Preparing homemade ricotta cheese sure is simpler than what might have thought. Moreover, preparing ricotta cheese at home will give you a better control over the ingredients used, making it a healthier and tastier choice. There are various methods of preparing ricotta cheese at home. You can prepare homemade ricotta cheese using whey or by just heating milk and buttermilk together. The easiest way of preparing ricotta cheese at home is by adding lemon juice or vinegar to milk.

Here is a simple and easy method to prepare homemade ricotta cheese, so read on...

What Is Required

You would need ½ cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice for every liter of full fat milk and some salt to season. Other than these basic ingredients, you would need a colander, cheesecloth, heavy bottomed pan, a stove, and a heat proof bowl. 

Preparing Homemade Ricotta Cheese

• Heat milk in a heavy bottomed pan until it starts to boil steadily, take it off the flame and stir in the lemon juice to curdle the milk.
• Stir the milk gently so that the freshly formed curd is not crushed. Let the milk to stand undisturbed for a while to allow the milk to curdle properly.
• Now, line a colander with cheesecloth and place the colander on a large heat-proof bowl.
• Strain the curdled milk through the colander to separate the curd and whey. Allow the whey to drain for about 15 minutes to 1 hour till the cheese reaches the desired dryness.
• Scour the cheese from the cheesecloth and transfer into a bowl, add salt as required and blend. Voila! Homemade ricotta cheese is ready to be used. 
• 1 liter of whole milk yields 1 cup of ricotta cheese. It is ideal to use the homemade cheese on the same day, but you can refrigerate the cheese for about 4 days.

Tips For Making Ricotta Cheese at Home

It is advisable not to discard the whey. You can add the whey to the ricotta cheese, in case it turns very dry. You can also use the whey to prepare white sauce, pasta dough and a variety of other preparations. 

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