirring at this time 

 so that air can enter. 



A gassy curd, which has been held until the holes have 

 become flattened, should be stirred very frequently during 

 this stage to allow the gas to escape, thereby improving 

 the flavor. 



