Learn how to make creamy homemade goat cheese with fresh goat milk, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt. This easy fresh chèvre recipe requires no rennet and can be flavored with your favorite herbs.
Recipe by Analida on January 7, 2020
Prep time: PT5M
Cook time: PT35M
Total time: PT40M
Rating
4.69 stars (41 reviews)
Keywords
goat cheese, homemade goat cheese, how to make goat cheese
Ingredients
1 qt goat milk
1/3 cup lemon juice (fresh)
2 Tbsp vinegar (white)
1/2 tsp salt (Kosher)
Dried herbs of your choice (optional)
Categories
Appetizer/Snack
Cuisine
French
Steps
Line a colander with two or three layers of fine cheesecloth.
In a heavy bottom sauce pan slowly heat the goat milk until it reaches 185°F. Stir frequently to ensure even heat throughout.
Remove from heat immediately; add the lemon juice, and stir a couple of times until combined.
Add the vinegar, stir briefly until combined and allow it to sit for about 30 minutes.
The curds will not be large, on the contrary they will be like tiny specks.
Slowly ladle into the cheesecloth. Add the salt and stir lightly.
Gather the ends of the cheesecloth, and tie them with kitchen string. Tie to your faucet.
Allow it to hang and drip for about 1 hour.
Place on a cutting board and shape. Sprinkle with died herbs of your choice.
Refrigerate and serve when set.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 85 kcal
Carbohydrates: 6 g
Protein: 4 g
Fat: 5 g
Saturated Fat: 3 g
Cholesterol: 13 mg
Sodium: 205 mg
Sugar: 6 g
Unsaturated Fat: 1.2 g
Reviews
Diana on 2026-07-20 (5 stars): This recipe turned out perfect. I was milking my neighbor's goats while she was out of town and decided to make this cheese. It was so easy, thanks for sharing.
My neighbor now has a large surplus of goat's milk and is bringing me more. I plan on making a big batch and freezing it.
Ruth on 2025-10-17 (5 stars): Can I leave the goat cheese milk in the pan for more than 30 minutes?
Jolie on 2024-10-04 (4 stars): Just tasted the cheese. It made about half the amount and was very tangy. Still tastes good. Should I have doubled the cheesecloth ?
Alex @ Cheese origin on 2023-09-14 (5 stars): The step-by-step instructions were easy to follow, and the suggestion to slowly heat the milk to 185°F before adding lemon juice and vinegar was a game changer - my homemade chevre turned out perfect!
Thank you,
Alex
Nat Z. on 2023-09-10 (5 stars): Thanks for the super simple recipe and easy-to-follow instructions! I’ve been making my own goat cheese for awhile but was looking for a reliable recipe to reference to ensure consistency (my last few batches admittedly didn’t turn out as well as I’d hoped). The combination of the lemon juice and vinegar did the trick! And the ratios you used seem to have yielded MORE curds from the same amount of goat milk? I don’t know if this is even possible but either way, I’m a huge fan of this recipe. Thanks!
Catherine O'Neal on 2023-07-13 (5 stars): I have made this cheese three times already and I just LOVE how easy this is! It is a great Summer AND Winter project when you want something special. I make this for Christmas and give it a "Red and Green theme with re-hydrated green and red peppers, parsley and crushed red pepper for herb and spice. YUMMY!!
Stephanie on 2023-04-29 (5 stars): I absolutely love this recipe!! 3rd time using it and It is still my favorite one so far!! Is there any use for the strained milk? Instead of just discarding it?
Gabe Antonelli on 2022-11-02 (5 stars): i used ultra pasteurised meyenberg goat milk, added 3 parts marjoram, 2 parts oregano, and 1 part garlic powder and stirred it in when i finished adding it to the cloth, then i waited for most of the whey to drain and squeezed it really hard, and the cheese came out almost identical to the monchevre or roth brand, only difference is in the homemade is you can taste the lemon, but if you dont want to taste it you can use bottled lemon juice.
