# which cheese press to buy?



## Dana

Has anyone purchased a cheese press from Amazon or Ebay? I see a few that are stainless steel and others that are plastic priced around $100 -150. Will the plastic split? I like that the plastic ones have drainage holes near the bottom vs. the metal ones.

What kind of cheese press do you use?


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## linuxboy

Dutch press if you want something solid.


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## Horsehair Braider

I have the Hoegger one with the plastic, and let me tell you - that plastic is not going to split, unless you run over it with a tank. I have been very happy with it. I think it needs a few holes but those are really easy to drill in plastic. Not so easy in stainless steel.


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## buckrun

Ours is similarly made- like the Hoegger model but with stainless. There is no need for holes and in fact you really do not want to accelerate drying- just adequate draining. Liquid seeps out the bottom just fine. We don't have any issues that I could say were related to drainage in the press. I found a site online that tells you how to build a PVC model for about 10$ so maybe do a search for plans and save lots of money. I recommend you do spend money on a pressure gauge so you can be more accurate and not press too much moisture out. We were guessing and after getting one realized we had been overdoing it. Good luck. There is a stainless model on ebay right now for 135.
Lee


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## linuxboy

Those spring-type presses are not really the best thing, IMHO. You have to assemble and disassemble, the weight needs to be adjusted as the cheese shrinks, you have limits to how much weight you can use for cheeses that really need it, like milled cheddar.

A better approach is to buy a dutch press and different types of molds to make the sizes of cheese you need. They tend to take up a bit more space, but give you a great deal of control and flexibility.


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## Cotton Eyed Does

PVC has gotten expensive. Don't know if you could buy maybe a short broken piece from a home improvement store or not.

I am making cheese today and I have been using my thick sided plastic bowl that I drilled holes in for a mold, but today I needed 2 so I am using the basket off of an old deep fryer as the mold and lined with butter muslin. Gallon jars of water with a foot stool propped up on top is what I am having to use for now. Would love to have one of those dutch presses though. Next year maybe.


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## linuxboy

If you don't want to spend the money, consider an off-the-wall type press. This is the most basic type of decent press. What you do is find a solid, standing object, such as a 2x4 in a wall, or similar. And then you attach a level to it, such as another 2x4. It has to swing. Then you attach a plunger arm, one that could press down on the mold. Hang a bucket of water or other weight on the end of the lever, and presto, great mechanical advantage and it costs a few hours of work and $5 in materials. Somewhat bulky, though, and you need to have a fixed wall and a permanent work area. Works extremely well when used. You can hang a bucket of sand on the end of that 2x4, it really puts out a ton of weight for cheeses that need it, like cheddar.


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## buckrun

We disassemble to flip the cheese between pressings- isn't that normal process?
I have always flipped during pressing....can I skip that?
Lee


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## linuxboy

depends on the cheese and your approach. Flipping is done for three primary reasons:

- To reduce potential moisture gradients by pressing evenly on both sides
- To ensure even knit by altering pressure distribution (recall from physics that applied force as measured is distributed when one moves down from the initial force point)
- To prevent cloth adhesion and ensure even surface

But, there are ways around these requirements, and you can adjust your make to reduce the degree of flipping required, such as:

- To reduce moisture gradients: Predrain curds to final moisture target, or prepress. Also cut curds to even size, and match your set time with your curd size (meaning flocculation multiplier of 3x should be matched to a curd size of 1/4"-3/8").
- To ensure even knit: Prepress under whey or gather curds together and let them settle on the bottom, like is done for classic parmigiano regiano.
- To reduce cloth adhesion: Create acidity/ionic/moisture differential by soaking the cloth in vinegar solution with CaCl2 added or acidified whey. Flip repeatedly during first 10 mins to help create differential, as this dehydrates the outer protein layer and helps to form a nice rind.

short answer is: often easier to flip because you have to be somewhat precise during the make to avoid issues.


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## buckrun

Thank you Pav! The short answer is me- but I appreciate the long answer so I can perhaps shoot for that level of proficiency! Thanks for your input.
Lee


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## Cotton Eyed Does

When it says to flip and redress... is it really necessary to change cheese clothes or do you just pull the cheese from the cloth and flip it over and then wrap it back up in the same cloth?

I have been using the same cloth but taking it out, flipping and then rewrapping it.


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## linuxboy

Gosh, I would go crazy if I had to change cloths. All the instructions would need to add is to sprinkle with talc and it would be like taking care of babies. Delicious, delicious, cheesy babies...

...too soon?

But seriously, all that means is to move it around. It's to help prevent the cloth from sticking by detaching it and repressing. I have been known to be lazy and skip cloth altogether, and instead spraying with a rind culture blend after brining to help with surface rind imperfections by inoculating them before bad molds have a chance to gain a foothold. :biggrin


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## buckrun

I would like to suggest that this thread is not off topic but should perhaps be in cheese.
Lots of good info here!
Lee


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## Dana

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. I had originally thought to put it in the cheese department but wasn't sure how active it was- I knew I'd get a good response in Off Topic. But feel free to move it if you'd like.


I don't care too much about the price of a cheese press. I've been using a plastic mold, gym weights, 2 cutting boards and a bowl to make cheddar. All my family wants is mozzarella and cheddar. I make some feta for me once in a while, but my kids and hubby are not too adventurous, so I just really want a nice press to make lots of cheddar. I'm leaning toward the ebay presses that have PVC and are a spring press thingy.


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