Camembert de Normandie

Ingredients

Milk

• 8 litresraw whole cow’s milk, unhomogenised, ideally at least half of it from Normande cows
• ⅛ tspcalcium chloride, only if the milk has been chilled

Cultures

• ⅛ tspmesophilic starter culture
• 1/16 tspPenicillium camemberti powder
• a pinch of Geotrichum candidum

Coagulant

• 0.6 mlliquid rennet, diluted in 50 ml cool unchlorinated water

Salt and equipment

• 30 gfine dry salt, about 2 percent of the drained curd
• 6bottomless Camembert moulds, 11 cm across
• draining mats, a ripening box, thin poplar boards and two-ply waxed paper

Directions

1. Warm the milk gently to 33°C (90°F) in a stainless pot and never take it above 37°C (100°F), since heat past blood temperature kills the native flora that a raw-milk Camembert depends on.
2. Scatter the mesophilic starter, P. camemberti and Geotrichum over the surface, leave 3 minutes to rehydrate, then stir through with a slow up-and-down motion for a minute. Ripen 60–90 minutes at 33°C (90°F) until the acidity just begins to move, around pH 6.4.
3. Stir in the diluted rennet for one minute, still the milk with the back of the ladle, cover and leave completely undisturbed 60–90 minutes until you get a clean break: a knife lifted through the curd leaves a clear split filling with pale whey.
4. Ladle the curd into the moulds in five successive layers with at least 40 minutes between each, letting every layer settle before the next goes on. This slow moulage a la louche is written into the AOP rules and is what gives the cheese its dense, silky, layered paste.
5. Drain at 20–22°C (70–70°F) for 24 hours, turning each cheese four or five times. It shrinks to roughly a third of its filled height and the whey should have stopped running by the end.
6. Turn out and dry-salt all over, sides included, at about 2 percent of each cheese’s weight, roughly 5 g per 250 g cheese.
7. Dry on mats at 12–14°C (55–55°F) and 90 percent humidity for 24–48 hours until the surface is tacky-dry rather than wet.
8. Ripen at 11–13°C (50–55°F) and 92–95 percent humidity, turning daily. A fine white bloom shows by day five to seven and covers the cheese completely by day ten to twelve.
9. Once fully coated, wrap in two-ply waxed paper and box in thin poplar wood, then hold at 8–10C.
10. The AOP requires at least 22 days from renneting; the cheese eats best at five to six weeks, when the paste under the rind has gone to cream and only a faint chalky line remains in the centre. Serve at room temperature.

Technique

• AOP Camembert de Normandie is raw-milk, hand-ladled in five layers, and made only in Normandy from herds with a majority of Normande cows. The industrial cheese labelled ‘fabrique en Normandie’ is a pasteurised, machine-moulded and quite different product.
• The five-layer ladling is not fussiness. It drains the curd gently and builds the tight, supple paste that separates the real thing from a rubbery imitation.
• Humidity is the hardest variable at home. Too dry and the bloom never takes; too wet and you get slip-skin and an ammonia reek. A lidded box with a damp cloth, opened daily to air, is the workable compromise.
• Food safety: raw-milk cheese should be made only from milk from a herd you trust, and is not advised for pregnant women, small children or anyone immunocompromised.

Substitutions

• Microbial rennet works at the same dose but sets slightly softer; allow an extra 15 minutes before testing for the clean break.
• Pasteurised milk plus calcium chloride will make a cheese, but a flatter and less complex one, and it is the honest option if raw milk is unavailable.

Variations

• Camembert fermier, made on the farm from a single herd’s milk, is the most prized form.
• Neufchatel and Brie de Meaux belong to the same bloomy-rind family, differing in shape, size and ripening time.

History

Traditionally credited to Marie Harel of Camembert in 1791; the thin wooden box, introduced in 1890, let it travel and war rations spread it.

Frequently asked questions

What is Camembert de Normandie?

Camembert de Normandie is a cheese & dairy from France: soft bloomy-rind cow’s milk cheese, runny and pungent at room temperature. Traditionally credited to Marie Harel of Camembert in 1791; the thin wooden box, introduced in 1890, let it travel and war rations spread it.

How long does Camembert de Normandie take to make?

Camembert de Normandie takes 1 hr spread over 2 days of preparation and 5 weeks ripening of cooking. The recipe makes 6 cheeses of about 250 g. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Camembert de Normandie?

Yes, within limits. Microbial rennet works at the same dose but sets slightly softer; allow an extra 15 minutes before testing for the clean break. Pasteurised milk plus calcium chloride will make a cheese, but a flatter and less complex one, and it is the honest option if raw milk is unavailable.

What is the most important thing to get right in Camembert de Normandie?

Warm the milk gently to 33°C (90°F) in a stainless pot and never take it above 37°C (100°F), since heat past blood temperature kills the native flora that a raw-milk Camembert depends on.