Kosher Blog

I just read your cheesemaking adventures, and then this item with growing excitement. Before we moved here, in our previous community, about 7 years ago, I looked into making mozzarella at home with a “kit” that could be ordered on the internet.

I had calculated that it would be a little over half the cost of what was available in the kosher market.

I never started, though, because our rabbi at that time nixed the “vegetable rennet” included in the kit because it was unhechshered (although from a theoretically acceptable source.)

It has been a while since I ventured into Cheese Research Mode. Does the brand or strain of rennet have a noticeable effect on the flavor of the cheese? Or, is it more like salt, where (given the right granule size) there is no difference between brands?

If rennets are interchangeable, then maybe it’s time to begin the mozzarella experiments.

There are three kinds of liquid rennet: animal (from calf stomachs), so-called “vegetable” rennet (from a fungus), and microbial rennet (genetically copied from the animal version, but vegetarian).

All three are typically interchangeable with the exception that vegetable rennet derived from the fungus mucor miehi can impart a bitter flavor to aged cheeses. (Not a problem with a fresh cheese like mozzarella.)

However, the GMO/mycrobial/chymosin rennet described in the post above is interchangeable with any other kind of liquid rennet, and doesn’t have that bitterness side-effect.

So — buy some hekshered rennet and use whatever amount your mozzarella kit asks for. (Related: I’ll be making a raw milk run on June 5, if you’d like to buy some for cheesemaking.)

Estoy interesado en comprar cuajo con certificacion Kosher - quisiera saber si tienen ustedes un distribuidor cerca de mi ciudad - Quito Ecuador - Sud America. Si no existe este distribuidor como puedo adquirir este cuajo
Gracias
Juan

Translation…
He’s looking for a Kosher curdling agent (coagulantfor cheese) that is availiable from a distributor close to his city, Quito, Ecuador. If no such distributor exists, he wants to know how it is possible to get the curdling agent.

Thanks,
Juan (If you couldn’t figure this last part out)

thanks so much to jabbett to turning me on to the source for ou-kosher liquid microbial rennet. I have been searching for this (unsuccessfully) for some time. In the meantime we have been making simple “farmer cheese” with vinegar or lemon juice as our curdling agent but I am very eager to take it to the next level with rennet. THANK YOU!

I am searching for a kosher certified starter culture (mesophilic starter) for cheese making. thanks to “jabbett” I now have kosher rennet and just need the starter to really get going. anyone with any advice?

thanks, Jaocb

Jacob– The Dairy Connection ells OU-certified EZAL-brand starter cultures. See my earlier post.

Hannilase XL results on oukosher.org product search.

I was not able to find “Ezal” on the oukosher.org product search as of 18-Aug-05, though the pictures quite clearly do show an OU-D.

In any case, things do change, and reliance upon one company is not safe; I thank both of you for contributing your sources.

As a side note, I’ve been combing through blogs and boards and cheese sites for months trying to find a Certified vegetable or microbial rennet. Email after email said no. And the WebbeRebbe on OU never answered any questions or calls. So, again, thanks.

Verified EZAL’s Hechsher with OU. The Webbe Rebbe Team actually wrote back this time! For the specifics/quote of the response, please see my forum thread

Here is the EZAL site that was mentioned in jabbett’s “earlier post.”

Jndrline– Thanks for taking the time to research rennet products, and to document your results so thoroughly on the blog. (I didn’t even know the bulletin board software had polling built-in!)

I encourage you to keep documenting your kosher cheesemaking experiences, and sharing them with the rest of us, so we can learn from your progress. (My future dairy dishwasher is laying fallow for a few more months, so my cheesing is on a short hiatus.) Let me know if you’d like to post something significant on the subject, and we’ll work something out. (Pictures would be great, too!)

Good luck!

But check out http://www.savetherennets.com

Danisco sells OU-certified cultures as well though I don’t know if they offer them on the home-user scale. The Kelly Supply Chr. Hansen rennet is excellent.

So after this whole conversation, where should i go to buy a small quantity of kosher rennet that is good for mozzarala?

Thanks

Mi nombre es Rodrigo Delgado vivo en la ciudad de Mexico, Yo soy introductor de ganado y vendo el cuajo crudo a una empresa que lo hace liquido,

Estoy interesado en aprender a hacer el cuajo liquido, me podrian ayudar en encontrar esa asesoria.

Saludos
Ing. Rodrigo Delgado

Hi. I have a question about how kosher this supposedly “vegetarian” microbial rennet is. If in reality it is structurally identicle to the rennet enzyme produced in a cow’s stomach, then isn’t it also NOT kosher?
It’s something of an ethical dilemna. Scientists have already cloned pigs in laboratory settings. I am assuming that the pig would still NOT be kosher, as it is identicle to a real pig. Is this so?
If it is, then how can consumption of microbial rennet identicle to cow’s rennet be considered kosher? It, too, is identicle in nature to the REAL deal, which is NOT kosher?
Can you help me out on this one?

Thanks,

Adam

Hi, Adam– Thanks for the comment. There’s actually no dilemma at all — cow rennet can indeed be kosher when the cow providing its stomach is slaughtered according to Jewish law. (For details on why using a “meat” product to curdle milk is acceptable, refer to The Gevinat Akum Prohibition by Rabbi Chaim Jachter.) I would imagine that since laboratory enzymes require no shechita, the only kashrut issues related to its development would be the media on which it’s grown and general supervision of the process. For more on that subject, I’d either contact a kashrut organization that certifies rennet or check out Kosher Food Production by Zushe Blech.

ESTOY INTERESADO EN CONSEGUIR TABLETAS Y/O LIQUIDO DE RENNET ANIMAL CUALQUIER AYUDA SE LO AGRADECERE YA QUE EN PUERTO RICO NO LAS ESTOY CONSIGUIENDO

Thank you, jabbet, for your post on contacting the Kelly Supply company. Since a one-liter bottle of rennet is more than most people need for home cheesemaking (and it’s also quite expensive), I spoke with Cherri from Kelly Supply at the number in your post. She told me about the New England Cheese Making Co., which repackages an OU certified rennet called Hannilase into 2-ounce bottles (at around $7 + shipping), which, I am told, is enough to make huge quantities of cheese. Cherri was kind enough to e-mail me the certification letter from the OU, so that even though the 2-ounce bottle does not bear the hechsher, one can rely on the fact that it’s kosher. You can contact the New England co. at 413-628-3808, and ask for Kathy Martel. They take credit cards and ship priority mail. If anyone would like a copy of the certification letter, you can contact me at rabbi@rabbi4u.com.

BS”D

Daniel, New England is a great company to work with, but I don’t think you can rely on their repackaging without supervision as supplying the same degree of kashrus as a nonrepackaged product. When we needed rennet, we popped over to the nearest cheese dairy (just up the hill, at the time) and armed with a new clean glass bottle, we repackaged it ourselves. And it was free. The vast majority of cheese dairies probably use kosher certified enzymes under a reliable hechsher.

Hi… I am wondering if you know is there are kosher cheesemaking supplies (rennet, starters, lipase, wax etc) in Australia ( I live in Sydney). There are only 2 types of kosher yellow cheese here and they are constantly CONSTANTLY growing mould- even before you open the packet sometimes. Because the market here is so small the manufacturers don’t give a hoot, and then get away with it! Thanks so much….

Hansen, as well as all of the major enzymena dn culture producers, do a lot of business in Asia and, presumably in Australia as well. Many of them have kosher cultures and enzymes. I’m sure it’s available.

Hi….
I wish to know whether there is any govt. authorised laboratory in India who has facility to test Chymosin in Maxiren . Do provide me write ps which can specifically differentiate the nature of chymosin in vegetable rennett & animal rennet. This is required because Animal Renett is prohibited for imports in India.

Thanks in advance.

For reserch purposes, I need a small quantity of chymosin (Rennin), it can be genetically engineered. Where can I get it in Mexico City.
I am a researcher in the Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Medicas y Nutricion Salvador Zubiran,
department of Biochemistry, and this product is needed for a research collaboration with a Hospital in Israel. Thank you for the information.