'Rennet' is made from what?!
'Rennet' is made from what?
I always read the ingredients of cheese products and I often see the word "rennet' as one of the ingredients. I need to know whether 'rennet' is produced from what kind of animal - cows, pigs or whatsoever and how it is processed. Thanks
Answers:
"Rennet may be from animal or vegetative sources. Traditionally calf rennet was used, but vegetative alternatives are now common. Vegetative rennets are made from fungal origin with Mucor mehei being the most commonly used. "
http://www.cheeselinks.com.au/products.h...
"Rennet is usually sourced from the abomasum (fourth stomach) of newly-born calves. Here, chymosin aids the digestion and absorption of milk. Adult cows do not have this enzyme. Chymosin is extracted by washing and drying the stomach lining, which is then cut into small pieces and macerated in a solution of boric acid or brine at 30°C for 4-5 days."
http://www.vegsoc.org/info/cheese.html...
Years ago before they learned to extract the rennet from the stomach of the calf they would just save the stomach and dry it. When they wanted to make cheese they would add a small peice of the dried stomach to the milk. Once the milk set they would remove the peice of the stomach.
While rennet is the usual enzyme used to produce the curds for cheese making, there are other ways. When I used to make cheese at home, I would use a small amount of cultured buttermilk to "clabor" the milk and produce curds. It worked quite well, that is the way my grandmother taught me to do it. She never used rennet, and she always used raw whole milk. Now the way the laws are here, it is illegal to sell raw milk. While you can use pasturized milk, it is not as good. This is also the reason that Europe produces the best soft cheeses, in the US any cheese that is not aged for a certain amount of time (60 days I believe) has to be made with pasturized milk, Europe does not have a similar law
sorry now I am off subject and rambling
rennet is produced from the lining of a cows stomach a few drops in a vat of cheese helps it to set,
there is a veggie version too
NASTY STUFF-TASTES TERRIBLE--HAD TO EAT IT AS A KID AT NURSERY SCHOOL.
Rennet is made from the inside of a cows stomachs, mars had plans to use it in their chocolate but the vegaterian society stopped them.