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MAKE YOUR OWN CAMEMBERT CHEESE IN THE KITCHEN

INTRODUCTION

Camembert is a typical French soft cheese, which originated in Normandy. Camembert was originally made

using well-ripened milk. The curd in the form of wheels, were ripened for 21 days, during this time the curd

interior becomes softer, but not fluid. Aroma and taste are fruity to distinctly pronounced. Today, Camembert

may be made from any kind of milk. Typically the cheese contains up to 40 to 45 % fat, so a higher fat

content in the milk would give a creamier tasting Camembert. The cheese is traditionally round

(approximately 11 cm in diameter and 3 to 4 cm thick). The weight of the individual cheeses may be up to

250 g. Camembert, like many soft and semi-hard cheeses, would be served at room temperature. Camembert

will not mature further once it has been cut, but may be frozen quite safely. A surface mould (Penicillium

camemberti) is used to ripen the cheese. For cheese of a good quality one must keep in mind the following

points:

• The milk must be of a good bacteriological quality. If milk of a higher fat content is used then a

richer, creamier tasting Camembert will be obtained.

• The milk must not contain any antibiotics or cleaning agents because it influences the growth of 

the bacteria.

• Milk must be pasteurized to destroy all bacteria that may carry diseases. Seeing that the milk is

pasteurized, a culture must be used that contains lactic acid bacteria. The bacteria ferment the

lactose in the milk and forms lactic acid. This culture is available in a freeze-dried granule form

from IDEC (Irene Dairy Education Centre). Rennet is used as a coagulating enzyme and is

available in a powder or liquid form.

• All apparatus used must be cleaned beforehand with water and soap and then rinsed with boiling

water. A sterilizing agent may also be used (e.g. Jik or Milton) to destroy any traces of bacteria

that may have been present. Rinse all apparatus with hot water after using the sterilizing agents. 

INGREDIENTS AND EQUIPMENT

• Five litres milk (amount depending on amount of cheese desired, five litres of milk produces

approximately 600-700 g cheese), starter culture (703 or FRC-60), coagulating enzyme (rennet),

calcium chloride (powder that is added to increase the calcium content in the milk), salt, spores

(Penicillium camemberti).

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• Pot made of stainless steel or enamel (size depends on the amount of milk used). Stove (gas or 

electrical).

• Stove (gas or electrical) or microwave.

• A thermometer, drop bottle, alcohol, filter paper, inoculation needle and plastic container (e.g. wash

basin or sink) or a cooler box that can be used to keep the temperature constant at 32 °C.

• Ice-water/Refrigerator, cheesecloth (synthetic lining is suitable) and a tray (for drainage purposes).

• Large spoon, large knife, tin-foil, plastic jug and a kitchen sieve.

• Cheese moulds: stainless steel (15 cm high and 12 cm in diameter) or PVC pipe, made of white

plastic. Ice-cream or yoghurt containers may also be used. Drainage holes of 2-3 mm in diameter can

easily be drilled in. The moulds must be open on either side.

METHOD

1. Place the milk into the pot. Heat the milk to 68 °C either on a stove or in the microwave, leave the milk at

this temperature for 5 minutes, as far as possible. Ensure that the temperature of the milk does not exceed

68 °C, or the milk will not coagulate at a later stage.

2. After the 5 minutes remove the pot immediately from the stove and place it into a plastic container with

ice-water, cool the milk to 32 °C. As soon as the milk has reached 32 °C, the water in the surrounding

container must be heated to 32 °C as well, this is done quite easily by adding warm water. The water 

must be kept at this temperature throughout the manufacturing process as this is the “optimum”

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temperature of the starter culture and the culture will only convert the lactose into lactic acid at the

correct temperature.

3. Add the calcium chloride (one quarter of a teaspoon dissolved in 30 ml tap water) and starter culture to

the milk (approximately 4-5 granules per 10 litres milk). Thoroughly mix the milk with the clean spoon

so that the starter culture is dispersed throughout the milk. Leave the milk undisturbed for 1 hour at 32 °C.

4. After the hour has elapsed add the rennet. The rennet must first be dissolved in 30 ml cold water and then

thoroughly mixed into the milk. The milk must not be disturbed for the next 40 minutes so that it can

coagulate. Test the water in the plastic container or cooler box regularly with the thermometer. The

temperature must be kept constant at 32 °C. If the temperature goes below 32 °C, warm water can be

added. 

5. After the milk has coagulated, the coagulant must be cut into blocks with the knife, the blocks must be

approximately 2 to 3 cm large. This step is done to allow the whey (water section) to separate from the

curd (solid section).

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6. Leave for 15 minutes. Mix the coagulated milk once or twice. The whey (a yellow solution) will start to

appear. The solid section will settle at the bottom of the pot. Leave for 5 minutes so that the curd can

settle at the bottom of the pot. Repeat this process 3 times.

7. After every repetition, the whey that is formed on top of the curd has to be removed and placed into a

plastic bucket. A sieve can be used so that no curd is lost in the whey.

8. Place the cheesecloth on the tray and place the cheese moulds on top of the cheesecloth, scoop the curd

pieces into the cheese moulds. Fill the moulds to the top with the curd. The whey will drain out of the

drainage holes. Place the tray at an angle at the washbasin to allow the whey can drip into the basin. After 

approximately four hours, the cheese moulds can be turned around carefully. Leave the moulds overnight

to drain. The room temperature where the curd is drained is very important. When it is cold for example

in the winter then the cheese will take longer to drain, up to two days. If the curd pieces are still soft then

the acid development has not taken place sufficiently and the curd has to be left longer.

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9. When the cheese is solid enough, then salt (not iodised) must be rubbed on the surface of the cheese.

10. A small amount of sterilized water is now placed into a drop bottle, the spores of  Penicillium

Camembertii are then placed into this sterilized water and germinated. Holes must be made in the cheese,

with the inoculation needle, approximately 2 cm apart. The holes must now be larger than 2 mm in

diameter.

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11. The spores are now inoculated into the holes and sprayed onto the surface of the cheese. Normally the

Camembert cheese would not require the holes, the spores would be spread onto the outside surface of 

the cheese and allowed to grow into the center of the cheese. However, in this instance the spores were

not added into the batch whilst manufacturing the cheese and therefore to increase the inoculation rate of 

spores, holes are made into the cheese. Take care as not to spread the spores into the air as contamination

will occur with other foodstuffs.

12. The cheese may now be covered with tin foil and placed into a fridge if possible at 10 °C. The cheese

must be turned daily. Firstly, a white layer of growth will occur on the outside surface of the cheese, and

then growth will occur into the center of the cheese. The cheese will be ripe within 3 to 5 weeks. If the

cheese is ripened at fridge temperature (6°C), then it will be ready within 5 weeks. The cheese may be

placed inside another container, as not to contaminate other foodstuffs in the refrigerator.

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13. Containers that are filled with water, may be placed around the cheese pieces so as to increase the

moisture content of the air. This aids in the ripening process.

14. The cheese cannot be ripened for too long, as the cheese will develop a strong ammonia flavour.

All ingredients e.g. starter cultures, spores and thermometers are available at the Agricultural Research

Council (ARC) – Irene Dairy Education Centre (IDEC), Private bag X2, Irene, 0062. Contact persons:

Magita J Van Rensburg, Retha Carelsen or Cherry van Wyk at 012–672-9233/97. IDEC also provides large-

scale dairy manufacturing courses e.g. Cheese and Yoghurt courses.