Bring milk to cheese temperature, about 35°C (95°F).

Add starter, mix in thoroughly.

Add rennet, mix in thoroughly.

Wait for clean break, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Cut curd to walnut size, 2.5 cm.

Cut vertically; cut crosswise; cut horizontally or diagonally.

Stir curds gently over 5 to 10 minutes.

Ferment curds under whey at ambient temperature until acidity develops.

Goal pH 5.3—stretch test spins.

Perform teabag test every 30 minutes.

Mozzarella usually takes 6 to 8 hours total to develop its stretch.

If the temperature of the curds drops below 30°C (86°F), gently warm curds back up.

Prepare for mozzarella stretching as curd shows first signs of stretching.

Bring 5 L water to a boil (half as much water as milk).

Prepare a 5 L cold-water bath.

Prepare a light salt brine with 2 L cold water and 1 percent salt (brine should taste good!).

Strain the curds from the whey.

Pour almost-boiling water over curds until curds melt evenly.

Add hot water slowly, stirring curds gently between additions.

Add more hot water as needed, but do not overcook.

Gently bring curds together into a single mass under the water.

Shape curds into mozzarella.

Stretch a handful of curd from the mass into a 15 cm rope.

Fold rope into an accordion (or roll into a stout pinwheel).

Stretch top part of the cheese over the accordion to make a ball.

Tear mozzarella off the mass between thumb and forefinger.

Plunge mozzarella into cold-water bath.

Leave in water until cool.

Transfer mozzarella to light salt brine and refrigerate to preserve.