Yogurt Cheese Spread

D

daniellenmack

New member
Mark Thorson wrote:



First, try using cheese cloth instead of coffee filters.

Then, a favourite of mine (Tzatziki sauce) is peeled, seeded, mashed and
squeezed dry cucumber, add fresh lemon juice, raw mashed garlic, s & p.
and mix with the yoghurt cheese.

For further additions & suggestions see:

http://www.tzatzikisauce.net/
--
JL
 
I recalled my mom making yogurt cheese many years ago
by hanging up some yogurt in a juice bag over the
kitchen sink and letting the water run out. It made
for a tart spread that was very nice. She added some
red and green bits to it. I think the red bits were
Bac-O's and the green bits were chopped chives.

I recently tried doing the same thing, more or less.
I started with Fage 2% Greek strained yogurt. I got
very little liquid out of it straining it through
coffee filters, so I guess this is already what I
was trying to make, though it's not as stiff as what
my mom made.

My first experiment added chopped green onion and
the drained contents of a can of water-packed
baby clams. The flavor of the green onion kind of
got lost in the yogurt, so my next two experiments
used minced shallots which worked better.

I wasn't very happy with the clams either. The
first can was from Thailand, and had sort of an
off-flavor and texture. The second can was from
Indonesia, and slightly better. The third can
was Geisha brand from Malaysia, and it was
definitely the best, though not as good as I
remember Geisha as being.

In all cases, the clams didn't stand up to the
yogurt very well. Yesterday, I tried bacon.
I got a 12 oz. package of uncured bacon from
Trader Joe's. Maybe 2/3 of that made it into
the yogurt. It is a very smoky bacon, almost
too smoky. But it worked quite well. The bacon
was a very good complement to the yogurt. The
strong flavor stood up very well to the tartness
of the yogurt, and the tartness cut through the
fattiness of the bacon.

I ate it spread on Ak-Mak crackers.

I'm trying to think of other possibilities.
Dried shrimp might work, but I usually don't
use those for anything. I'm dubious of any
Asian shrimp or prawns. Conpoy is another
thought, but I've never used it for anything
and it's really expensive. If anything vegan
could be substituted, I'm thinking capers
might work here. They have quite a bit of
flavor, which might be discernable above the
tartness of the yogurt.

Any other suggestions?
 
On Apr 22, 12:53?am, Mark Thorson wrote:

It's good on bacon too. And shish kebab. And as a dip for chips.
And ....

Jerry
--
Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get.
 
Omelet wrote:

As I recall, the paneer I've had had a subtle, coarse
grain to it, like tofu. Yogurt cheese is entirely
smooth.
 
Omelet wrote:

I think small curd would be closer. When I said
coarse, I didn't mean as course as large curd.
I'd suggest using as little pressure as necessary
to get it to hold together. The paneer I've had
practically fell apart in my mouth.
 
On Apr 23, 1:15?am, Omelet wrote:

...


That sounds a bit like cottage cheese to me.

Jerry
--
Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get.
 
On Apr 23, 12:45?am, Omelet wrote:

...


Line a strainer with a square of cheese cloth folded in quarters to
make a filter for yogurt. My strainer rides the rim of a pot so no
sink space is needed while it drains.

Jerry
--
"The rights of the best of men are secured only as the
rights of the vilest and most abhorrent are protected."
- Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes, 1927
 
On Sat, 23 Apr 2011 00:15:54 -0500, Omelet
wrote:


From:
http://tiny.cc/wr51w

Paneer (Also known as "Farmers Cheese")
Paneer is a recent discovery for me. It turned out to be one of my
favorites for its creamy taste, texture and versatility as an addition
to many, many recipes.

It's so easy to make that you'll find it's easy to always have some on
hand.

Ingredients:

1 gallon of whole milk
The juice of one whole lemon or lime

Utensils needed:

Large metal pan
Large spoon
Cheese cloth
Colander
Glass Loaf Pan


Method:

Prepare by placing the colander in the sink with a double layer of
cheese cloth pushed down into it?s entire inside surface.

Juice the lemon or lime and have it in a small glass without any pulp
or seeds.

Heat the milk while stirring. Don?t allow it to scald or film on the
bottom of the pan. It takes about 10 minutes for the milk to come to
just under boiling. Don?t boil it. At the first sign of a simmer, turn
off the heat.

While stirring slowly, add the lemon or lime juice. Stir only long
enough to mix well.

You?ll see the milk start forming curds. Let this continue for about
10 minutes. No stirring is necessary during this part.

After 10 minutes, carefully pour the water/curd mix through the cheese
cloth in the sink. The curds will be collected in the cheesecloth
draped colander. Let this drain until you can touch it without burning
yourself.

Then gather the four corners of the cheese cloth and pick up the
entire ball of curd.

Turn the ball of curd while holding the extra cloth at the top until
the water is forced from it. Do this gently. Don't get crazy with
this.

Put the curd into a small glass loaf pan and press it with your
fingers or fist until it's nice and flat and about 1/2" thick. Cover
it and put it into the refrigerator over night.

Use it by cutting ? inch strips from it and making cubes from it. Add
it to soups, stews, gravies, bean dishes, vegetable dishes and any
recipe with a sauce.

It adds a very rich, creamy taste to many recipes.

A dish very popular in India is Paneer Jalfrezi. Its saut?ed onions
and green peppers with masala seasoning. Paneer added to this makes a
really good vegetable dish.
 
On Sat, 23 Apr 2011 23:46:31 -0500, Omelet
wrote:


You're very welcome, Omelet. Thank you for the link to the site.
Indian dishes are some of my favorite meals.
 
On Apr 23, 4:15 pm, Landon wrote:

...


...

That's a keeper! I just want to point out that the meanings of "farmer
cheese" and "farmer's cheese" vary from place to place and from (ahem)
culture to culture.

Jerry
--
Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can
get.

Jerry
 
On Tue, 26 Apr 2011 18:48:04 -0800, Mark Thorson
wrote:


I like my cucumbers to be in larger chunks and don't care if they're
squeezed dry or not. Maybe it makes a difference the next day, but
not when I'm eating it.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.
 
"M. JL Esq." wrote:

I was amazed how little was left of 3 cucumbers
after squeezing out the water. After peeling and
seeding, I shredded them in a food processor,
squeezed out the water with my hands, pureed them
in a food processor, then squeezed them again
through a paper filter. Must have lost at least
90% of the volume.
 
On Apr 27, 4:03?am, Mark Thorson wrote:

I don't know about twice cursed, but "ricotta" literally means twice
cooked.

Jerry
--
Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get.
 
On Wed, 27 Apr 2011 01:39:52 -0500, Omelet
wrote:


Paneer is really simple to make. I like to also use my tofu press to
drain the curd. It's so similar to tofu in consistency, that the tofu
press works perfectly for it.

If pressed for a longer period, it can become a very firm cheese. Its
absolutely delicious in vegetable stir fry. It gives me a creamy, rich
taste with each bite.

It can be added to dishes after "creaming" it into butter or gravies
also, for extra richness.
 
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