Animal Rennet used in Which Types of Cheeses?

Question

Hello, I'm looking to find which cheeses are normally safe from animal rennet... someone told me that soft cheeses are usually rennet-free, but they included ricotta, mozzarella and the like in there.

I'm not looking for specific brands, just the types of cheeses that are most commonly used in my kitchen/places I eat. Guess those would be Parmesan, cheddar, mozzarella, (I eat a lot of italian food) ricotta, cream cheese, colby, swiss, etc.

Thanks guys! :)

Answer 1

I am a former chef and you are correct, there are some commonly used household/restaurant cheeses made with out rennet, rennet is a coagulation agent and when the milk is warmed to blood temperature, and rennet is added the curds separate from the whey a watery substance and then it is drained and the curds are processed into cheese, there is also bacterias and salt added to make the different types of cheese, like cheddar, swiss, brie, colby and monteray jack.

Non rennet cheeses like parmesan, ricotta, cottage cheese and cream cheese require a souring agent or high heat to do it, lemon juice or vinegar is most common, and there is a 3rd class ones done with a veg based rennet like solution, it is from the wild plant known as stinging nettles and has been used in England since the Middle Ages, long before they start with animal rennet's for cheeses.

Answer 2

You have to look at the ingredients.  "Enzymes" = animal rennet.  When it's vegetarian rennet, the label will say so.

Answer 3

It totally depends on the brand so just mentioning types of cheese won't really be helping you.