Kanterkaas

Kanterkaas (Dutch Gouda-Style Edam)

A traditional semi-hard cow's milk cheese from the polders of South Holland, loosely modeled after the Kanterkaas once carried by canal bargemen between Leiden, Gouda, and Utrecht. A young wheel is mild and creamy; aging six to nine months develops the hazelnut, slightly crystalline bite.

Prep

90 min

Cook

240 min

Total

330 min

Serves

Yields 1 wheel of approximately 4 kg

Difficulty

Hard

Recipe ingredients

• •16 L (4¼ gal) pasteurized full-fat cow's milk, standard whole milk (~3.5% fat)
• •1.6 g (⅛ tsp) mesophilic starter culture, MM-series or Flora Danica
• •0.5 g (¼ tsp) calcium chloride solution, diluted 50% in water, optional if milk is very fresh
• •0.5 g (¼ tsp) potassium nitrate (saltpetre), traditional; modern recipes often omit
• •2.5 ml (½ tsp) liquid animal rennet, double-strength, diluted in 30 ml cool water
• •120 g (½ cup) cheese salt (non-iodized), for dry-salting and brine
• •300 g (2 cups) food-grade wax, yellow paraffin, for the rind

Steps

1. 1 SAFETY NOTE: This recipe uses pasteurized milk and is for a hard, low-moisture aged cheese — the salt, low pH (4.4-4.6 at milling), low water activity, and months of aging at 12-15 °C together make the finished wheel safe. Potassium nitrate is included for the traditional flavor and to discourage late gas blowing; do not exceed 0.5 g per 16 L.
2. 2 Heat the milk in a stainless pot to 32 °C. Sprinkle the mesophilic starter over the surface and let it rehydrate 2 minutes, then stir in gently in an up-and-down motion. Cover and ripen 45 minutes.
3. 3 Dissolve the calcium chloride and the potassium nitrate in 50 ml of cool water and stir into the milk. Dilute the rennet in 30 ml of cool water and stir it in with a gentle figure-eight for 30 seconds. Cover and let set, undisturbed, for 35 minutes until you have a clean break.
4. 4 Cut the curd into 1 cm cubes with a long knife, working slowly from the walls to the centre. Rest 5 minutes, then begin stirring gently while raising the temperature slowly to 38 °C over 30 minutes.
5. 5 Hold at 38 °C and stir another 30 minutes until the curds are firm and slightly rubbery (a small piece squeezed in the palm should feel like a medium-rare steak and spring back). Let the curds settle 10 minutes.
6. 6 Pour off about one-third of the whey. Ladle the curds into a 20 cm cheese mold set over a draining mat. Press at 4 kg for 15 minutes, flip, press at 9 kg for 30 minutes, flip again, press at 14 kg for 2 hours, then flip and press at 14 kg overnight (12-18 hours) at room temperature.
7. 7 Unmold the wheel (it should weigh roughly 4 kg now). Dry-salt the surface: rub 1 tablespoon of salt over the top, leave 24 hours in a 15 °C, 85% humidity box, flip, salt the other side, repeat for 4 days total until the wheel has absorbed 2-3% of its weight in salt.
8. 8 Alternatively, soak the wheel for 24 hours in a saturated brine (1.2 kg salt per 4 L water, cooled to 13 °C, with 1 tsp calcium chloride added).
9. 9 Air-dry 2-3 days at 15 °C with good airflow until the rind is bone-dry to the touch. Apply yellow paraffin by dipping briefly in wax melted to 140 °C, or brush on three thin coats, allowing each to set.
10. 10 Age at 12-15 °C and 85-90% humidity. Flip weekly for the first month, then every two weeks. Young cheese (4-8 weeks) is mild, creamy, with a faint hazelnut note; at 6-9 months the paste becomes more crystalline and the flavor deeper and slightly butyric — the traditional Kanterkaas character.
11. 11 Doneness cue: a tapped wheel should sound solid, not hollow; a trier should pull a smooth, springy plug with no cracks. If ammonia is strong or the rind is dark and tacky, re-wax and return to a cooler corner.
12. 12 Safety: Discard any wheel showing pink, slimy patches, or persistent putrid odors — these indicate unwanted gas-formers and the cheese is not safe to eat.