ANSC 137 CHEESE TECHNOLOGY EXERCISE 4 GOUDA CHEESE

INTRODUCTION Gouda is one of the semi-hard washed cheeses, the largest and most diverse group of cheese which include Edam, Colby, Brick, Montasio, Oka, Menster and many others[1]. The distinguishing feature of these cheeses is the practice of washing to remove lactose. Part or all of the whey is removed and replaced with water to leach lactose from the curd to limit its amount to a level which permits sufficient lactic acid development to produce a minimum pH of 5.0 - 5.2, but not enough to ferment and produce cheese pH less than 5.0[1]. The amount of syneresis is controlled mainly by the temperature, cooking time, and by the temperature of wash water as higher temperatures cause the curd to contract and expel moisture. The curd is then placed in round molds which give its traditional wheel-like shape[2]. Gouda was named after the Dutch city of Gouda in the province of Zuid-Holland. In spite of that, the Gouda cheese with the highest regard comes from Noord-Holland the Noord-Hollandse Gouda which is registered in the EU as a Protected Designation of Origin[3]. Unless with this name combination however, Gouda is a generic cheese describing the type and flavor of the cheese rather than its place of origin, and hence can be made anywhere in the world[3]. Gouda is good as a table cheese and for snacks and grilling. Aged Gouda can be grated over baked potatoes or included in potatoes au gratin. It goes particularly well with good bread and any type of wine or beer. Gouda is a breakfast staple in Europe, eaten with fresh fruit. OBJECTIVE To acquaint the students with the procedures in Gouda cheesemaking from whole milk and as a result, be able to make Gouda cheese.

METHODS AND MATERIALS Materials: Cows milk, 10kg Lactic starter Rennet Brine, 20% salt Thermometer Casserole Ladle Cheese mold Cheese cloth 10-kg weight to press Methods: Cows milk was pasteurized at 72C for 15 seconds and cooled down to 30C. Lactic starter culture was added at 1.5% and left to stand for 30 minutes. Rennet was added based on a PRV of 200 and allowed to coagulate for 25 minutes. The coagulum was cut into approximately inch cubes and left undisturbed for 15 minutes. Afterwhich, about 1/3 of whey was drained while stirring continuously for 5 minutes. The drained whey was replaced with hot water at 65C maintaining the temperature at 38C. The washed curd was stirred continuously for another 30 minutes with some of the whey, then placed in a cheesecloth-lined mold and pressed with a 10-kg weight removing the whey. The pressed cheese block was inverted and pressed again, leaving overnight to fully drain. In refrigerator, it was soaked after in 20% brine for four hours, dried overnight at the same temperature, waxed and left to ripen for 2 to 3 months at about 15C. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The resulting yield at 10% was the lowest of all the previous cheeses made owing to pressing which is characteristic of its process, the product being a semi-hard cheese. Consequently, the production cost at P39.00/100-gram is relatively higher than cream cheese at 15%, than Feta at 63%, and than Ricotta at 42%

Product Costing

CONCLUSION The exercise clearly differentiated Gouda from previous cheeses made with its curd being washed, and introduced processing ripened cheeses with pressing to attain compactness, and waxing to protect the cheese from mold contamination and loss of moisture and possible flavor loss. REFERENCES [1] 2012, Dairy Science and Technology, Cheese Technology, University of Guelph, Canada [2] 2012, Gouda Cheese: Nutritional Facts and General Information, www.professorshouse.com [3] 2007, The History of Gouda Cheese, ReadAbout.com.au