Homemade Cottage Cheese

Homemade Cottage Cheese is surprisingly easy to make! With only a few simple steps and a few simple ingredients you can whip this up in very little time! The results are much better than one can get at the store.

Homesteading is one of our many passions. If you are here you may be interested as well! Try these other homesteader recipes like Homemade Lard. For a challenging yet rewarding experience try Homemade Soap which is not as complicated as you might think.

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To see a quick video for this recipe, Click Here!

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR HOMEMADE COTTAGE CHEESE

• INGREDIENTS TO MAKE COTTAGE CHEESE
• HOW TO PASTEURIZE MILK – WITH AN INSTANT POT
• HOW TO PASTEURIZE MILK – WITHOUT AN INSTANT POT
• HOMEMADE COTTAGE CHEESE STEPS
• RECIPE TIPS AND VARIATIONS

My wife, my kids, and I love cottage cheese! When the price of the stuff went through the roof we decided to make our own. The results of which we were more than pleased with.

In the pursuit to making more of our own products on our homestead, this one was obvious. It has been a homesteading staple since the 19th century. Being used in old times to make something out of milk that went sour.

The term Cottage Cheese was used in the 1800’s to describe a simple homemade cheese. They weren’t wrong because it is very simple indeed. Cottage cheese has saved a lot of milk in from going unused.

INGREDIENTS TO MAKE HOMEMADE COTTAGE CHEESE:

• Milk- Fat free, 1%, 2%, and whole milk will work fine.
  
• White vinegar
  
• Salt
  
• Heavy cream (optional)

As I described, the ingredients are so simple and accessible!

HOW TO PASTEURIZE MILK WITH AN INSTANT POT

• I do it in an instant pot which makes it much easier to pasteurize! Hit “YOGURT” and adjust the settings until the display says, “boil” or “HIGH”. Put your lid on with the steam vent open OR closed.

• When it beeps and says, “YOGT” then it is done pasteurizing.

HOW TO PASTEURIZE MILK WITHOUT AN INSTANT POT

• Heat the milk on medium heat in a heavy bottom pan. Stir constantly so the milk does not burn on the bottom of the pan. Once it reads 190°F it is done and you can shut the heat off.

HOMEMADE COTTAGE CHEESE STEPS

• After pasteurizing the milk, pour in 3/4 cup of white vinegar.
  
• This will curdle the milk and you will see that it begins curdling instantly!

• Let it curdle for 30 minutes!

• Cover a colander with cheese cloth.

• Get this ready while your curds are forming. Place a colander into a large bowl. Put a sheet of doubled up cheese cloth in the colander.

• You do this so that the curds can sit above the whey, and the excess whey drains in to the large bowl.

• Spoon the curds into the cheese cloth. Let the whey drain out for 30 minutes.

• I prefer to use a slotted spoon for this process to keep more whey in the pot.

• Place all of the curds in the cheesecloth. This left over liquid is called whey and has many uses of its own.

• Wrap the cheesecloth around the curds forming a ball and wash it under cold water.

• Wash the cheese curds until the curds are cool to touch. This should only take a few minutes.

• Pour the curds into a bowl. Starting with 1 teaspoon, add salt to taste.

• Add heavy cream to taste. (optional)
  

• Traditionally cottage cheese is just 3 ingredients. But to get that creamy and refreshing cottage cheese that you are used to you are going to want to add cream!
  

• You can use however much you want but add a little at a time and stir it in. Repeat this process until it is to your desired creaminess.

• Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
  
• Stir and serve cold.

HOW TO STORE COTTAGE CHEESE:

• Store fresh cottage cheese in a covered container for up to one week.

TOPPINGS TO PUT ON COTTAGE CHEESE:

When it comes to toppings on cottage cheese. Personal preference is key.

• Honey
  
• Fruit
  
• Nuts
  
• Pepper
  
• With a salad
  
• Cinnamon

• I could go on and on but you have the final say. Let me know what you put on your cottage cheese!

IF YOU CARE 72×36-Inch Cheesecloth, Unbleached, 2-Square Yards (Pack of 6)

$24.77 ($4.13 / count) $22.57 ($3.76 / count) (as of December 19, 2025 05:54 GMT -06:00 – More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)

Pack of six, 2-square yards (total of 12-square yards) 100 percent unbleached cotton lint free microwave-safe Does not affect the taste and quality of food

RECIPE TIPS AND VARIATIONS:

• Yield: Makes about 3 cups of cottage cheese.
  
• Tips: Pasteurizing with an instant pot is much easier than the old fashioned way.
  
• Storage: Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
  
• Toppings: Honey, fruit, nuts, pepper, cinammon, whatever you want to put on it!

MORE RECIPES TO TRY:

• Easy Homemade Mayonnaise
  
• Homemade Vegan Mayonnaise
  
• Easy Dill Cream Cheese

Yield: 6 servings

Homemade Cottage Cheese

Print

Homemade Cottage Cheese is surprisingly easy to make! With only a few simple steps and a few simple ingredients you can whip this up in very little time! The results are much better than one can get at the store.

Ingredients

• 1 Gallon of milk- Fat free, 1%, 2%, and whole milk will all work
• 3/4 cups white vinegar
• 1 tsp salt
• Heavy cream to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Pasteurize the milk- If you have an instant pot, put the lid on with the steam vent open or closed. Push the YOGURT button until the screen says "boil" or "HIGH" depending on your model. When the instant pot beeps and says, "YOGT" then it is done pasteurizing. If you do NOT have an instant pot, heat the milk on medium heat to 190°F stirring constantly so the milk does not burn on the bottom of the pan.
2. Add 3/4 cup of vinegar and stir a few times. This will begin curdling the milk. Let the milk curdle for 30 minutes.
3. Spoon the curds into a double layer of cheesecloth that's placed in a colander either over a bowl, or over the sink. Let it drain for 30 minutes.
4. Gather the corners of the cheesecloth up and form a ball of curds. Wash the outside of the ball of curds with cold water until all of the curds in the ball are cool.
5. Put the curds into a bowl and add salt to taste, beginning with 1 teaspoon.
6. (Optional) A few tablespoons at a time, add heavy cream until it is at your desired creaminess.

Notes

Yield: Makes about 3 cups of cottage cheese.

Tips: Pasteurizing with an instant pot is much easier than the old fashioned way.

Storage: Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Toppings: Honey, fruit, nuts, pepper, cinammon, whatever you want to put on it!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1/2 cup
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 110Total Fat: 4.5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 460mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 0gSugar: 3gProtein: 12g

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Eligh Miller-Polivka

Hello everyone, welcome to my neck of the woods! My name is Eligh, I was born in Portland, Oregon, and I love to forage! From when I was very young, my father took me out picking mushrooms, fishing, and camping. He loved to forage for mushrooms, and so naturally, I developed a keen eye for mushroom identification. After meeting my lovely wife on the Oregon coast, I started spending all of my free time out in the woods with plant, mushroom, and tree identification books. After some time I was able to identify every tree, plant, and mushroom that I came across. I learned their uses, both by native Americans and settlers alike. At this time, I also began fishing for salmon, trout, and different species of coastal rockfish. I always felt a strong sense of pride to be able to harvest a wide variety of wild edibles to suit my palate, and then harvest some natural bait and catch a fish, even how to make hooks and line using plants and trees that grow on the river bank.
I started cooking at a very young age. In middle school, my friends and their parents would ask me to cook food for them because I could make something out of nothing. I love to cook up new concoctions and see what everyone likes. When I became of working age, I started as a buss boy at a barbecue restaurant, and then moved on to work all positions of the restaurant industry. From head chef of a Jamaican restaurant in Tulsa, OK, to sous chef at a highly accredited bistro on the Oregon coast, all before I turned 21.
I Inherited land in southeast Oklahoma and now spend my days working a Fedex delivery route and working with my wife and 3 young boys on our rural homestead. We raise many different kinds of animals and some vegetable gardens. I hunt all manor of large and small game, and butcher all of my own meat. We harvest wild edibles of all kinds and enjoy to cook with them and eat them.
I am grateful that you stopped by to see how we are doing and hope to see you again very soon. We would love to be friends and hope you enjoy all of the recipes and information that I can manage to put out.
Thank you, and much love!
-Eligh

I may receive a small commission for items purchased through affiliate links in this post at no additional cost to you.

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