Description and subtleties of making Raclette cheese. Composition, calorie content, positive effect on the human body, when you should stop using. Dish recipes.
Raclette cheese is a fermented milk product made in Switzerland from raw or pasteurized cow's milk. The texture is dense, elastic, but not hard, does not crumble when cut; color - light yellow, delicate; color - uniform; taste - creamy, spicy, with fruity sourness; smell - cheesy, sweetish; the crust is natural, thin, pinkish in young heads and red in mature heads. The shape of the heads is flattened wheels, weighing 2 kg, 5 kg, 7 kg and more.
How is Raclette cheese made?
Since 1 kg of the final product is obtained from 8 liters of raw materials, milk of several milk yields is collected, both morning and evening.
How to cook Raclette:
- A saucepan with milk is placed in a water bath and heated to 31 ° C. It is not necessary to remove from the fire, it is enough to extinguish it. This way it will be possible to maintain the temperature required to stimulate the vital activity of lactic acid mesophilic bacteria and fungi for a longer time.
- Powdered starter culture of 2 types, for fermentation and ripening, is poured onto the surface of milk, left to soak for 5 minutes, and then mixed with movements from top to bottom, very carefully, without shaking.
- If raw milk was used to prepare Raclette, then only rennet diluted with water is poured in, if pasteurized - also calcium chloride.
- Leave for 30-45 minutes - this time is enough for the kale to form.
- A dense elastic clot is cut into cubes with a face size of 0.5 cm. If there is no special cheese lyre, then the knife is used as follows: first, carefully cut the top layer and cut horizontally, then move on to the next.
- Leave for 5 minutes to separate the whey and thicken the curd mass. Stir, allow the grains to settle again. The actions are repeated after another 20 minutes.
- Carefully drain a quarter of the whey that has risen to the surface and replace it with hot water at a temperature of 60 ° C.
- Stir until the contents of the pan have cooled to 38 ° C. Experienced cheesemakers are experimenting with the recipe for Raclette, to wash out the acid, to quickly cool the contents of the pan, add cold water.
- Knead constantly. The curd mass is considered ready when individual grains are compressed into a fist, they first stick together into a monolith, and then again disintegrate into separate pieces.
- Carefully, with the help of a large slotted spoon, transfer the intermediate raw materials into a colander covered with gauze, and leave them to separate the whey on their own.
- After 20 minutes, the curd mass is transferred into a perforated form, also covered with gauze, closed with its ends and oppression is set. After 2 hours, pressing is repeated - the resulting monolith is wrapped in a clean cloth, turned over and again put under oppression. Duration of pressing - 12 hours.
- The cheese monolith is immersed in a 20% brine with a temperature of 13 ° C. Withstand a day, turning once in the middle of the cycle.
- Home-made Raclette cheese ripens in a chamber at a temperature of 12-15 ° C and a humidity of 92-95%. A pallet should be placed under the heads to make it easier to remove the moisture released.
- After 3 days, the surface is wiped 2-3 times a day in a saline solution, the concentration is the same as for salting. After a week, the frequency of head washing - every other day, within a month. After 25-30 days, the crust begins to form. Red spots will first begin to appear on it, and then it all turns brownish-red.
Raclette cooked at home may differ from Swiss in appearance, but if the recipe was not mistaken, then the taste is fully consistent with the original. The duration of aging can be controlled independently. The minimum exposure is 8 weeks, the maximum is 1 year.
Raclette in Switzerland is made in the form of cylinders with a diameter of 30 cm and a weight of 5 kg. Self-prepared heads are much smaller - up to 2 kg. This is due to the aging conditions. In a small homeland, cheese is placed in well-ventilated rooms, placed on racks. The likelihood that mold will appear is low, but if dark spots appear on the surface, wipe the crust with an acetic-saline solution, regardless of the ripening time.
Composition and calorie content of Raclette cheese
In the photo, Raclette cheese
The product is absolutely natural, made from farm milk, 2 types of starter cultures, rennet and salt. No preservatives or stabilizers are used. The energy value depends on the quality of the feedstock, the duration of the washing and holding process. With prolonged aging, the texture becomes denser, and the carbohydrate content increases.
Calorie content of Raclette cheese - 357-392 kcal per 100 g, of which
- Proteins - 22, 7-32 g;
- Fat - 28-37 g;
- Carbohydrates - 1-2 g.
The vitamin and mineral complex is the same as that of semi-hard cheeses made from cow's milk. The group of B vitamins is presented with a complete composition: thiamine, riboflavin, pantothenic, folic and nicotinic acid, pyridoxine and cyanocobalamin. Having eaten 100 g of a piece, the body receives 36% of the daily dose of retinol and 68% of tocopherol.
Minerals per 100 g
- Calcium - 661 mg;
- Potassium - 75.9 mg;
- Magnesium - 24.5 mg;
- Sodium - 643 mg;
- Phosphorus - 460 mg;
- Selenium - 8 mcg
Raclette cheese contains chlorine, iron, zinc. The large amount of sodium is due to the fact that salt is used as a preservative.
Phenylalanine, leucine, lysine predominate among the essential amino acids, and glutamic acid and tyrosine are among the nonessential ones. It is amino acids that are the material for building protein structures, they normalize metabolic processes and muscle contractions.
Despite the relatively high nutritional value, a piece of 30-40 g can be eaten for breakfast, even if you have to constantly monitor your own weight. Such an additive to the diet relieves hunger for a long time, allows you to maintain an active lifestyle and do without snacks until the next meal.
In Switzerland, Raclette cheese is rarely eaten without preliminary heat treatment, so you should not count on replenishing the vitamin reserve. Mineral substances are transformed slightly when heated. Amino acids, essential and nonessential, are also retained in their entirety.
The benefits of Raclette cheese
Fermented milk products in any form are useful for the gastrointestinal tract. Fats in the composition of cheese, when they enter the esophagus and stomach, form a film that reduces the aggressive effects of hydrochloric and bile acids, and reduces the likelihood of developing peptic ulcer disease. Persons with a history of stomach and duodenal ulcers are advised to eat a small piece before bedtime.
The benefits of Raclette cheese when consumed regularly
- Strengthens bones and cartilage tissue, accelerates the regenerative properties of muscle fibers.
- It accelerates the growth of children and prevents the development of osteoporosis in adults.
- Increases blood clotting, stabilizes the hematopoietic system, increases vascular tone and reduces permeability.
- Improves vision and hearing, suppresses optic nerve degeneration.
- Stimulates hair growth and strengthens nails.
The taste of Raclette cheese is salty, and the salt retains water. Thanks to this property, a hypotonic crisis can be avoided. In addition, the skin will remain elastic for a long time, and the formation of wrinkles will slow down.
Eating an appetizing product is a pleasure. The impulses that transmit taste buds located on the tongue to the brain stimulate the production of happiness hormones: endorphin, norepinephrine and serotonin. The mood rises, it becomes easier to cope with emotional overload. And easily digestible milk protein quickly relieves muscle fatigue.
When the acid-base balance of the oral cavity changes to the acidic side, the vital activity of the pathogenic flora colonizing the gingival pockets and the surface of the tonsils is suppressed. If Raclette cheese is in the diet, then caries, periodontal disease and periodontitis occur much less frequently.
Interesting facts about Raclette cheese
The first mention of the variety dates back to the XII century. It began to be made on the territory of two cantons - Obwalden and Nidwalden. The recipe of the variety is not much different from other Swiss ones, and it received its original name, as already mentioned, because of the way it was consumed.
Shepherds driving flocks often did not have the opportunity to fully dine. And the body, in order to recuperate, required hot. Therefore, they put the incised heads near the fire, and when the surface began to melt, they scraped off the stretching mass and spread it on bread. The description of Raclette cheese is found in ballads about Wilhelm Tell, the national hero of Switzerland, who fought for its independence.
Don't be frivolous about Raclet's story. During the interview, those who are going to obtain Swiss citizenship may be asked questions not only about why they decided to change their place of residence, but also about the national cuisine. Among the most popular dishes is cheese, which is eaten after being melted.
There are many guidelines for making Raclette cheese at home. Dry garlic, paprika, black pepper, mint, and herbs are added to the curd mass. Farmer varieties can be made from goat milk or a mixture of goat and cow.
If you failed to buy Raclette, but you want to enjoy the national dish of Swiss cuisine - to feast on melted cheese mass, the original variety can be replaced with analogues with moderate salinity, low melting point and fat content of at least 45%. A worthy replacement would be Emmental, Gouda, Maasdam, Cheddar or the German Tilsiter or Appenzeller.
Watch a video about Raclette cheese:
