How to Make German Quark

Mia in Germany's Note:

Quark is not easily available in most non German countries, and it cannot really substituted by ricotta or creamcheese. But then it's not really difficult to make. This is the way we made it at my friend's house in a tiny village in the Black Forest where I spent my summer vacations when I was 13. 1 litre (1 1/8 quart) milk makes about 300 - 350 g (ca. 8 - 12 ounces) quark.

• Total Time: 28 hrs 5 mins
• Prep Time: 5 mins
• Cook Time: 28 hrs

Ingredients:

Serves: 1

Yield: 1.0

• 2 1/4 quarts milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:

1. Fill the milk into a bowl, stir in the lemon juice and let stand on the kitchen counter overnight, about 16 hours.
2. After 16 hours, it should have turned into soured milk.
3. Slowly heat the soured milk to no more than 122° F (50° C) until the whey starts to seperate from the solids.
4. Let cool and pour into a sieve lined with a cheesecloth.
5. Let drip for 12 hours, then press out any remaining liquid and strain the quark through a sive (it get smoother then).

Reviews

[gemini08]

What a great recipe, and sooo easy to make! Our local German Deli only sells Quark at Christmas so I was looking for an authentic recipe for Quark, called Topfen in Austria, which is a staple in Austrian cooking. I started with one gallon of Milk and added the juce of one small lemon, than let it do it's work over night. I followed the instructions for warming the milk, using a thermometer. The final product is a silky smooth, wonderfully creamy quark that tastes slightly tangy. I can't wait to use it in a recipe! Thanks, Mia, for posting! Made and reviewed for the "Not only Sauerkraut and Dumpling" event.
UPDATE:
Since my last review I got interested in cheese making. I bought the book 'Artisan Cheese Making At Home" by Mary Karlin and learned a few important things:
Do NOT use ULTRA - PASTEURIZED milk or cream, it will not work! Pasteurized and homogenized milk can be used but it needs more acid or calcium chloride (available on line - www.cheesemaking.com) for the milk to properly separate into curds. This goes also for yoghurt, ricotta and other cultured milk products.

[pammyowl]

I have never heard of quark, but when I read its uses, I had to make it. Very good, and has so many uses. I am sure I will be making this often.Thanks, Mia!

[Chef Tweaker]

I'm sorry... I really wanted this to work for me. I was excited to make cheese from milk and lemon juice. Sometimes I have been on a yeast/mold free diet and some forms of rennent and culturing is not allowed for that. I saw the review by gemini08 about the milk and but others seemed to have it work. I tried to find not Ultra-pasteurized and was surprised at how prevalent it was. I found some organic milk and didn't see until it was too late that it WAS ultra. Tried it anyways and only ended up with lemony milk. Tried again, this time found milk that was pasteurized but not homogenized so pretty close to the original. I added fresh squeezed lemon. Overnight I couldn't tell if anything was happening so added more lemon. Next day decided to try it, it seemed sour but not curdled at all. Raised temp as directed and no curds were formed. It also didn't taste sour after all so it must not have don the right thing in the beginning. I contacted the chef who said she uses pasteurized milk. Either my lemon wasn't strong enough or I didn't cook it long enough at the right temperature. Someday I may try again.