Indian Homemade Paneer Cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  Prepare a large pot (it needs to be completely clean, without any impurities).
• 2
  Pour 1 liter of milk into the pot and heat over medium heat. Stir the milk occasionally to prevent it from burning.
• 3
  Bring the milk to a boil and cook until a continuous foam forms on the surface. At this point, it's time to add the lemon juice.
• 4
  The amount of juice depends on the fat content of the milk used. The fattier the milk, the more juice will be needed. First, add 2 tablespoons of juice. The milk should immediately start to curdle.
• 5
  Continue heating the milk and let it curdle completely. If it seems that the milk is not curdling enough, you can add another 1 or 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
• 6
  Meanwhile, prepare a second pot and place a sieve or colander over it. Drape a cheesecloth or cotton towel over the colander.
• 7
  After all the milk has curdled, pour the mixture onto the cheesecloth. The remaining liquid will drain through the colander into the pot. Gather the ends of the cheesecloth or towel and squeeze out the remaining liquid from the mixture. Do everything very carefully, as the mixture is very hot.
• 8
  Let the mixture drain completely in the cheesecloth. Once the cheesecloth is dry, rinse it together with the cheese under cold water (hold the edges of the cheesecloth so that water does not get inside to the cheese, only rinse the cheesecloth from the outside).
• 9
  Place the rinsed cheese in the cheesecloth back into the colander and position it over a clean bowl. The cheese needs to be pressed – for this, use a mortar, a weight, or a heavy mug, for example. Let the pressed cheese rest for approximately 40 minutes, and then the Indian homemade Paneer cheese is ready.