From our bacterial and mould-ripened cheese making recipes, Camembert has a very similar recipe to that of Brie with a shorter mature time, stronger taste and lower fat quantity.

People tend to confuse Brie with Camembert cheese. Brie used to be made in larger wheels and sold in wedges, while Camembert was always smaller and sold as a whole. Although they have very similar recipes, Camembert has a slightly higher pH, thicker rind and a slightly stronger taste. Camembert also has a lower fat content than brie and from there it’s slightly sour taste.

Camembert cheese makes for a beautiful baked cheese snack (180 °C/15-20 minutes), drizzled with olive oil or honey, sprinkled with salt, pepper and chili flakes, served with toast or crackers. Another great use of Camembert is with pizza or in true Jamie-style as Camembert filo parcels with walnuts.

CAMEMBERT CHEESE: Recipe for smaller Cheese Producers

EQUIPMENT:

INGREDIENTS:

ADDITIVES:

CLEANING AGENTS:

Method:

• Milk: Whole milk with approx. 3.5-4% cream. Use milk not more than an hour after milking. If you need to store the milk, cool it down to 4°C as quickly as possible. Do not use cooled milk that is more than 24 hours old. Alternatively pasteurize the milk: 63°C – 30 min or 72°C – 20sec.
• Temperature: Adjust the milk temperature to 32°C.
• Starter: 50U Flora Danica
  One 50U packet contains 50 units. 2 units are required for every 10 liters.
  One packet contains approximately 16 teaspoons. Therefore 2 units = 2/3 teaspoon. Dosage:    2/3tsp Flora Danica per 10 liters milk

• Pre-ripen: Allow the milk to develop acidity (pre-ripen) for 2 hours at 32°C.
• Additives: Penicillium Candidum (H060) 1/8 tsp/10L
  Geotrichum Candidum ( H058) 1/32 tsp / 10 liters                         

  Calcium Chloride (H214) 15ml per 100 liters is required only if the milk has a low calcium content resulting in soft, sloppy curd, may also be required when using microbial rennet for a good co-agulation

• Rennet: Use either powdered microbial rennet (H068A) OR liquid microbial rennet ( H067, H068) OR liquid animal rennet ( H064, H065)
  Powdered microbial rennet (H068A) 2g/100L
  Liquid microbial rennet ( H067 H068) 4 drops/L or 25ml/100L
  Liquid animal rennet ( H064 H065) 4 drops/L or 25ml/100L
  Dilute the rennet in a little cool water before adding to the milk.
  Stir well!!! Let the milk stand at 32°C for 45-60 minutes or until the milk has set like jelly. Test the curd to check whether it has set by inserting a knife and pulling it to one side. The knife should make a clean cut.

• Cutting: Cut the curd into 12mm cubes. For small quantities use a sharp knife or curd cutters (H016, H017).
  Knife: Cut down and across and at an angle.
  Curd cutter: Use a figure of eight movement.
  Cut for 5 minutes. Rest for 5 minutes

• Resting: Let the curds rest for 1-2 hrs or until there is as much whey as curd and the pH of the whey Is 5.5 (use pH sticks H202A).
• Moulding: Drain the whey. Ladle the curds into open ended moulds (H904).
  One mould is required per liter milk. The mould is placed on a draining mat specific for camembert  (H992) which is placed on a wooden board on a draining table or tray. Let the curd drain for 3 hours, turn the cheese over and drain for a further 3 hours or until the cheese has a height of 20mm. It is important that the cheese has a height of 20mm. If the finished height is more or less than 20mm it might be necessary to increase or decrease the milk quantity and therefore increase or decrease the quantity of curd per H904 mould. This variation is due to the variation in the solid content of milk. Let the cheese stand in the mould overnight.
• Brining: Place the cheeses in a saturated 10% brine solution. Make up the brine by adding 100 gram Finest Kind un-iodised salt and 15ml CaCl (H214) to every liter of water. Correct the pH of the brine to pH 5 by adding Citric Acid in small quantities ( a pinch) and testing with the pH sticks (H202A) as you go.  Brine for 10 minutes, turn the cheese over and brine the other side for ten minutes. Store the brine at 4°C for the next time you make camembert. Let the cheese dry at room temperature until the following day. At this stage it is optional to roll the cheese in ash (available from Finest Kind). The ash makes the outside of the cheese alkaline which helps the camembert mould grow.
• Ripening: Place the cheese on camembert draining gauze squares   (H992) in a cool room at 13-15°C and 95% relative humidity.  Leave the cheese undisturbed until fine white whiskers are noticeable after 5-7 days. Do not allow the cheese to become dry. Spray with a fine mist of distilled water if necessary. Or place the cheese on the draining gauze in a tupperware with a lid. You can cut the draining gauze to fit the tupperware. Turn the cheese. At 12-14 days the cheese should be covered with mould. It is easier to mature camembert in a cold room specific to camembert where the mould is well established and growing on the planks and walls.
• Wrapping:  Wrap the cheese in camembert foil paper (available from Finest Kind). The foil has micro-pores which allow the cheese to “breath”. The foil wrap must be pressed firmly against the cheese OR wrap in silver foil.
• Ripening: Place the cheese in a cold room or fridge at 4°C. The cheese continues to ripen. The cheese can be eaten at 21 days, 28 days or 35 days depending on the consumer’s preference. The cheese should be light yellow, smooth and bulge when cut.
• Cleaning:  Clean all equipment well after use. Rinse in warm water, wash in hot water with  HD013 iodine antibacterial. Air dry. Before use rinse well in clean water and towel dry with a paper towel. Be careful to avoid any anti-bacterial solution residue on the equipment.