Tips & Tricks for Making Cheese with DIY Kits

Making cheese is fun and easy, and now even more so with our new DIY Cheese Kits.  In this box, you will find everything you need (except the milk!) to make your own chevre. The kits come in Original, Honey, and one made Just for Kids, and each kit has unique and detailed instructions. Should you need a bit of guidance or have another question, it should be right here on this page.

Once you start making it, we guarantee you won’t be able to stop! Goat cheese is delicious in everything from breakfast to dessert. Happy cheesemaking!

Check out this video to see our kit in action.

DIY Cheese Kit Video

Still Have Questions? Read on:

Where are the curds?
Worried because it looks like you have the same liquid you started out with? Chances are, this is your first time seeing goat milk curd!  The curds are super fine, so it's normal not to see them when you look at the pot. It's likely that, unless something went wrong along the way, you have curds hiding in there and you just need to pour it through the cheese towel.  Give it a try, you might be surprised.

Do I have to have a goat for this?
No way! Although if you do, you get extra cool points. Goat's milk, for the rest of us, is readily available at your local supermarkets.

Does this have everything I need in it to make cheese?
Almost.The only thing you will need to purchase apart from the kit is goat's milk (see first question).

How long will my cheese last?
Goat cheese (and cheese in general) is a super stable product.  Without added ingredients, such as herbs, spices and preserves, cheese can last way longer than you'd think.  We find our homemade cheese, when stored diligently and not contaminated by repeated dipping of a licked-clean spoon, can last as long as 4-6 weeks.

How much cheese does this make?
The cheese yield is typically about 10% of the milk used. Therefore, if you use a gallon of goat's milk, you should get about 10-12 ounces of cheese.  The kit itself has enough for several batches of cheese.

How do I make my cheese more "tangy" tasting, or stronger?
The "tang"comes from the milk. Milk taste vary based on the animal and "pasteurization level" of the milk. So even getting pasteurized versus ultra pasteurized milk will cause a difference in taste. Try getting your milk at a local farm or specialty store.

Can I use regular milk if I don't like goat's milk?
Sure! If you do, your result will resemble a ricotta cheese, fresh and clean flavored, but not quite the texture of a chevre log. Ricotta typically includes a bit of cream, as opposed to goat cheese.

Does the temperature have to be exact?
The milk needs to be hot enough to steam, but not boil. Therefore, anything between 185-200 is fine. This doesn't change the taste, it just facilitates the reaction with the acid so the curds and whey separate.

If I buy the original can I add my own local honey?
Of course! Using your own local honey has the added benefit of protecting you from local allergens. We suggest about an ounce of honey for every gallon of milk.  

What is different about the honey and kids kits?
The original kit's contents are listed here. The Kid kit has a special set of instructions and a surprise for kids. The Honey kit comes with a small bottle of Savannah Bees honey and some of our honey breakfast chevre packaging.

How long does it take to make cheese?
It takes about 15 minutes of active cooking time, and then several hours of draining, i.e. leaving the cheese to undergo its magic and carrying on with your everyday life. It's that easy!

I'm having trouble securing my cheesecloth. How does this thing work?
If your bowl is not deep enough, you may have trouble keeping the cheesecloth in the shape necessary to collect your curds.  A great suggestion from one of our customers is to use clothespins to secure the cheesecloth on the bowl before pouring.

Do you have to wash the cheese cloth between batches?
It depends. If you are doing batches back to back, washing the cloth is not necessary. If not, then we do recommend washing the cloth, either by machine or by rinsing it well and washing it by hand with a gentle detergent or soap, then hanging to dry.

I need to replace/replenish one of the items in my kit. What do I do?
Contact us to place an order for any part of your kit you need to replace (cheese towel, thermometer, citric acid, cheese salt) by e-mailing here.

I'm fresh out of ideas on how to use my goat cheese. Help!?
We thought you'd never ask! If it's recipes you're after, click here. Want some quick ideas? Check out our '50 Things To Do With Chevre' e-book. Meanwhile, these are some of our fan's recipes. And we're always talking about chevre inspiration over on Twitter.

Can I just buy some of your cheese?
Sure...we've got just about any kind of goat cheese you can think of. Our shop is right over here.

STILL Have Questions? Okay.

If you didn't see your question here, just take a deep breath and e-mail us. We'll get back to you ASAP.