I tried it once in undergrad in my dorm room/fridge.  I thought I had all of the ingredients but I left the one out that actually turns it to cheese (rennet IIRC), so nothing really happened.  

However, dairy items seem to be the one category that does NOT lend itself very well to  long term SHTF situations.  Sure we talk about powdered milk, freezing a few gallons, canned butter/cheese and the like (which seems pretty expensive).  

But does anyone have a plan to make cheese, butter, and other dairy items?

Thanks

-Emt1581

Butter is easy if you have cream.

The only way to really "make" anything dairy is to have a supply of milk straight from the teat.
So you'd need something on the hoof, cow, goat, etc.

And that brings us to the next issue...animals!

We talk a lot about chicken coupes, that seem pretty low maintenance and you can have them in most places.  I just can't because she said so....yet the rabbit hutch that came with the house is just fine.

But things with hooves, they take more care/maintenance no?  Plus how would you keep them going in regard to reproduction (without inbreeding) and bitter cold weather?

Personally I'd love to have some cows but I think goats/sheep would be MUCH easier to manage in a suburban/neighborhood environment.  

I'm Greek so the goat's milk would be VERY welcome for making good Feta.

Thanks

-Emt1581

I see what you mean.  I also found a breed called "Dexters" which seem to be slightly larger than my German Shepherd.  No way in hell my neighbors would take too kindly to constant "mooing" but it's an interesting find.  Meat, dairy products, and cheap to maintain plus due to the size, even smaller children can learn to control them.

-Emt1581

I know this isn't GD, but I can't not post this.

I'm pretty sure that there is a milk, or perhaps "milk like product"  that can be stored non refrigerated.  It was in the news a few years ago in relation to disaster relief.  As far as butter or cheese it wouldn't work as you need cream, as already stated.

Do you need actual cream or do you need milk and fat?  

If it's milk and fat you need...and the squeamish may want to leave the room at this point...

What about using powdered milk and ANOTHER animal's fat?  So say you are butchering one of your chickens... save the fat, cook it down, and use it to mix with powdered milk for some franken-cheese.

Thoughts?

Thanks

-Emt1581

I make my own butter, yogurt and cheese.  We are on a weekly fresh milk delivery route.

I have seen cartons of milk in Mexico that need no refrigeration until opened. Don't know if it is available in the U.S.

Its ultra-super-mega pasteurized stuff that is also shot with X men gamma rays for good measure.

 

You basically need critters for fresh milk. Goats are by far the best, IMHO. We are actually getting into goats and chickens (again ) in the spring. Goats winter well even up here in MN.

I made some Queso Fresca once, which is just about a simple as it gets.  You can buy cheesemaking supplies at most homebrew stores.  If there isn't one near you, Austin Homebrew has a decent selection.  http://www.austinhomebrew.com/index.php?cPath=178_361
Because I know you need another hobby.
I'm not going to mess with it again.  It's not particularly labor or time intensive, and it's not really hard, I just can't make myself care.  Plus, in a survival situation, where the hell am I going to get milk?  Keeping dairy animals is a full time job.  If the world ends, I'll face it without Gruyiere.  

 

I have goats.  Working on breeding them this winter, and milk in 2014.




Fucking.
Hate.
Goats.



Stupid little bastards are barely worth the effort... but I'm trying goats for a year and probably stepping up to a milk cow next year.  I can provide/give away/beg for help for a few people on the ranch, so the extra labor involved can be divided out.  

If you want tips on goat wrangling, I'll gladly tell you my struggles and post pics.

just thinking outloud.... since my wife is preggo........What about breastmilk?

First off, congrats! That's wonderful!

It is full of nutrients, fat, etc. and it is on the sweeter side.  However, I think it largely depends on production.  If she's having to pump a few gallons daily and your freezer is already at max capacity...maybe try it.  We never got that far.  Had to start buying formula due to insufficient production after a month or two.  

Honestly no clue how it would work for dairy products though.

-Emt1581

Making butter is easy, all you need is cream and a Mason jar. Warm cream, shake shit out of jar. Voila, butter.

Fresh cheeses are also easy. For a couple years I got a gallon of raw milk a week from a local guy and made cheese out of it---unfortunately he sold his one and only cow a few months ago. I'd usually skim most of the cream and either make cream cheese or butter out of it, then use the skim milk to make mozzarella. I also liked panir, flavored with garlic and herbs. One gallon can make a surprising amount of cheese and butter. Nothing's better than fresh mozzarella and butter. You can store the rennet and starters in the freezer for months/years.

I didn't have any luck with my attempts at making aged cheeses, tried cheddar a couple times and it was barely edible. A few more tries probably would have solved the problem, but I liked the fresh cheeses too much to waste milk on aged cheese---they're also fairly labor intensive. Tillamook makes better cheddar than I ever will, and for cheaper. You can buy store cheeses and wax them for storage, I've never tried it but plan on experimenting with a loaf or two. I have plenty of cheese wax that I'm not using.

Keeping a cow isn't necessary for everyone, a cow produces way more milk than most families can use. The key is to know someone local who has a cow or goats (or sheep or lactating wives) and to have something they want in trade.

I might look into getting a dairy goat next year (and a meat goat or two to keep her company), but we'll see. The cost of fencing alone may not make it worthwhile. I'd rather just find a new source of local milk, as long as the price isn't too exorbitant.

I respectfully disagree with goats being "by far the best" Our neighbor goats are ALWAYS out and can be found all over the countryside most days. Our milk cows on the other hand stay where we put them. Yes they eat more but they also produce more...

Some times the increased production means waste, because it can't be used or given away.


But I totally agree about ease of keeping... cows are really easy