Back to the Cambozola…
At a quarter to one the next afternoon, the cheeses can be unmoulded. I need to test the pH to check that they have acidified properly. If this hasn’t happened, there’s a very real danger that the cheeses could be contaminated with pathogens and – even if they are not – something has gone wrong which will mean that the cheeses won’t develop as they should.
I’m aiming for somewhere between 4.8 and 5.1. I feel gratified and relieved to see 4.92 come up on my pH meter. Now the cheeses can be salted to halt the acidification (I don’t want the pH to drop too low). They weigh around 160g each so I’m adding 1.5g per side of each cheese. I start with the first side, gently rubbing the salt in, in small concentric circles. Then I wait another 12 hours, salt the second side and leave to rest for another day (ideally at 20˚C to 25˚C) under a plastic box. The box helps stop them from drying out and the laundry room provides a suitable temperature.
On Thursday, they’re ready to start maturing – so they come out of the laundry room and into the fridge. The optimum temperature to mature the cheeses is between 10˚C and 15˚C. Most fridges can’t run so high but I’ve got an old one that doesn’t quite close properly. Nothing ever gets properly cold in here – the ideal environment.
On Saturday, I pierce holes in the cheese with a metal skewer – this allows air to get to the Penicillium Roqueforti so that the blue moulds can start to develop. The following Tuesday I add two more ripening cultures to the surface of the cheese, dissolved in some warm water, which I spray on. These are Penicllium Candidum (which develops the white rind typical of Brie and Camembert) and Geotrichum Candidum (which adds a wrinkly brain look). Ah, the noble art of affinage!
The cheese is made – now it’s simply a matter of turning them every couple of days for two to four weeks. Once I judge that they have developed enough (look, feel, smell), they can be wrapped and refrigerated. And finally, tasted!
