Process of making mozzarella cheese

Abstract

A process of manufacturing a mozzarella (or mozzarella-like) cheese comprising the steps of a) pasteurizing cow's milk; b) acidifying the milk to convert it to a cheese milk; c) coagulating the cheese milk to obtain a coagulum comprised of curd and whey; d) cutting the coagulum and draining the whey therefrom, thereby leaving a cheese curd; e) heating, kneading, and stretching the cheese curd until it is a homogeneous, fibrous mass of heated, unripened cheese; f) forming the heated cheese into a shape; g) cooling the shaped cheese in cold brine; and h) removing the cooled cheese from the brine. The process is improved by mixing an emulsifier such as a sodium phosphate or citrate into the heated cheese after it has been heated, kneaded, and stretched, but before it has been formed into a shape. The resultant cheese provides good baking performance over a wider range of conditions than the equivalent cheese without emulsifier, and it is particularly useful as the stuffing cheese for stuffed crust pizza or as the exposed topping cheese on pizzas.

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