November 23, 200916 yr In the past you could find Ricotta cheese here, but only in large containers for over 200 baht. Ricotta choice goes off very quickly once opened. I stopped buying those because I always ended up with a bunch of rotten cheese. Now I find there is a Hua Hin Thailand brand "Del Casero" available at Foodland, small container, good for 2 to 4 good sized servings in a recipe, only 75 baht! Great news for ricotta cheese lovers. It isn't the best ricotta cheese I have ever tasted, but its good enough. (Not talking about Ricotta "spreads".)
November 24, 200916 yr That's the best price I've seen for ricotta which, unfortunately, must be used within a week. On the other hand, you can freeze it for up to 6 months. If you want even fresher and cheaper ricotta, you can make it yourself: Combine 4 liters of whole milk with 1 liter of buttermilk in a saucepan and heat on medium high. Stir occasionally, scraping the pan bottom, to avoid scorching. When hot, stop stirring. Curds will rise to the surface, scrape bottom of occasionally to free up stuck curds. While the milk is heating, line a colander with five layers of cheesecloth. Once milk reaches about 80 degrees c. , remove pan from heat and slowly ladle the curds (the white clumps) onto the cheese cloth. Enfold cloth and allow all liquid to drain (do not squeeze) for about 20 minutes, then put mixture into an airtight container and refrigerate.
November 24, 200916 yr Since this is becoming a "cheese" thread thanks to Jingthing do the Thais make cheese ? I can only find "imported" stuff at Friendship and I like to add grated cheese to my scrambled eggs in the morning but the cheese is more expensive than the eggs
November 24, 200916 yr Del Casaro, a two-men-business growing into a success company in about ten years. 2 italian guys, now in Hua Hin, supply most (or all) the italian restaurants in Thailand with their very good quality and cheap mozzarella and a lot more dairy products. The new plant is impressive. New machinery from Italy allow them a big daily production so I guess they start to distribute their products also in the supermarkets, and they start to export in other SE Asian countries. You can find more informations here P.S.: I don't have any connection with Del Casaro Co Ltd
November 24, 200916 yr Author So far I have only seen this at Foodland which is not convenient for me. I hope some of the other local markets get it together and start carrying this Thai ricotta cheese ...
November 24, 200916 yr For sure Del Casaro have a dealer/wholesale in the main tourist places (in KPG too!), where restaurants and normal customers can buy their products, so if you contact the company they will say you if they have one in your place (Pattaya?)
November 24, 200916 yr Thanks Jingthing. I feel a lasagna coming up in my future. I've been making it without ricotta, and using a substitute, similar to what PaulDee suggested. Can't wait to use something close to real ricotta. I usually mix in an egg and parsley, so exact ricotta flavor and smoothness is not that important.
November 24, 200916 yr Author Thanks Jingthing. I feel a lasagna coming up in my future. I've been making it without ricotta, and using a substitute, similar to what PaulDee suggested. Can't wait to use something close to real ricotta. I usually mix in an egg and parsley, so exact ricotta flavor and smoothness is not that important. I made a great obscene omelet with it the other day. Something like this -- 3 eggs (with 2 yolks) mixed in (chopped/sliced as needed) shiitake mushrooms farang broccoli red bell pepper Thai red pepper Hungarian hot paprika Dijon mustard pepper ham Browned some garlic in olive oil, then add the omelet mixture, cook on low heat, later add a generous helping of RICOTTA cheese, cook awhile, fold, and turn later. It was so good with the ricotta, though mozzerella works well also. Also if you are too lazy to make lasagna (I am) you can just throw in some ricotta in many pasta dishes while you are sauteing the pasta with the sauce before serving. If you are using tomato sauce, meat, and veg, it will taste a lot like lasagna with the ricotta.
November 26, 200916 yr I looked for the Del Casero ricotta the other day, but couldn't find it. They might have been out.
November 26, 200916 yr Author I looked for the Del Casero ricotta the other day, but couldn't find it. They might have been out. Yes there was a low stock when I found mine.
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