In the previous part of our story, we touched on those components that are necessary in the production of homemade cheese. Well, with milk, everything seems to be clear, with seasonings, in principle, too, but on pepsin – rennet – you should dwell in more detail. I am sure that those who were not interested in cheese making before, neither domestic nor industrial (and there are most of them), are perplexed – what kind of animal is this?
And most importantly – where do they get it? I tell you without hiding. The most important component of milk, as you know from school, is casein protein. Its content in cow’s milk reaches 3%, which is a lot. In this case, pepsin, which is produced by the cells of the stomach, serves just for the breakdown of proteins. It is easy to guess that when pepsin acts on casein, coagulation occurs, that is, milk coagulation.
Where to buy Pepsin?
In principle, you can buy rennet via the Internet, cheese dairies, or just negotiate on the market – enthusiasts will probably do so, and for 99% of all the rest there is a much more affordable way. Fortunately, in addition to cheese making, pepsin is used for medical purposes, for the treatment of various diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, dyspepsia, and so on. Well, if so, then our path lies in the pharmacy. Domestic pharmacies have two drugs that can be used in cheese making – abomin and acidin-pepsin.
The second, it seems, is much more accessible – and therefore a little more about it. Acidin-pepsin (other trade names – Acidolrersin, Acippsol, Betacid, Parsacid, Parsamin) contains 1 part of pepsin and 4 parts of acidin. Acidin during hydrolysis releases hydrochloric acid, which is absolutely harmless, because, firstly, it is already contained in gastric juice, and, secondly, it will be present in the finished cheese in negligible volumes. For 1 liter of milk, from which, depending on the recipe, about 200-300 g of finished cheese is obtained, 1-2 tablets of acidin-pepsin are used, which are dissolved in water and introduced into milk brought to a certain temperature.
A pack of acidin-pepsin costs about $ 1, it is dispensed without a prescription, and I strongly recommend that you have a stock in the refrigerator – after all, very soon we will prepare homemade feta cheese, and then we will consider the technology for preparing other cheeses. Stay with us!