Object number
74/95
Description
This is a rennet ladle used for measuring and stirring rennet into large vats of stilton. This example is a large ladle made from tinned metal. The bowl is soldered to the straight handle and there is a curved brass piece at the end. This item was donated as part of a collection of dairy related objects from the University of Reading Department of Food Science.
Physical description
1 rennet ladle: metal (tinned metal and brass); good condition
Label Text
1. Rennet ladle. At the start of the cheese making process rennet is added to the milk to coagulate it. This causes the milk to separate into solid curds, which are further processed into finished cheese, and liquid whey, which is drained off as it is not required. Rennet was originally home-made on the farm but by the 1870s cheese makers were able to buy commercially produced rennet. The ladle pictured was used for measuring and stirring rennet into a vat during the making of Stilton cheese in the Dairy Unit of Reading University's Department of Food Science. 74/95.1. Rennet ladle. At the start of the cheese making process rennet is added to the milk to coagulate it. This causes the milk to separate into solid curds, which are further processed into finished cheese, and liquid whey, which is drained off as it is not required. Farmhouse cheese makers originally prepared their own rennet which they made from the stomach-membrane of a slaughtered unweaned calf. The recipes they followed had often been passed down through the family from mother to daughter. The resulting extracts they produced varied greatly. From the 1870s a more standardized commercial rennet became available. This was used in the cheese making factories and by the more enlightened producers, although many cheese makers remained loyal to their home-made preparations for some years. The ladle pictured was used for measuring and stirring rennet into a vat during the making of Stilton cheese in the Dairy Unit of Reading University's Department of Food Science. 74/95.
Archival history
MERL ‘History Artefacts’ card – ‘Ladle Rennet // Tinned metal// University of Reading Department of Food Science // Description: A large ladle made from tinned metal. The bowl is soldered to the straight handle and there is a curved brass piece at the end. Use: For measuring and stirring rennet into large vats of stilton.’
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External document
- L:\MERL\Objects\JISC 2012\60 series negatives\60_12186.tif - High resolution image
