Fresh Ricotta and Paneer cheeses are so easy to make at home. All you need to do is to gently bring milk to near boil and add acid.

This method uses an electric pressure cooker for convenience so you do not have to babysit the milk: you can imagine the mess milk can create when it overboils! Now all I do is press a button on my Instant Pot and leave the whole process unattended. Later I return to the hot milk at the right temperature, stir in my acidic liquid of choice and salt. Then all I need to do is strain the whey.

Fresh Ricotta and Paneer in an Instant Pot

A method to make the process simpler

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Equipment

• Electric Pressure Cooker - I use Instant Pot 6 Qt

Ingredients

  

• 2 lts organic unhomogenised whole milk - or 8 1/2 cups
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 tbsp lime or lemon juice, or apple cider vinegar
• a splash of water

Instructions

 

• Add a splash of water to the inner pot of your Instant Pot (just enough to cover the base). This will prevent the milk from scorching.
• Press "Sauté" button and make sure it is set to low for gentle heat.
• Make sure the timer is set to 30 minutes (mine is automatically that).
• Add the milk and let it slowly heat in the Instant Pot for 30 minutes. (Please, do not walk away from it if it is your first time. However, now I do not watch it anymore. I return when my pressure cooker beeps after 30 minutes and so far I have not had the milk overboil.)
• After the 30 minutes add the salt and the acid and give the mixture a gentle stir.

  You will see the milk separate into curds (will become cheese) and yellowish whey (we will strain).

  Leave it to stand for ten minutes.
• Using a fine mesh strainer, drain the whey. Let the curds sit over the strainer for about ten minutes.

  A lot of people use a cheesecloth but I did not find it necessary with a fine mesh strainer.
• Your Ricotta cheese is now ready. Alternatively, if you want firmer texture (Paneer cheese), leave it to strain for longer, or, using a cheesecloth, wrap the curds and leave them under a heavy weight (like a cast iron pan) on a cutting board in the sink for an hour.

Keyword cheese, fresh cheese, paneer, ricotta