Curds and Whey Are What Cheese Is Made Of
Curd is the solid part of milk after it separates. Every cheese in the world begins at this step.
Curd is the soft solid mass formed when milk coagulates, separating from the liquid whey. Every cheese begins here: acid or rennet makes the milk proteins clump, the curd is cut and drained, and everything afterwards — pressing, salting, ageing — is variation on that one step. The nursery rhyme about Little Miss Muffet is describing an ordinary meal. *Lemon curd* is a separate use of the word, for a thick cooked preserve.
- Coagulated milk solids. *Curds and whey.*
- A cheese base. *Cheese curds.*
- Lemon curd. *Lemon curd.*
- To curdle. *The milk curdled.*
- Middle English — related to *crud*. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | curd | Curd. |
| Plural | curds | Curds. |
| Verb | curdle | Curdling. |
| Related | whey | Whey. |
| Related | crud | Crud. |
- The curds were drained and pressed.Cheese.
- Curds and whey in the rhyme.Literature.
- The milk curdled in the heat.Verb.
How cheese is made
- Coagulate the milk with acid or rennet
- Cut the curd — smaller pieces drain more whey and give harder cheese
- Drain the whey and collect the solids
- Salt and press to control moisture and texture
- Age it, which is where most of the flavour develops
Middle English *curd*, related to *crud*, of uncertain origin.
What is the difference between curds and whey?
Curds are the solid milk proteins and fat. Whey is the watery liquid left when they separate.
Is lemon curd made from milk?
No. It is a thick cooked mixture of lemon, sugar, eggs and butter, using curd only in the sense of a thickened preserve.