Substitutes For Rennet

Cheeses can now be made with a variety of rennet substitutes.

Rennet, also known as rennin, is a common ingredient used in cheese making. An enzyme found in rennet causes the milk to clot, separating the curds and whey ready to make firm or semifirm cheeses. Many people, including vegetarians and vegans, find the idea of using rennet distasteful. This is because it is derived from the stomachs of milk-fed calves, via a process of salting and drying the stomach lining before soaking it in water. The water is then strained and used to make cheese.

Vegetable Rennet

Plants such as thistle and mallow produce enzymes that will also curdle milk. These can be used to make vegetarian and vegan cheese in the same way as traditional rennet, and the resulting product will taste the same. However, there are other alternatives which can be manufactured on a large scale to produce vegetarian cheeses.

Microbial Rennet

Microbial rennet are enzymes derived from the growth of cultures and mold such as Mucor miehei, Bacillus subtilis or Bacillus prodigiosum. Because the enzymes are not taken from an animal and because their cultures are easy to grow, microbial rennet is becoming increasingly popular. As with vegetable rennet, there is no difference in taste between cheese made with traditional rennet and that made with microbial rennet.

Chymosin

Chymosin is a genetically engineered alternative to rennet. Genetic material is extracted from calf stomach lining and used as a template to make copies. Although Chymosin is based on the genetic profile of the stomach lining, it has no relation to the animal. This should make it suitable for vegetarian cheese, although stricter vegetarians and vegans may still prefer microbial or vegetable rennet-based cheeses.

Making Cheese at Home

You may not have your own laboratory, but you can still get rennet alternatives to make your own cheese at home. Several online sources provide vegetable rennet in tablet or liquid form, including websites such as New England Cheesemaking Supply and The Cheesemaker. Some rennet alternatives are also certified for Kosher and Halal use.

Tags: made with, stomach lining, derived from, microbial rennet, rennet alternatives, traditional rennet