When making cheese (e.g. Halloumi) from non-homogenized milk, are the dangers in non-homogenized milk neutralised? [closed]
I was looking at ways to make Halloumi at home and found this video. The recipe calls for non-homogenized milk (another name for raw milk, I think!) which as far as I know can be very dangerous.
But I am not drinking the milk, I making cheese from it. Will the cheese-making process neutralize all the harmful stuff in raw non-homogenized milk?
Best Answer
You are indeed mixing up different things, as Tetsujin mentioned in comments.
When the milk comes out of the cow, it is an emulsion, but not a terribly stable emulsion. Also, it has bacteria in it - ideally only the milk acid bacteria from the cow's udder, but it can also have pathogens from either a sick cow (usually things like listeria) or from being contaminated, e.g. e. coli from the cow's fecal matter. If you leave it sitting around, even at fridge temperature, the emulsion will start separating, with the milk fat swimming to the top, and the milk will start to either turn sour or spoil, depending on which kind of bacteria prevails.
Modern consumers don't want any of these to happen, and modern producers and handlers don't want to have to sell the milk within a couple of days of milking. So milk is typically processed in multiple steps. Some of them are intended for pasteurization (killing bacteria), others are intended for homogenization (preventing the separation of milk fat and whey). There are many different processes for each of those two goals, and a producer can apply one or more of them - and the producer can also decide to homogenize without pasteurizing, or the other way round. You can also consume raw milk, if you can find a source - they are differently regulated in different legislations.
Now, to your question. The important part for your safety is not whether your milk has been homogenized, but whether it has been pasteurized. If you make your cheese with non-pasteurized milk (no matter if homogenized or not), then che cheese "inherits" the risks of the milk. If you make it with pasteurized milk, it again inherits the risks (or lack thereof) of the milk. To answer very literally, the cheesemaking process doesn't turn raw milk into safely pasteurzied milk.
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Can you use non-homogenized milk to make cheese?
Homogenisation is optional as long as it is declared on the label of the bottle or carton. If you want to make cheese, you have a choice of using either homogenised or non-homogenised milk.Can you make halloumi with homogenised milk?
Halloumi can work with homogenised milk but we recommend using unhomogenised milk for a better, squeakier final product.Is Unhomogenised milk safe?
Like all milk, homogenized milk is one of the safest and most naturally nutrient-rich foods you can find in the grocery store. Much like choosing between whole, reduced fat, lowfat or fat free milk, deciding whether or not to purchase non-homogenized milk is a matter of personal preference, rather than safety.What happens if milk is not homogenized?
Non-homogenized milk will separate if left to settle, and the cream will rise to the top. Homogenization is a mechanical process that breaks apart milk fat molecules under high pressure so that they remain suspended evenly in the milk, producing a uniform (or homogeneous) consistency.Making Halloumi Cheese with Pasteurized and Homogenized Milk (Spoiler: It Didnt Work)
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