• Home
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Breakfast
    • Quick and Easy Meals
    • Salad and Veggies
    • Side Dishes
    • Main Courses
    • Breads
    • Beverages
    • Desserts
    • Canning and Preserving
  • Skills
    • Craftmanship
      • Blacksmithing
      • Woodworking
      • Welding
    • Brewing & Distilling
      • Homebrewing
      • Distilling
    • Cooking & Food
      • Cheese & Dairy
      • Drying & Smoking
      • Canning
      • Fermentation & Pickling
    • Homemaking Skills
      • Candle Making
      • Soap Making
      • Spinning & Weaving
  • Projects
    • Workshop
      • Homes & Buildings
      • Sheds & Coops
      • Appliances & Equipment
    • Garden & Outdoor
    • Homemade Products
      • Home Remedies
      • Natural Beauty
      • Cleaning and Home
    • Textiles & Fabric Arts
      • Sewing
      • Knit and Crochet
      • Quilting Skills
      • Weaving
    • Crafts
      • Home Decor
      • Pottery
      • Upcycling
      • Gifts
      • Kids
      • Holiday
  • Gardening
    • Growing Vegetables
    • Growing Fruit
    • Growing Herbs
    • Growing Grain
    • Soil Improvement
      • Composting
      • Worm Farming
      • Fertilizers
    • Aquaculture
  • Animals
    • Raising Poultry
    • Raising Goats
    • Raising Cattle
    • Raising Pigs
    • Raising Horses
    • Raising Rabbits
    • Raising Bees
    • Raising Cats & Dogs
  • Self Sufficiency
    • Emergency Prep
      • Planning
      • How To
      • Skills & Tips
    • Defense & Protection
      • Guns
      • Knives
      • Archery
      • Tools & Weapons
    • Energy & Power
      • Solar Power
      • Fuels
      • Water
    • Home Remedies
Logo
  • Craftsmanship
  • Brewing & Distilling
  • Cooking & Food
  • Homemaking Skills
You are here: Home / Skills / Cooking & Food / Cheese and Dairy / How To Make Vegetable Rennet for Cheesemaking

How To Make Vegetable Rennet for Cheesemaking

Reading Time: 3 minutes

September 8, 2023 By Riley E. Carlson 3 Comments

Are you always trying out new vegan cheese recipes? Then you definitely need vegetable rennet! It’s an important, irreplaceable ingredient when it comes to homemade vegan cheesemaking. Keep reading for the full recipe!

RELATED: [VIDEO] How To Make Cheese At Home | Cheese Making Course

Step-by-Step Guide to Making Vegetable Rennet for Homemade Cheese

Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs. fresh nettle
  • 1 Tbsp sea salt

Materials:

  • Cheesecloth
  • Large pot
  • Bowl
  • Colander

Step 1: Clean the Nettle Leaves

nettle | How To Make Vegetable Rennet for Cheesemaking | liquid vegetable rennet

Take the two pounds of fresh nettle leaves and rinse in cool, running, filtered water. Keep flushing them with water until the soil and debris are completely washed off of the leaves. Set aside.

Step 2: Cook the Nettle Leaves

After washing the leaves, place them in a large pot and submerge in four cups of filtered water. Feel free to add a bit more water if the pot you’re using is too big. Place the pot over medium heat, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, then simmer for another 30 minutes.

Step 3: Stir in Some Salt

a lady taking some salt | How To Make Vegetable Rennet for Cheesemaking | nettle rennet

30 minutes into simmering the pot of nettle, scoop in a tablespoon of sea salt. Stir until it dissolves in the water.

Salt acts as a compound to break down the leaves’ components and stimulate enzyme release. This will lead to a richer, fuller flavor.

RELATED: 21 Homemade Mac And Cheese | Upgrade From Velveeta & Make A Delicious Holiday Meal

Step 4: Drain the Nettle Leaf Mixture

Cover the colander with a clean cheesecloth then place inside the bowl. This will serve as a nettle leaf strainer.

Once you’re done cooking the leaves, pour everything into the cheesecloth-lined colander. Wait for all the excess water to drip.

Step 5: Extract the Vegetable Rennet

nettle essential oil | How To Make Vegetable Rennet for Cheesemaking

Set the leaves aside then and squeeze out any remaining juices you can from the cheesecloth into the bowl. This bowl of extracts is your nettle rennet.

For the best tasting results, we suggest mixing 1 cup of rennet with a gallon of warm milk. Using too much will make the mixture curdle while using too little will compromise the cheese’s flavor.

Step 6: Store the Liquid Vegetable Rennet Properly

Keep the rennet sealed in an airtight container then store it in the refrigerator. It should stay fresh for one to two months as long as you store it properly.

Check out this video by Cooking With Vlada for a visual guide on how to make cheese with vegetable rennet:

Learning how to make vegetable rennet is a very important skill for any amateur cheesemaker. After all, you'll be able to follow an array of cheese recipes even if you don't have access to livestock or dairy products.

Plus, cheese made of vegetarian rennet is very good. It has a rich, savory taste and the body remains firm even as it ages — cheese made of animal rennet tends to become runny.

What type of cheese are you first making with your homemade vegetable rennet? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below!

UP NEXT:

  • 10 Goat Cheese Recipes to Make For National Cheese Lover’s Day!
  • 7 Delicious Pioneer Woman Mac and Cheese Recipes
  • A Homesteader’s Guide To Canning Pineapples

Fellow homesteaders, do you want to help others learn from your journey by becoming one of our original contributors? Write for us!

Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook!

Filed Under: Cheese and Dairy, Skills

Comments

  1. Salim says

    September 7, 2021 at 9:22 AM

    yes, memories are precious to us. Thanks

    Reply
  2. Stelios says

    December 21, 2021 at 4:15 PM

    Can you use dried nettles instead of fresh ones, and what is the equivalent amount if this is the case.

    Reply
  3. Dianne Busse says

    July 19, 2023 at 2:48 PM

    anyone tried making the rennet from Cardoon? Are the measurements the same?

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Popular Articles

Top 15 Ways To Make Money On Your Homestead

Kickstart Spring By Starting Your Own Straw Bale Garden

The Best Egg Laying Chickens For Your Homestead

50 Gardening Tips And Tricks To Become A Successful Homesteader

ShadowBirds

Important Pages

  • About Homesteading
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Returns
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Write For Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Information Disclaimer

Other Great Sites

  • DIY Projects
  • Survival Life
  • Garden Season
  • Outdoor Warrior
  • Sewing.com

Resources

  • Hey Riley
  • Winter Survival
  • Raising Backyard Chickens
  • Canning & Preserving
  • Join Our Newsletter
  • Returns Policy
Homesteading
Email Support: [email protected]
Phone: 512-806-7603

Product returns go to:
1889 E Maule Ave, Ste G
Las Vegas 89119

Copyright © 2023 · Homesteading


This copyrighted material may not be republished without express permission. The information presented here is for general educational purposes only.

MATERIAL CONNECTION DISCLOSURE: You should assume that this website has an affiliate relationship and/or another material connection to the persons or businesses mentioned in or linked to from this page and may receive commissions from purchases you make on subsequent web sites. You should not rely solely on information contained in this email to evaluate the product or service being endorsed. Always exercise due diligence before purchasing any product or service. This website contains advertisements.