Edam

Characteristics:

  Edam cheese was first made in the vicinity of Edam in the Province of
North Holland, Netherlands.  It is known in the Netherlands by various
local names, such as Manbollen, Katzenkopf, and Tete de Maure.  Like
Gouda, it is a semisoft to hard, sweet-curd cheese made from cow's milk.
Originally it was made from whole milk but now the fat content of the
milk is usually reduced to about 2.5%.   When the cheese is made
for export, the fat content is indicated on the label, according to Govern-
ment specifications.  
  Edam has a pleasingly mild, clean, sometimes salty, flavor and a
rather firm and crumbly body, free of holes and openings.  It usually is shaped
like a flattened ball, but in the United States it is made also in a loaf shape.
The cheeses usually weigh from 1,6-2 kg  3 1/2-4 1/2 pounds but 
 sometimes weigh as much as 6,3 kg  14 pounds. 

The Method of Making:

  High-quality milk should be used in making Edam; if the milk is pasteurized,lactic starter is added.
Color may be added and the milk is set with rennet extract.  About 15 minutes
later the curd is cut into 1 cm  3/8-inch cubes, then stirred and heated to a tem-
perature of 32-35°C  90- 95°F.  When the curd is sufficiently firm, part of the
whey is drained off.  When enough whey has drained so that the curd is
exposed, the curd is pushed to the side of the vat and more whey pressed
out.  The curd is stirred and may be salted.  The temperature of the curd
should be at least 31°C  88° F, pH~ 6.0-6.1 when it is put into the molds for pressing.
  Special pressing molds, preferably metal but sometimes hardwood and
lined with cheesecloth, are used.  Each has a round lower section about 15 cm
6 inches deep and 15 cm 6 inches in diameter, with holes in the bottom for 
drainage, and a round cover.  
  The molds are filled with curd, covered, and then pressed for about 30
minutes with a pressure of  9-13,5 kg 20-30 pounds.  Then the cheeses are removed
from the molds and dipped in warm whey (at a temperature of 52-54°C
125-130°F.).  The rough edges of curd are trimmed off, and the cheeses are
bandaged and again pressed for 6 to 12 hours with a pressure of 27-54 kg 60-120 pounds.
  The cheeses then are rubbed with fine salt and placed in salt in special
salting molds that are the same shape as the pressing molds but have no
covers.  Salting is continued for 5 or 6 days, and the cheeses are turned
daily.  In the United States, and less commonly in the Netherlands, the
cheeses are salted by immersion in a salting bath for about a week; however,
dry salting is preferable as it aids in producing a smooth rind.
  The cheeses are scrubbed with a brush in warm water or whey, wiped
dry, and then cured on shelves at a temperature of 10-16°C 50-60°F. and a
relative humidity of 80 to 90% .  They are piled in layers on the
shelves to aid in flattening the top and bottom surfaces.  They are washed,
dried, and turned daily for a week or two, then less frequently.  In some
factories they are washed in a churn-like machine, and the surfaces may
be smoothed by rotating the cheese in a machine that resembles a lathe.
  In the Netherlands, cheese for export is colored red, rubbed with oil,
and wrapped in some transparent material; the red coating is an identifying
 characteristic of Edam cheese.  However, cheese made for consumption
within that country is rubbed with oil, but not colored.
  In the United States, Edam cheese is covered with red paraffin or some
other tightly adhering red coating.
  The cheeses are packed usually 8 to 12 in a box; for export to warm
climates they may be sealed in tins.  Between 8-9 kg 8-9 pounds of cured
cheese is obtained per 100 kg 100 pounds of milk.

  Analysis: 

Gouda

Characteristics:

  Gouda, first made in the vicinity of Gouda in the Province of South
Holland, Netherlands, is a semisoft to hard, sweet-curd cheese similar to
Edam except that it contains more fat.  It is made from whole or partly
skimmed cow's milk, but skimmed less than milk used in making Edam.
Gouda usually is shaped like a flattened sphere and pressed in molds with
rounded ends.  The molds vary in size but usually are nearly 35 cm 14 inches in
diameter and 11-12,5 cm  4 1/2- 5 inches deep.  The cheeses usually weigh between
4,5-11 kg 10-25 pounds but may weigh as little as 2,7  6 or as much as 22,5 kg 50 pounds.
Gouda is made also in a loaf weighing about 3,6 kg 8 pounds.  A so-called "baby
Gouda" is oval, weighs a 0,45 kg 1pound or slightly less, may be coated with red
wax, and wrapped in a cellophane-type wrapper. The red surface is not
necessarily an identifying characteristic, however, as it is of domestic
and imported Edam.

The Method of Making:

  Gouda is made in much the same way as Edam.  (See Edam.)  Some
slight modifications in the details of manufacture are mentioned here.
Although the milk may be set at any temperature between 29-32°C 84-90°F.,
is usually is set at 32°C 90°F. After the curd is cut, the whey is drained off,
heated, and poured back into the vat.  This procedure is repeated once or
twice, in order to increase the temperature of the curd to between 38-41°C
100-106°F.  Other factors being equal, cheese made from curd heated to the
higher temperatures (within this range) will have a firmer body, will cure
more slowly, and will have better keeping quality.  Some salt is added to
the curd before it is put into the hoops (molds) for pressing.  Salting is
usually completed by immersing the cheese in a salt solution; however, it
may be completed in the curing room by rubbing dry salt on the cheese
daily for 7 to 10 days to give 1,5-1,8% salt in cheese at pH~ 5.15-5.25.  

The cheese cures in 2 to 3 months pH~ 5.3-5.5 at 8 weeks,
but it improves in flavor if it is cured for 5 to 6 months, temperature 10°C 50°F.
  About 12 kg 12 1/2 pounds of uncured cheese can be made from 100 kg 100 pounds
of whole milk, and about 8 kg 8 pounds of cured cheese from 100 kg 100 pounds 
of milk,  containing from 3 to 3.5% of fat.

  Analysis: