How to Make Kesong Puti

Kesong Puti is a dairy product classified as soft cheese made singly or in combination of carabao, cow or goat’s milk.

Steps:

1. Weigh/measure milk.
2. Add salt to the milk at a rate of 2 tablespoons per liter according to taste. Stir to dissolve and filter/strain milk-salt solution through a cheesecloth.
3. Add starter or yogurt at a rate of 1 tablespoon per liter. Stir for a minute and leave undisturbed for 5 minutes.
4. Heat to near boiling (63 degree Celsius for 30 minutes or 72 degree Celsius for 15 seconds).
5. Cool down to 40 degree Celsius and add rennet at a rate of ½ tablespoon per liter, stirring it for one minute. Let it stand undisturbed for 20-30 minutes.
6. Cut curd and stir slowly to expel moisture (whey). Let it stand for 5-10 minutes. (Remove about 40% of free whey of cow’s milk is used).
7. Put curd in moulds arranged in a drain tray lined with cheesecloth. Drain for 3 hours at a room temperature or overnight in cold storage.

Preparation of rennet extract:

1. Obtain fresh abomasum (bahay-asim or manzanilla).
2. Remove adipose tissues. Split open and flush water.
3. Sprinkle salt and stretch abomasum with bamboo sticks to facilitate drying.
4. Cut dried abomasum into small pieces as big as star apple leaf. Soak about 40 grams in 1 liter vinegar-salt solution. The vinegar-salt solution is made by adding ¾ cup water and 2 tablespoons table sale to ¼ cup vinegar.
5. Filter extract after 3 days and store in colored bottle inside a refrigerator