Say Cheese

I am an official artisanal cheese maker - well it's official in our house. I cannot beieve how easy it is to make some paneer type cheese. All it takes is whole milk, lemon juice, muslin and a certain degree of excitement.


Bring 2 litres of WHOLE milk to the boil (good size stock or jam pan is perfect), remove from the heat and slowly add about 5 tablespoons of lemon juice - watch with amazement as the curds seperate from the whey. Cover the pan and leave it for about 2 hours to allow full seperation. Line a colander with muslin and drain all the liquid from the curds - then gather the muslin together and tie into a bag - hang this bag over a bowl so that all the liquid drains out - I left this bag for about 3 hours. Mould the cheese to however you fancy it (great big dollop shape in my case) and stick it in the fridge - it lasts for about four days and is just superb in a chickpea and squash curry.

I have to travel a substantial distance to buy paneer so this has got to be a green way to make my favourite curry - and quite a giggle too.

By the way, Greg's pheasant casserole was well worth having to have the bin emptied!!!