How many times have we craved something cheesy but stopped ourselves because it contains preservatives and isn’t natural? Innumerable. Also, isn’t it quite expensive too, especially if you opt for some special variety of cheese or need it in a large quantity? For these and many other reasons, we tend to avoid enjoying our best of pizzas and cheesy sandwiches. However, it isn’t fair that you miss out on all the fun and delicious taste. The MasterChef winner Pankaj Bhadouria has devised a quick and easy way to make processed cheese at home.
A school-teacher turned chef, Chef Pankaj Bhadouria won the first season of MasterChef India and etched her name on the wall of fame. Since then, you’ve seen her in plenty of cookery TV shows as well as read her cookbook. She has also made appearances in TEDx and made a mark in culinary field with her interesting recipes. She often shares easy tips and tricks as well as kitchen hacks on her Instagram handle. This time too, there is something that caught our eye. Chef Pankaj shared a reel about making homemade cheese recently and won hearts of her fans yet again. Take a look.
Source: MasterChef Pankaj Bhadouria/Instagram
The chef explains each step during the video, right from boiling and curdling the milk to slicing the cheese. It begins with boiling milk while stirring it continuously and then curdling it with lemon juice. She gives the option of circa too. Then she begins the process of emulsification by using ingredients like citric acid and baking soda in water. Once the two react and a clear liquid is obtained, the chef moves on to blending the curdled milk and the emulsifying agent together. Then she blends it with milk, butter, the curdled cheese and the liquid. The resulting mixture is tossed on a pan, place one on top of another.
She continuously presses it to attain a stretchy texture. Some sunflower colour can be added to give it a yellowish hue. Once the desired texture is obtained, she oils a plastic box and spreads the cheese in it. She covers it with a cling film and refrigerates it. After a few hours, the box is taken out and she cuts the slice of cheese. This leaves us amazed because it looks exactly like processed cheese. Aren’t you amazed too?