Homemade Paneer/Cottage Cheese

My toddler has turn on waste mode again..this time it's his milk. Unfortunately for this household, i'm not (at all) a fresh milk person and so the excess milk posted a problem. I would make curd or curd cheese and use it in my baking and curries but there were days when it became all too much and i would be clueless as to what to do with it and so would end up making my tea (grudgingly) with it. 

Then one fine day, not so long ago, i came across the method of making paneer. I banged  my head that day wondering why i had never thought of that before. This is nothing new for a lot of homemakers but for me it was an exciting experience learning 'the basic' and i share this for the benefit of friends and family who may be as clueless as i am :).

I ripped this off Aipi's blog. I think i'm falling in love with her a little more day by day...lol. She has one amazing blog and i suggest you visit and drool (if you haven't), you'll thank me later ;).

All you need is...Milk and Vinegar. Yup! that's all you need. 

To get started, first bring the milk to rolling boil and then turn off the flame. Then add vinegar a table spoon at a time and mix it well. Immediately you will see the whey separating from the milk solids.

Now strain the whey from the milk solids using a colander with a muslin cloth placed atop it.

Wrap it up and put as much weight as you can on top so that the remaining excess water can be drained out. 

I would suggest making it in the morning and letting it drain the whole day and then using it for your dish. You alternately freeze it up in a ziplock bag for use later. 

Psst..psst ..sorry about the poor photographs..lets blame it on the weather.

To make around 450 grams of paneer i used around 2 liters of full cream milk and 4 Tbsp of cider vinegar. The texture of the paneer was as good as the store bought ones and NOW i know why paneer are on the expensive side ;) as oppose to meat :).

Hope you enjoy experimenting as much as i did. Thank you so much Aipi at US Masala for the inspiration :) and the recipe. 

Note: Do not be shocked by the quantity of whey, the good news is that it's great for gravy curries...so no waste and 100% satisfaction :).