I love simple recipes that make me feel like a rockstar…
And homemade ricotta cheese definitely fits the bill.
Ricotta is one of the easiest cheeses to make, but it can transform a ho-hum recipe into something special–plus I always feel a extra fancy when I use it.
Oh, and making lasagna with homemade mozzarella AND homemade ricotta cheese? It takes the dish to a whole new level folks… If you are serving it to dinner guests–they’ll go away impressed–promise. (Especially if you pair with it a hot loaf of homemade French bread. On second thought, scratch that. You don’t want to overwhelm them with awesomeness…)
True-blue, authentic ricotta cheese simply comes from heating up whey–the word ricotta actually means “recooked.” If you’ve read my blog for a while, you are probably already intimately familiar with whey and how to use it. However, if you’re new, but sure to check out my list of 16 Things to do With Whey and my knock-your-socks-off Vintage Lemon Whey Pie recipe.
Ricotta made just from whey tends to have a low yield… So if you prefer a recipe with a slightly larger end result, try a ricotta cheese recipe that starts off with whole milk. (I’ve included that below as well!)
There seems to be approximately a million-and-one different ways to make ricotta, so if you’ve made it before, it’s likely that your method is different than mine. But I’m going to venture to say, that as long as you end up with those amazing little fluffy white clouds of ricotta goodness, there really is no “wrong” way to make ricotta.
So on to the recipes!
(this post contains affiliate links)
Ricotta Cheese Recipe #1 (using whey)
You will need:
- Fresh whey*, leftover from making cheese (try to use it the same day)
- Butter muslin (like this or this one is great too) OR a tea towel OR my frugal cheesecloth alternative OR a fine mesh reusable coffee filter
*This can be done with any amount of whey, but keep in mind the yield is quite small, so I don’t recommend doing it unless you have around 1-2 gallons of fresh whey at your disposal.
Instructions:
Place the whey in a large stockpot, and place it the stove over medium-high heat.
Bring it to around 190-195 degrees–or until you see fluffy looking “clouds” separating from the yellow whey when you stir the mixture. (I use a regular old ladle, but I gotta get one of these nice slotted ones for scooping curds. And this is a great thermometer if you’re in need of one.)
Avoid boiling if you can–it tends to give it a bit of a funny taste–plus it boils over easy, and cleaning sticky, cooked-on whey off your stovetop is a nightmare.
Once you see that the fluffy white ricotta cheese clouds have separated from the yellowish whey, remove it from the heat and pour it through your fabric or strainer to drain.
Allow the teeny ricotta curds to drain until all the whey has dripped out (I usually leave it for about an hour–you can go longer if you wish)
Sometimes I tie my cheesecloth/fabric into a “bag” and let it hang from a cabinet knob–other times I just line a colander with the cloth and allow it to drip in the sink.
Store your fresh ricotta in the fridge or freeze it for later.
Ricotta Cheese Recipe #2 (using whole milk)
You Will Need:
- 1 gallon of whole milk
- 5 teaspoons of lemon juice (see note below)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Butter muslin (like this or this one is great too) OR a tea towel OR my frugal cheesecloth alternative OR a fine mesh reusable coffee filter
Instructions:
Place the gallon of milk in a large stockpot and heat it over medium heat.
Once it has reached 190-195 degrees, remove it from the heat and stir in the lemon juice.
Allow the milk to sit for 5-10 minutes and wait for the curds to form.
Once you see those lovely, fluffy curds, drain the whey as directed in the whey ricotta instructions above.
Store in the fridge, or freeze for later.
Kitchen Notes
- Lemon juice isn’t your only option for creating curds. Some people prefer 1/4 cup of vinegar, while others add 1 teaspoon of citric acid. Feel free to play around a bit–as long as you end up with curds, you are on the right track.
- Keep in mind that heating the whey for these recipes kills most of the good bacteria, so it will only keep for about a week–unless you freeze it.
- If you don’t see curds right away, try adding a bit more lemon juice, or heating a bit more on the stove. It’s really hard to mess this up–so even if the recipe doesn’t go exactly as described, it’s likely you can still salvage it and end up with some sort of ricotta-like curds.
- The whole milk ricotta cheese recipe will yield more than the whey ricotta cheese recipe.
- You’ll end up with a bunch of leftover whey after you drain it from the curds. Here’s a whole list of how to use that whey.
Linda says
February 21, 2014 at 8:07 amYou can also add 1 quart of whole milk to your whey to increase the ricotta yield. I love making the whey ricotta because even if my cheese did not turn out perfect, the ricotta always does! I add granulated garlic, Celtic sea salt, basil and oregano to my ricotta and we love it on everything.
Jill Winger says
February 22, 2014 at 2:03 pmYUM!
Diane says
February 21, 2014 at 9:37 amHere’s a crazy question: If I make whole milk ricotta, can I use the resultant liquid (whey?) to make whey ricotta?
Naomi Fournier says
February 22, 2014 at 12:45 amWhey cheeses, like traditional, or whey, ricotta, can only be made with the whey from low-temperature cheeses like cheddar. My rule of thumb is the whey from any cheese where the milk is heated to 120 degrees or less is fine for making a whey cheese, while those heated to higher temperatures are not.
Jill Winger says
February 22, 2014 at 2:02 pmYes– I think that’ll still work. 😉
Sue in NC says
February 21, 2014 at 12:40 pmI have used the second method to make paneer, a type of cheese used in Indian dishes, like Saag Paneer. After you’ve drained the curd you squeeze it to make a sort of disc and then put it on a plate (still wrapped), put another plate on top and weight it down with a can or anything heavy and let it sit for about a half an hour, Then you can slice it or cut it in cubes. Mild and delicious.
Holly Castillo says
February 22, 2014 at 1:57 pmCould you do this with a 2-4 L batch of kefir? I am considering trying it. I let it go a little past the sweet smelling point. My last batch of kefit came out smelling like cottage cheese. No joke! I opened a fresh store bought cottage cheese to test if it smelled the same. Oops! I was
going to cook it in muffins, pancakes and sauces just yo make sure it doesn’t go to waste.
Jill Winger says
February 22, 2014 at 2:02 pmCool! Thanks for sharing!
Sandra Hansen says
January 8, 2017 at 4:24 pmI take the cubed paneer and fry it very carefully. Double delicious! Look for a shahi paneer recipe for the sauce to put it with rice.
Holly says
February 21, 2014 at 6:45 pmCheese making is on my homestead to do list. Pinning this!
susanna faygenbaum says
February 21, 2014 at 8:11 pmso i have been making ricotta for a while out of WHOLE MILK, i never realized that it is whey that i drain from it…can i use that same whey to use in fermentation? and how long does that last?
Jill Winger says
February 22, 2014 at 2:01 pmThe whey that you’ll get from my two recipes won’t work in fermentation since it has been heated/cooked. However, it’s still good for many other uses. 🙂
Shelley says
February 22, 2014 at 7:32 pmWhat other uses?
Patricia says
February 23, 2014 at 8:26 amHi Laura, I saved my whey from my homemade yogurt. I froze them in ice cube trays and then transferred into freezer bags to use for whatever. Can whey from homemade yogurt be used to make the whey ricotta ~ maybe if BEFORE it was frozen? OR since it was a heated process already One time it will not work for the whey ricotta? Thank you!
Patricia says
February 23, 2014 at 8:33 amJill, ooops, so sorry I called you Laura 🙁
Jill Winger says
February 24, 2014 at 2:21 pmYou *should* be able to use the whey from the homemade yogurt just fine. 🙂
Michelle Oaks says
February 26, 2014 at 4:09 pmYou have a really nice blog here. My son and I are very interested in anything about self-sufficiency, so much so that we just published a book and have another one coming out soon.
Being able to make your own cheese is a great way to use that extra milk homesteads often have and fresh natural cheese is so wonderful 🙂
Amanda Patterson says
March 20, 2014 at 11:12 amAwesome! Talking about a “cheesecloth, I found flour sack cloth in the dish rag area at Walmart. They are pretty cheap. Like a pack of 5 for $4-5. I actually got them to cut in quarters and then stitch the two sides where I cut for an alternative for paper towels/napkins. Now I’m thinking “Hey, there’s me a cheesecloth! “
shelley k says
April 21, 2014 at 1:25 pmHi there I was wondering if I could use buttermilk.
Connie Kredlo says
November 30, 2016 at 2:16 pmI use a gallon of whole milk, a cup of half and half, a cup of buttermilk, a half cup of lemon juice and a tablespoon of sea salt for my
Ricotta. It tastes great and has good texture.
janet says
May 22, 2014 at 11:18 amHello, I make alot of greek yogurt and I’ve tried to make ricotta from the whey but I get very little curdling.
Am I understanding that it’s because I’ve already heated it up to 180 degrees ?
Thank you for your information.
Mia says
May 21, 2018 at 12:58 pmI’m wondering the same. No way I’m getting any curdles from only whey ?
I’ve tried two different batches whey, one from yesterday and one from a couple of days back. I gave up and threw in some milk to at least get some curdles, but I doubt I will try this again. Sad, since I get so much whey, and one can only bake so much… What did I do wrong?
Troy says
March 19, 2019 at 8:43 pmsame thing happened to me…first recipe does not work in instant pot. Got no curds…maybe because I used such a fine cheesecloth to drain the whey from my paneer resulted in no residual curds possibly needed to multiple or instant pot saute setting too high and killed culture.
shawn corrigan says
June 18, 2014 at 4:58 amgreat site, and good posts. i love the old ways. im sick of store food.
i’ll give the cheese making a try . i freeze the goats milk and have 4 gallons. i’ve put this off long enough. but my rule is never through anything away. soo after i make more cheese out of the whey i suppose i feed it to the chickens.
Judy says
January 19, 2018 at 9:40 amWe buy our raw goat milk 12 half gallon containers at a time because it’s an hour’s drive. Now i am looking into what else to do with the raw goat milk. Yogurt, kefir, ricotta cheese, sour cream, buttermilk, cottage cheese, cheese! So many choices! So glad I am retired and living in Florida! lol
Barbara Lambert says
August 29, 2016 at 4:32 amI put my whey into sealed mason jars & store in the fridge. I notice your recipe says to use Fresh whey but there’s no way I’d have a gallon of whey in a day! How long is the whey good to use to make cheese or is this a lost cause for me?
Jill Winger says
September 3, 2016 at 11:13 amIt will last a good week or more in the fridge, in my experience.
Debbie Roberts says
March 21, 2019 at 10:05 amMaybe if you use a cold start yogurt?
kim says
September 26, 2016 at 11:13 amhi! i was interested in making homemade mozzarella… with the leftover whey can i immediately make this ricotta? and then use whats leftover from that for bread and whatnot? thanks! not sure how well it will work since it will be reheated so many times…
Jill Winger says
September 27, 2016 at 11:17 amIt depends on the type of mozz you make, but yes, you should be able to make ricotta from it. And then you can use the leftover whey from the ricotta in bread recipes, etc.
Kathy says
December 25, 2016 at 2:11 pmcan i use frozen cream to make frosting?
Monica says
January 27, 2017 at 9:20 amCan I freeze my yogurt whey until I get a few gallons and then make ricotta from it still?
Jill Winger says
January 27, 2017 at 2:39 pmYep- that should work.
Beth Ohman says
February 16, 2017 at 5:12 pmI made cottage cheese from 1 cup of my homemade kefir to 2 quarts whole milk (no vinegar or lemon juice or anything else added) I heated it only to 100 degrees. Would the whey be acidic or sweet?
Geert says
February 17, 2017 at 3:08 pmWhen speaking about degrees, this is F, nu C ?
Geert says
February 17, 2017 at 3:10 pmNot C (my smartphone grrr)
Jill Winger says
March 5, 2017 at 10:52 amIt’s F 🙂
Lea says
March 9, 2017 at 11:43 amHi Jill, thank you so much for your information! I have recently mastered making homemade yoghurt in my slow cooker and it’s been the best Greek yoghurt I have ever made. I don’t really have to drain it because once I put it in mason jars and refrigerate it is incredibly thick. However I do like taking an entire strainers worth of it and drain any liquid I can get from it through cheesecloth and it turns into an incredible thick “something”. I don’t know exactly what to call it, it’s kind of like a thick cream cheese, it has a very sweet taste I think because they whey that is drained from it is the sour part? I’ve been collecting my whey in mason jars and have several jars approximately 6 jars, I am going to try making ricotta cheese I thought I would add 2 litres of whole milk because the whey seems to be really yellow and almost translucent like there would be very little curds that would come from boiling it. I could be incorrect in my assumption but your whey looks to be more cloudy then mine. Perhaps you are using raw milk? I don’t live on a farm so I can’t access raw milk, only pastuerized milk. Finally my question….Do you think I will get ricotta cheese if I add the whole milk and my approximate 3 litres of whey (funny that you call it sweet because I always thought it was very sour and thats how I get the thick yoghurt that I don’t know what to call ). Again thank you for your information and inspiration! Do you think I will get ricotta cheese or would I be better off using the whey for something else like biscuits? (I heard it can be used as a substitute for buttermilk?)
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Kimberly A. Spangrude says
July 2, 2017 at 12:42 pmI made fresh mozzarella last week and have two half-gallon jars of whey which I have kept in a very cold refrigerator. Is the whey too old to make ricotta with?
Pat says
September 6, 2017 at 11:31 amTHANKS! I saw your other 16 suggestions for using whey but this and using it to water the garden were the only two I could use in my kosher kitchen. p.s. my Gjetost recipe specifically says not to use the whey from cheesemaking. Different strokes I guess.
entin says
November 8, 2017 at 1:10 amwhy the step is sooo similar with the cottage cheese recipe i just tried last month?
jan flynn says
January 6, 2018 at 4:05 pmare we talking about whole milk pasteurized (from the grocery store) or does it have to be raw milk for the ricotta?
tina thorn says
January 12, 2018 at 11:51 amjust to be clear, when making the ricotta from (yogurt) whey, you do NOT add any lemon/vinegar etc.? I wasn’t sure from the instructions.
Theresa Ammirati says
January 18, 2018 at 11:32 amMade ricotta with whole milk, froze the whey. Can I use it to make new ricotta?
Thanks
LowenLowen says
January 18, 2018 at 8:06 pmThis is interesting.
This morning woke up to daughters complaining about “chunks in the 2% gallon of milk”
I tasted it and it was sweet and delicious. Wife said throw it out.
I was googling why milk curdles.
I found the ricotta cheese recipe and tried it.
I was heating up the milk and the cords got big and beautiful when the milk was only at about 105 degrees and no sticking to the pot.
I removed the curds with a ladle and poured the whey over the mixture in the sieve, collecting the why underneath. Paper towels work wonderfully as a cheesecloth substitute. Absolutely no mess.
The cheese is outstanding. I ate a lot of it before I put the rest in the fridge.
Sophie says
March 4, 2018 at 11:08 amYou didn’t say when to put the salt, I assume it’s to be added with the milk.
Laura says
May 13, 2018 at 9:14 pmCould you add the ability to print instructions like your other recipes?
Emily says
June 4, 2018 at 5:54 pmIf I opt to strain yogurt at the end to make it a bit thicker, can I use the whey that I’ve strained off to make ricotta?
michael colombo says
June 23, 2018 at 7:42 ami had a gallon of raw milk, did not want to use raw milk for making mazzola cheese so i put the raw milk in a crock pot and raised the temp slowly to 162 degrees no worry about scorching put the hot milk in an ice cream maker and cooled it down to 50 degrees and in the frig overnite now i have pasturize milk to make mozzala cheese
Hélène says
March 21, 2019 at 7:47 amSince all but one of your list of Uses for Whey is for sweet whey, what can we do with this acid whey left from making ricotta? Can it be used to soak grains? Make homemade mayo or ketchup last longer in the fridge? Is it used in the same ratio as the sweet whey?