Making Mozzarella with Mozzarella Mark

During Key West's week-long Food & Wine Festival in January, I enjoyed a Saturday morning class on making fresh mozzarella. The instructor, Mark Anthony Redux, has been making mozzarella for many years, at one point producing it for gourmet grocery stores up North before moving to Key West. Here in town, you can find 'Mozzarella Mark's' cheeses at Cole'z Peace, Eaton Street Seafood, and at the monthly Artisan Markets at The Restaurant Store. This mozzarella is easily the best I have tasted, with a firmer, chewier texture than most. Here is how Mark made it:

He started with a 10-pound block of cheese curd (basically milk to which an acid has been added to make it sour and curdle), which are available at specialty food suppliers. This block would produce 8 pounds of fresh mozzarella, with 20% of it separating out as butterfat. The large block is broken into chunks and room temperature (about 70 degrees) water is added to cover. Mark encouraged us to don plastic gloves and get our hands in the large bowl to break the curd into small, same-sized pieces to ensure even cooking. After a few minutes of massaging, the curd had broken down in to chunks about the size of lima beans. Mark added a pot of warmer water, this time around 94 degrees, and we stirred to distribute it through the curds. 'If you make the water too hot, the yield will go down,' Mark explained. 'The first two times you add water, it's forgiving. The third time you have to be very careful.' More hot water is added and as we stir and move the curds with our hands, it forms a uniform mass. Mark showed us how to shape and form the mozzarella into balls, allowing gravity to do most of the work. I certainly couldn't get the hang of it.....definitely a skill that comes with practice! The base of the ball is 'cut' from the larger mass by squeezing it between the thumb and forefinger. The balls of mozzarella then go into a bath of salt-saturated water for a brief soak, about 10 minutes, depending on size.

The class was held at The Restaurant Store on White Street, and the staff and owner were gracious hosts. We enjoyed sparkling Cava and Prosecco, crusty bread, and house-made caponata (the Sicilian sweet-sour eggplant relish) to go along with our cheese. Mark uses space there, along with a custom-made table with a deep stainless bowl, to make his product. He does demonstrations at the Artisan's Markets as well.

To end our morning of cheese making, Mark placed rectangles of mozzarella on trays (after giving it a quick dip in the salt brine) and stacked them up. The last tray was weighted down so that the cheese spread out into flat sheets. He added caponata to some, and chopped tomato and basil to the rest. He rolled the cheese up and sliced it into rounds, sushi style. Amazing! It was beyond delicious.

Mark recommends storing the mozzarella, wrapped air-tight in plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to four days. 'Refrigeration changes the texture,' he explained. That also explains why I've never had such delicious mozzarella.

Mozzarella Mark shows the class the ropes.

After the curds form together in the hotter water, the cheese looks like this.

Mark showed us how to form balls of mozzarella.