Jben Moroccan Fresh Cheese Food

JBEN - MOROCCAN FRESH CHEESE

Steps:

• Pour the buttermilk in a large bowl
• In a saucepan, add the whole milk or semi-skimmed milk, the salt, and heat until barely a simmer (when you start seeing small bubbles on the top)
• Add the hot milk to the buttermilk and gently mix with a wooden spoon. Add the herbs and aromatics if you are going for a flavored Jben
• Let the mixture cool down for about 2 hours. You will see it start separating which is a good indicator that the chemistry is working great
• Pour the mixture in a strainer to get rid of the liquid
• Place the strainer (with the strained mixture) on top of a large bowl. Keep the mixture in the strainer and cover it with a cheesecloth on top of which you can place a heavy plate or bowl to add weight and complete the straining process
• Let strain for 12 hours or overnight
• Your Jben is ready and you have now a delicious, soft cheese in the strainer! You can shape your cheese by hand or mold it in a container for a better presentation.
• Moroccan Jben cheese is delicious on fresh bread with a drizzle of honey

JBEN - MOROCCAN FRESH CHEESE

Steps:

• Step 1: Making the Milk Mixture.
• In a saucepan, on medium-high heat, heat up the milk with the salt, until it reaches a point right below a boiling point.
• When the milk is hot, you can see it starts bubbling a bit, add it to the cold buttermilk (Jben).
• You can flavor the jben if you want, I am using dried thyme. Mix well.
• Let the milk and buttermilk mixture sit on your counter for around 1-2 hours. You will notice that the mixture will start separating, there is a liquid on the top.
• Step 2: Straining the Mixture.
• To strain the mixture, I am using a cheese cloth (that you can buy in the supermarket) over a strainer, placed on top of a bowl (to get all the liquid that is strained).
• Pour the mixture on the strainer and cover it with the excess cheese cloth.
• Let the cheese mixture sit in the strainer (over the bowl) for 10-12 hours (or overnight).
• The cheese is ready after 10 hours, all the water is captured in the bowl, and you end up with the beautiful creamy cheese in the strainer.
• serve on a toasted bread, you can add some honey or jam to it!

FRESH PORTUGUESE CHEESE

Steps:

• Crush the tablets in a small bowl then add the lukewarm water to dissolve it, then set aside.
• In a saucepan, heat the milk just until you can feel the milk starting to warm. (Do not overheat or cheese will curdle). Remove from the heat then add the dissolved Rennet tablets and salt and stir.
• Set aside for 2 hours until the mixture becomes firm. Cut an X in the cheese and set aside for 10 minutes.
• Using a large spoon, gently spoon the mixture into 2 cheese forms, draining any whey that accumulates.
• Refrigerate the cheeses for several days, or until desired firmness is reached. Remove the whey regularly, and add more salt if needed. Once cheese is firm, store in a sealed container.