Cheese Brunost: composition, properties and recipe

Cheese Brunost comes from Norway and is famous not only for its original taste, but also for its unusual appearance for cheese. Residents of the country have long considered it a national product.In this article we will tell about the Brunost cheese, its origin and taste, as well as give a recipe for cooking.

The history of cheese brunost began in the middle of the nineteenth century. At that time in Norway there was a severe financial crisis and the cheese factories closed one after another. It was then that one of the farmers' families decided to diversify the standard recipe for brown, sweet cheese, adding cream to the boiled whey. The resulting product was so good that other valley cheese-makers began to use it.

Later, rumors about this cheese spread throughout the country, and crowds of people began to gather in Gudbran Sladen to try it. Thus, the region was saved from the crisis, and the cheese received two names: Gudbransladen, in honor of the valley, and Brunost.

The taste of the product is twofold: at the very beginning it looks like sweet boiled condensed milk, but literally in a couple of seconds it opens up and you can feel a slight sourness and flavor of goat milk. Norwegian cheese is hard, but cut without problems with a sharp knife. Brown color, non-standard for cheese, is obtained due to the peculiarities of temperature processing. The product also has beneficial properties, it contains a large amount of vitamin C and calcium.

Brunost is usually eaten with toast, waffles or sandwiches. Some cooks use it to make sweet sauces and fondue, and housewives often replace them with candy or chocolate, squeezed tea and coffee. In Norway, Brunost is eaten almost daily, and not only as an additive to other dishes, but also as an independent product. In total, there are several subspecies of this cheese: from goat's milk, from cow's, aged, melted, hard ... A softer subspecies with cream and cow's milk are brought to our country.

The recipe of this product is quite simple, it will take a bit of ingredients, but the cooking process itself can last up to twelve hours (it all depends on the strength of the fire) and another additional up to ten hours during which the cheese will cool. About 400 grams of Brunost will come from the products below.

Components:

• 3 liters of dairy whey;
• 270 ml of cream 25%;
• half a liter of milk;
• 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar.

To get real, sweetened Norwegian brown cheese, you should use freshly prepared whey, as it can become acidic the very next day. If the available whey is still clear, you can dilute it with a small amount of milk. So, first of all, you should put the pan with whey on high heat and bring to a boil. Then the fire level should be lowered and wait until the whey begins to boil down.

If you want to quickly finish with this process, you can increase the fire, but at the same time you will need to constantly monitor the cooking, to stir the contents regularly. In the absence of excess time, it is better to lower the fire to a minimum and wait for the contents to increase to a quarter of the initial amount. As a rule, this process takes from five to twelve hours, depending on the level of fire.

Over time, the serum will begin to darken and acquire a brownish tone. As soon as a quarter of the original volume remains, add cream and continue the process. The mass will gradually thicken and darken. Some add cream and some sugar instead of cream. To Brunost not burned. with every hour it should be stirred more and more often.

When cooking is finished, it should be thoroughly kneaded with a dipping blender until a homogeneous mass is obtained. Then the mixture is poured into the pan and again begins to boil over a very low fire; at the same time it needs to be constantly stirred without stopping. Boiling down the cheese is recommended before getting a bit of a sticky consistency, so that it can be easily poured into the mold; the result is a soft Brunost, which is easily cut even with a blunt knife.

Before molding, rinse the container and lubricate it thoroughly with oil in order to then quickly get the finished product. The form should be covered with a towel and put in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning you can arrange a real Norwegian breakfast for your relatives. First, a thin slice of bread or waffle is smeared with cheese, and then blueberry jam is put on top. It turns out very tasty.

By the way, Brunost can be cooked in a slow cooker, but this can take up to twenty hours, therefore, housewives who have already tried this method strongly recommend boiling down the cheese on the stove, since this option is not only faster, but also easier.

You will learn more about how to make Brunost cheese in the following video.