Why the name is not quite right
Traditional ricotta is made by reheating the whey drained off during the making of another cheese — pecorino, mozzarella, provolone. That whey still contains albumin and globulin proteins that did not coagulate the first time, and heating it with a little acid brings them out as fine, delicate curds. Hence ricotta: recooked.
What almost every home recipe makes is milk curdled with acid, drained. It is a fresh cheese in the same broad family as paneer and queso fresco, and it is softer, richer and creamier than true whey ricotta.
This is not a criticism. Home-made milk ricotta is very good and true whey ricotta is not something a domestic kitchen produces incidentally. It is simply worth knowing that they are different things.
The method
Twenty minutes, and the draining decides the texture.
- Heat full-fat milk gently in a heavy pan, with a splash of double cream if you want it richer, stirring so it does not catch.
- Bring it to just below a simmer — steaming, with small bubbles at the edge. Do not let it boil.
- Take it off the heat and add acid a little at a time, stirring gently once. Lemon juice or white wine vinegar both work.
- Leave it alone for five to ten minutes. Curds will form and float, and the whey below should be clear and greenish. Add a little more acid if it is still milky.
- Line a sieve with muslin, set it over a bowl, and ladle the curds in gently. Do not tip the pan — it breaks the curds up.
- Drain for five minutes for something very soft and spoonable, twenty for a firmer ricotta, an hour or more for something that holds a shape.
- Season with a little salt and use it the same day.
What to do with it
- On toast with olive oil, salt and pepper, or with honey. There is nothing better to do with it while it is warm.
- In a pasta filling — ravioli, cannelloni, lasagne — with spinach and nutmeg.
- Baked into a cheesecake, which is the Italian style and lighter than a cream cheese one.
- Whipped with lemon zest as a dip or a spread.
- In gnudi or gnocchi, where drier ricotta is needed — drain it longer and press it.
- With roasted vegetables or grilled peaches, where its mildness is the point.
- The whey in bread dough, in a smoothie or for cooking grains.
What changes the result
- Milk
- Full-fat gives tender curds. Skimmed gives a dry, squeaky result. A splash of cream makes it noticeably richer.
- UHT milk
- Often refuses to curdle cleanly. Fresh pasteurised milk is far more reliable.
- Acid
- Lemon juice is gentlest, vinegar sharper. Use only as much as it takes for the whey to run clear.
- Draining time
- Five minutes for spoonable, an hour for firm. This is the only textural control.
- Freshness
- Home-made ricotta is a same-day food. Keeping questions are for the Food Standards Agency.
Common questions
Is this real ricotta?
Not strictly. True ricotta is made from the whey of another cheese. This is a fresh acid-set milk curd, and it is very good.
Why did my milk not curdle?
Not hot enough, not enough acid, or UHT milk. Reheat gently and add a little more acid.
Why is mine rubbery?
Too much acid, or the milk boiled. Keep it just below a simmer and stop adding acid once the whey runs clear.
How long should I drain it?
Five minutes for spoonable, twenty for firmer, an hour or more for something that holds its shape.
What do I do with the whey?
Bread dough, smoothies or cooking grains. It is protein-rich and slightly acidic.
Try this next
- Ricotta the ingredient itself
- How to make paneer the firmer relative
- Protein coagulation what the acid does
- Cheesecake where it ends up