Red Rock-style Cheddar Blue

Name: Red Rock-style Cheddar Blue
Prep time: 2 h
Cook time: 8 h
Yield: About 1 small home batch
Ingredients: 2 gallons pasteurized whole cow milk; 1/4 teaspoon direct-set mesophilic starter culture; 1/16 teaspoon Penicillium roqueforti culture; 1/2 teaspoon calcium chloride diluted in 1/4 cup cool non-chlorinated water; 1/2 teaspoon single-strength liquid rennet diluted in 1/4 cup cool non-chlorinated water; 2 tablespoons non-iodized cheese salt; Optional 1/2 teaspoon annatto diluted in 2 tablespoons cool water

Red Rock-style Cheddar Blue is a blue-veined American cheese with measured mold culture, loose curd handling, piercing, humid aging, and careful moisture control.

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Difficulty

Advanced

Prep time

1 to 2 hours active

Cook time

4 to 8 hours make day

Total time

2 to 4 months

Servings

About 1 small home batch

Region

Wisconsin artisan dairy country

Era introduced

American Dairy Age

Introduced by

Wisconsin cheddar

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The Story

Cheddar-blue hybrids such as Red Rock-style cheeses show Wisconsin's modern creativity: cheddar structure, blue veining, and eye-catching orange curd. The recipe below keeps that history practical for a home cheesemaking setup: use pasteurized milk, sanitized tools, measured culture, controlled temperature, controlled humidity, and refrigerated aging rather than casual countertop ripening. For named modern cheeses, this is a historical style entry and not an affiliated, commercial, or proprietary formula.

Ingredients

2 gallons pasteurized whole cow milk
1/4 teaspoon direct-set mesophilic starter culture
1/16 teaspoon Penicillium roqueforti culture
1/2 teaspoon calcium chloride diluted in 1/4 cup cool non-chlorinated water
1/2 teaspoon single-strength liquid rennet diluted in 1/4 cup cool non-chlorinated water
2 tablespoons non-iodized cheese salt
Optional 1/2 teaspoon annatto diluted in 2 tablespoons cool water

Equipment

Large stainless steel pot
Accurate dairy thermometer
Long curd knife
Slotted spoon
Colander
Butter muslin or cheesecloth
Cheese mold
Cheese press
pH strips or pH meter
Aging refrigerator or cheese cave

Directions

Read the safety notes before starting. Use pasteurized milk only, sanitize every tool that touches milk or curd, wash hands well, and discard the batch if it smells rotten, turns slimy, grows black or pink mold, or shows swelling that does not match the style.
Warm milk to 88 F. Add mesophilic culture and Penicillium roqueforti, rest 3 minutes, stir 1 minute, cover, and ripen 45 minutes.
Add calcium chloride, then rennet, stirring each diluted addition for 30 seconds. Hold still 45 minutes, until the curd gives a clean break.

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