Rennet

Ingredients

• 1 calf stomach
• saltpetre
• salt
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 5 gills cold water
• 2 gills rose brandy

Instructions

1. Take the calf stomach as soon as the animal is killed. Do not wash it, but hang it in a dry, cool place for four or five days.
2. Turn the stomach inside out and slip off all the curd gently by hand.
3. Fill the stomach with a mixture of saltpetre and the required quantity of salt. Lay it in a small stone pot and pour over it a small teaspoonful of vinegar. Sprinkle a handful of salt over the top, cover it closely, and keep it for use. Do not wash it, as washing weakens the gastric juice and injures the rennet.
4. After six or eight weeks of salting, cut off a piece four or five inches long. Place it in a large mustard bottle or similar vessel holding about a pint and a half. Add five gills of cold water and two gills of rose brandy. Stop the bottle very close and shake it when you are going to use it.
5. Use one tablespoonful of this preparation per quart of milk. Prepare only in very cool weather. If well done, it will keep more than a year.