Pizza Quest Globe

Fresh Mozzarella

Written By Brad English
Tuesday, 01 February 2011 Written Recipes

Fresh Mozzarella from Curd

Fresh Bel Gioioso Mozzarella Curd

While we filmed recently in Boulder, Colorado, one of the pizzaiolos who attended the pizza making conference did a recipe demo using Mozzarella Curd provided by Bel Gioioso.  It is one of the pizzas he makes and people seem to really like it.  The pizza was amazing.  (Note: You’ll see more about that when we post the video in a few weeks.)

I couldn’t get this pizza out of my mind.  I kept thinking about the curd that he salted the night before and left in the refrigerator for use the next day.  It seemed just a little more fresh, or real, at least in the sense that one of the main ingredients he was using was that much closer to it’s original form.

We also got an email from a viewer asking us if there was a typed recipe for the Bel Gioioso Mozzarella Curd video on our site.  That got me thinking.  First,  I emailed Bel Gioioso and got the written recipe.  Then, I found a local dealer and picked up a block of Bel Gioioso’s Mozzarella Curd and decided to watch the video on our site and make some Fresh Mozzarella Cheese!

Fresh Mozzarella Cheese Ball!

My son and I watched the video twice and jumped in.  Success!  It was not only easy, but it was delicious.  To stand there at the counter and taste the supple, slightly warm in the middle piece of cheese that Owen and I just stretched and made ourselves was simply one of the best cooking experiences I’ve had in a long time.  Let’s just say that the first ball of cheese was pulled apart one tear at a time and it was gone in short order.  I can’t wait to try this the next time we have friends over for dinner.  What a great way to hang out before the meal, getting everyone involved and then tasting the cheese that we all just made together.  I think this is an important aspect of what we’re trying to do here while we search

 

for the artisans who bring us together.  We are all striving for the same thing – a better quality of life through time honored traditions of gathering, eating, and sharing.

 

Following is a written recipe based on the written text and the video from Bel Gioioso’s Fresh Mozzarella Curd Molding Instructions with some of my added photos.

Fresh Mozzarella:

-The curd should be stored refrigerated at 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and has a shelf life of 30 days from the date of production.

-Before starting the cheese molding process, the curd needs to be taken out of refrigeration about 3 hours before use and brought to room temperature.  (Due to my enthusiasm, I made my cheese with much less time out of the refrigerator, but I can see how leaving it out would make it much easier to work with – basically getting it to the right temperature quicker.)

-To begin, cut the curd into small 1/2″ pieces using a knife or a wire cutter and place the pieces into a large bowl.  

 

-Weigh the curd to know how much salt to add to the water.  You will use 1 tablespoon of salt to 1 pound of curd.

-Place curd in a bowl.  Add hot water (approx. 165 – 175 degrees), but not the salt–that comes later.  Pour water down the edges of the bowl – not over the curd directly.  Let the curd sit in the hot water for about 2 minutes until it softens up.  Pour most of the water out – leaving the curd in the bowl.  This is called the first cooking.

First Cooking – Initial warming of curd

-Add the salt (1 tablespoon to 1 pound of curd).  Mix it in with the curd and remaining water.

Stretching the salted curd.

-Add more hot water to cover the curd.  Again, pour water down the sides of bowl.

-Let the cheese sit a moment and begin stretching and turning the cheese.  I used two large metal spoons to stretch and pull the cheese until it was cool enough to touch.  The idea is to lift the cheese up and let it stretch down back into the bowl.  Stretch until it is all even and mixed to a smooth consistency.  This should take about 5 minutes.

-Mold curd into forms such as balls, logs, or braids.  During this molding process, it is important to fold the curd into itself to seal it.

-Cool formed shapes by placing them into cool water.  Let them cool for 10 to 15 minutes…if you can wait that long!

-After the cheese is cooled, it can be eaten or stored in a salted brine solution and should be used within a few days.

It doesn’t get any fresher than home made!

Comments

maddyg

Would these steps be the same when creating Burrata cheese? Once the Mozzarella would come together would you then add the ricotta/ Mascarpone etc?

peter

We’re planning on answering this in an upcoming Instructional photo essay. But the short answer is yes, you can make burrata cheese once you have made freshly pulled mozzarella. If you haven’t yet seen it, check out the video with Kelly Whitaker from Pizzeria Basta in our Instructional section to see how he uses burrata in a killer appetizer. Also, check out the Bel Gioioso video on how to pull mozzarella into smooth, velvety cheese balls from mozzarella curd; between that video and Brad’s photo essay, you should be off and running!

ron

Thanks Brad for this great instruction. It pulls together the video and I can’t wait to give it try. But where does one find the mozzarella curd? I live just north of san francisco (Marin) but I have never seen curd anywhere around here but then again, I guess it’s never been on my shopping list. I will probably give the belgioioso folks a call and see if they have a dealer around here.

And Peter, thanks for all your knowledge and insight. I’ve learned pretty much everything I know about pizza and bread from your books and continue to strive for the ever elusive perfection of both. But the pursuit of perfection is in the journey, and my wife and I are really enjoying the ride.
Thanks again!

Ron

peter

Thanks for your kind words, Ron. As for the curd, yes, do contact Bel Gioioso, via the website link, and also call around to some of the great Italian groceries and markets in the Bay Area–I wouldn’t be surprised if you found the curd at one of them.

forzaroma

i have same question about Burrata. I have mad mozz many times my issue is the filling for the burrata. My recipe says to take 1/3 of curd out after the first soaking in the water and shred it and then add cream. I had an issue with the consistency I felt it wasnt thick at all. Traditional way of making Burrata is not with mascarpone or ricotta so just trying to get it right although I know with those 2 cheeses it would be reall tasty as well.

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