Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Starter Culture
You can buy starter culture in packets from a supplier, or you
can make your own from buttermilk and yogurt. Starter
cultures are either mesophilic (meaning “medium
heat-loving”) or thermophilic (meaning “high heat-loving”).
Starter culture is an inoculant containing a mix of bacteria
that eat the lactose in milk and excrete lactic acid. The first
purpose of these bacteria is to lower the pH of the milk in
order to encourage curd formation. The second purpose is the
continuing development of flavor characteristics during the
making and aging of the cheese. The nature of the starter
culture strongly influences the flavor of the cheese.
Mesophilic starter cultures work best at room
temperature—around 72 degrees. They usually contain at
least Streptococcus lactis, and many also contain
Streptococcus lactis var. cremoris along with other lactic acid
bacteria such as L. delbrueckii subsp. lactis, L. lactis subsp.
lactis biovar diacetylactis, and Leuconostoc mesenteroides
subsp. cremoris.
Streptococcus lactis is used to make cultured buttermilk;
therefore fresh buttermilk with active live cultures can be
used to make a mesophilic starter culture for cheese-making.
Cheeses that begin with a mesophilic starter include
farmhouse cheddar, edam, stilton, and Monterey Jack, among
others.
Thermophilic starter cultures work best at temperatures above
80 degrees and below 130 degrees. A specific recipe will
dictate the best temperature within this range for the
particular cheese being produced, but the culture works best
