Cheddaring
Stacking and turning slabs of warm curd in the vat so they knit, drain and grow acid before milling.
Also: cheddar process, stacking and turning
Cheddaring is the step that gives cheddar its dense, close texture. After the curd is cut, cooked and the whey run off, the curd mats together in the vat. The cheesemaker cuts it into slabs and stacks them, then restacks and turns them every few minutes for an hour or more. The weight squeezes out whey, the warmth lets acid build, and the curd changes from crumbly to smooth and stretchy, tearing like cooked chicken breast. The slabs are then milled into small pieces, salted and pressed. The name comes from the village of Cheddar in Somerset, and the method spread with British settlers to North America, Australia and New Zealand.