What Is The Difference Between Animal Rennet and Vegetable Rennet? By Viktoria Carella
Don't you just love cheese? It is impressively amazing that it melts across a delicious burger or adds flavor to that least favorable food group, the vegetable. Maybe you love the way it can change boring rice, broccoli or Tuna into a tasty dinner casserole in just one a single dish for dinner. But have you ever put your mind to how we get this fantastic food? There is a unique aging and fermentation process used to a variety of milk and during this creation an enzyme called rennet is used.
Rennet is put into already acidified milk to force the proteins to form curds. During this process liquid runs off and is given the name whey. The amount of rennet used varies with the type of cheese the maker is trying to create. Traditionally, animal rennet comes from baby goats, cows, or sheep, before they've eaten anything but their mother's milk. It is an enzyme that comes from their stomachs. Some people have a moral issue with animal rennet because it is taken from young animals that are often slaughtered for mutton or veal. It did seem to come about in a time when milk was often stored in bags made from these animals' stomachs. Most European varieties are still made from animal rennet.
