Ingredients
Equipment
Method
Heat
- Heat the milk in a pot over a medium heat, stirring every now and then to ensure the bottom doesn't scald, until it is very hot and almost boiling (it should reach a temperature of around 88ºC (190ºF)).
Add vinegar
- Continue to stir and slowly pour in the vinegar while stirring for a few seconds more. Stop stirring, remove it from the heat, and leave it to rest - it should begin to separate into white curds and green or yellow whey within a minute. If the whey appears to still have a lot of milk in it at this point, add a tablespoon or two more of vinegar while gently stirring.
Rest
- Leave it to rest for 15 minutes. This step is important as it allows the curds to get stronger, and to settle at the bottom of the pot to make draining easier.
Drain
- Carefully arrange your cheesecloth to cover the colander, in one layer if you're using butter muslin or tight cheesecloth, or in four layers if you're using loosely-woven cheesecloth. When the curds and whey have rested for 15 minutes, carefully pour them or spoon them into the lined colander. Leave to drain for around 20 minutes. You now have ricotta.
Add optional salt
- If you're adding salt to the ricotta, mix it through now. Use half a teaspoon of salt to two litres (two quarts) milk. Once you’ve added salt, you can continue draining for a bit longer, if you want to remove more whey to have a drier, crumblier ricotta, or you can use it right away.