Best Fresh Mozzarella Recipes

FRIED MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Pour enough oil into a sturdy skillet so it's about 2 inches deep. Heat to 350°F, using a candy thermometer to accurately gauge temperature, or toss a small piece of bread in the hot oil and when it sizzles and starts to turn brown, it's ready.
• Make the breadcrumb mixture by placing the white bread, panko, Parmesan cheese, garlic, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until well combined and bread has become coarse crumbs.
• Set up a dredging station by taking three medium-sized bowls and placing the flour in one, the eggs plus a tablespoon of water in another, and the prepared breadcrumbs in the remaining bowl.
• Dredge each mozzarella piece first in the flour, then into the egg bath (shaking off excess), and then into the breadcrumbs. Use your fingers to help the bread crumbs adhere to the cheese. For extra crispy fried mozzarella, repeat the egg and breadcrumbs steps once again. Set breaded cheese pieces on a plate as you continue to work.
• Carefully add the breaded cheese pieces to the hot oil and fry until golden, about 2 to 3 minutes. Do this in batches, don't over crowd the pan! Drain on paper towel-lined plate.
• Serve immediately with fresh marina.

BRUSCHETTA WITH MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil and garlic over medium/low heat until the garlic softens. (about 5 minutes)
• While the garlic is cooking, chop the tomatoes, onion, basil, and mozzarella cheese. Combine in a bowl and mix together with the salt and pepper.
• Add the olive oil and garlic to the bowl with the other ingredients. Leave a tiny bit of oil in the pan to toast the baguettes.
• Return the skillet to the stove and turn the heat up to medium/high.
• Add the baguette slices to the skillet and toast until golden brown.
• Top the toasted baguette slices with the bruschetta mixture and drizzle with the balsamic glaze. ENJOY!

HOMEMADE FRESH MOZZARELLA IN UNDER 30 MINUTES

Steps:

• Mix 1 ½ teaspoons of citric acid with one cup of lukewarm water, stir until dissolved, and set aside.
• Mix ¼ teaspoon of liquid rennet or crushed rennet tablet with ¼ cup of tepid water and set aside.
• Pour the gallon of milk into the stockpot and add the citric acid mixture. Stir well and heat over med-low heat. Stir gently every few minutes until the milk reaches 90 degrees. Remove the milk from the heat.
• Add in the rennet mixture and stir gently for 30 seconds. Cover the milk and let the rennet do its magic for five minutes.
• After five minutes, curd should form. You can test by slipping the wooden spoon in at the edge of the pot. The curd should pull away from the side, kind of like milk gelatin. If it's still a liquid, cover the pot again and let it sit for another five minutes.
• Once your curd is set, take your knife or spatula and make slices, all the way to the bottom of the curd in a cross-hatch pattern.
• Place the pot back over the heat, set to low, and bring the curds up to 105 degrees. You want to stir them occasionally being very gentle. Try not to break up the curds.
• Remove the pot from the heat and let it stand for about 5-10 minutes. Put a sieve or strainer over a bowl and using the large slotted spoon scoop out the curds and into the sieve. Gently press the curds down to squeeze out the whey. Once you've removed all of the curds to the strainer, let them drain for about 10 minutes. At this point, the curds will mostly be in one large mass. Remove the curd to a clean cutting board and cut into two or three similar-sized masses.
• While you're waiting, put the pot with the whey in it back on the stove and add the tablespoon of salt. Heat over medium heat to 180 degrees. Pour some of the hot whey into a bowl and add one of the curd blobs. Put your gloves on and get ready to stretch some cheese!
• Pick up the curd mass and check the temperature when it reaches an internal temperature of 135 degrees begin to pull the cheese. Slowly pull your hands apart and let gravity do the work. Try not to tear the cheese; it should be smooth, silky and elastic. Between 3 to 5 stretches should do the trick.
• Wrap the cheese curd in on itself, forming a ball and tucking the edges up under the bottom.
• To set your cheese, you can place it in a bowl of ice water for 2-3 minutes or put it in a bowl of room-temperature salted whey for 10-15 minutes.
• Pat dry and enjoy!

30 MINUTE MOZZARELLA RECIPE

Steps:

• Choosing the Right Milk Make sure the milk you use is not ultra pasteurized. You can use homogenized or non-homogenized milk. Farm fresh milk is a great option if you can find it locally. Low fat milk will work, but the cheese will be drier and less flavorful. Prepare Work Area Do not prepare any other food while you are making cheese. Put all food products away. Move all sponges, cloths and dirty towels away from your work surface, wipe your sink and stove with soap and water. Finally use your antibacterial cleaner to wipe down all surfaces. Prepare Rennet Crush 1/4 tablet of rennet and dissolve in 1/4 cup of cool non-chlorinated water, or add 1/4 tsp single strength liquid rennet to the water. Set your rennet mixture aside to use later. Mix Citric Acid & Milk Add 1 1/2 tsp. of citric acid to 1 cup cool water, pour this into your pot. Now, pour cold milk into your pot quickly, to mix well with the citric acid. This will bring the milk to the proper acidity to stretch well later. Heat Milk Heat the milk slowly to 90°F. As you approach 90°F, you may notice your milk beginning to curdle slightly due to acidity and temp. Note: If you're having problems with milk forming a proper curd, you may need to increase this temp to 95°F or even 100F. Add Rennet At 90°F, remove the pot from the burner and slowly add your rennet (which you prepared in step one) to the milk. Stir in a top to bottom motion for approx. 30 seconds, then stop. Cover the pot and leave undisturbed for 5 minutes. Check the curd after 5 minutes, it should look like custard, with a clear separation between the curds and whey. If the curd is too soft or the whey is milky, let it set longer, up to 30 more minutes. Cut & Cook Curd Cut the curds into a 1" checkerboard pattern. Place the pot back on the stove and heat to 105°F while slowly stirring the curds with your ladle (if you will be stretching the curds in a hot water bath, rather than using a microwave, heat to 110°F in this step). Take the pot off the burner and continue stirring slowly for 2-5 minutes. (More time will make a firmer cheese) Transfer & Drain Curd With a slotted spoon, scoop curds into a colander or microwave safe bowl (if the curd is too soft at this point, let it sit for another minute or so). Once transferred, press the curd gently with your hand, pouring off as much whey as possible. If desired, you can reserve the whey to use later in baking or as a soup stock. Heat Curd & Remove Whey If in a colander, transfer the curds into a heat safe bowl. Next, microwave the curd for 1 minute. If desired, add 1 tsp of salt to the curds for added flavor. You will notice more whey separation from the curd. Drain off all whey as you did before. Quickly work the cheese with a spoon or your hands until it is cool enough to touch (rubber gloves will help since the cheese is almost too hot to touch at this point). Microwave two more times for 35 seconds each, and repeat the kneading as in the last step to aid in more whey drain off and ensure even heating of the curds. Drain off all of the whey as you go. Note: If you prefer to not use a microwave here is a recipe using a water bath where the curds are heated in hot water Knead & Stretch Curd Now the fun begins, knead quickly now as you would bread dough. Remove curd from bowl and continue kneading until it is smooth and shiny. Return it to the microwave if needed (if it begins to cool before it's ready to stretch). Add salt near the finish. At this point, if hot enough, the cheese should be soft and pliable enough to stretch, and stretch, and stretch some more (like taffy). This is what makes it Mozzarella We hope you have as much fun with this as we do. Eat & Enjoy Now knead your cheese back into a big ball until it is smooth and shiny Your Mozzarella is ready as soon as it's cool enough to eat. To cool quickly place it in a bowl of ice water and refrigerate. When cold you can wrap in plastic wrap and it will last for several days, but is best when eaten fresh.

30 WAYS TO USE FRESH MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Select your favorite recipe.
• Organize all the required ingredients.
• Prep a mozzarella dish in 30 minutes or less!

MOZZARELLA STICKS

Steps:

• Stir the bread crumbs, 1 cup of Parmesan and 1 teaspoon of salt in a medium bowl to blend. Dip the cheese in the eggs to coat completely and allow the excess egg to drip back into the bowl. Coat the cheese in the bread crumb mixture, patting to adhere and coat completely. Place the cheese sticks on a baking sheet. Repeat dipping the cheese sticks in the egg and bread crumb mixture to coat a second time. Cover and freeze until frozen, about 2 hours and up to 2 days.
• Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Working in batches, fry the cheese until golden brown, about 1 minute per side. Transfer the fried cheese to plates. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and serve with the Marinara Sauce.
• In a large casserole pot, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the onions and garlic and saute until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the celery, carrots, and 1/2 teaspoon of each salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bay leaves, and simmer uncovered over low heat until the sauce thickens, about 1 hour. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Season the sauce with more salt and pepper, to taste. (The sauce can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat before using.)