Learn how to make fresh mozzarella cheese from goat milk with this easy, step-by-step guide, which includes a simple mozzarella recipe, clear instructions, and helpful tips for success. You'll love how easy it is to turn fresh goat milk into delicious homemade cheese.
Updated August 2025
Make mozzarella cheese with goats milk
If you’ve got goats - or access to good-quality goat milk - you’re already halfway there. Homemade mozzarella is softer, creamier, and more flavorful than anything you’ll find at the store, and knowing exactly what’s in it (and what isn’t) makes it even better.
Use your fresh mozzarella in a caprese salad, on homemade pizza, melted in a grilled cheese, or just sliced warm with a sprinkle of salt. It’s a versatile cheese that comes together quickly once you get the hang of it - and it’s deeply satisfying to make from scratch.
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Mozzarella isn’t hard, but it is tricky
I consider this a complicated cheese, even though it isn't that hard. There are so many steps to remember.
I didn't nail mozzarella the first time I tried it. Or the second. I overheated the curds, missed an important step in the directions, and questioned why I ever thought I could do this in the first place. But I kept trying, and eventually, I got it right.
If you've struggled before, don't give up - you're not alone, and you can do this.
You don't have to use goat milk, but if you're buying milk from the grocery store I recommend buying whole milk. Skim and low fat milk don't work as well for cheese making.
The ingredients you'll need to make mozzarella cheese
Here's what you need to make mozzarella cheese from scratch:
- a gallon of milk - store bought or from your own goat or cow
- citric acid
- rennet, either liquid or tablet
- cheese salt
- Or you can buy Hoegger Supply's mozzarella kit. All you add is the milk! That's what I did.
The equipment you'll need
Gather the equipment you'll need before beginning. Like I said, mozzarella is complicated and you don't want to be distracted by trying to find a slotted spoon at the last minute.
- stainless steel pot that holds at least 5 quarts, such as this 5-qt. stock pot
- slotted spoon
- candy thermometer with a pot-clip, like this digital thermometer
- stainless steel fine mesh strainer
- a pan the strainer will fit inside
- a long knife or spatula that reaches to the bottom of the pot
- bowl of cold water
- food-grade heat-resistant rubber gloves to insulate your hands from the hot curds
How to make mozzarella cheese
To start, dissolve 1 1/2 teaspoons of citric acid in one cup of cool water in a bowl.
In a second bowl, measure another 1/4 cup of cool water and add 1/4 teaspoon of liquid rennet. If you don't have liquid rennet, use a quarter of a tablet of rennet.
At this point, I put a pot of water on the stove and begin heating it up so it will be warm when I need it. You'll want it to be about 190°F - but don't let it boil.
Now pour the gallon of cold milk into a large stockpot that will hold at least 5 quarts.
Add the citric acid that's mixed with water.
Set the pot of milk on medium high heat and warm it slowly to 90°F, stirring gently.
When the milk reaches 90°F move the pot off the heat and stir in the water and rennet. Stir gently for 30 seconds, then cover the pot and let it sit undisturbed for five minutes.
If it isn't set enough after five minutes - if the curds look too watery - put the cover back on the pot and leave it for another five minutes.
The curds should look like a layer of tofu or custard.
Cut this layer of curds into similar-sized cubes with a long knife or spatula. Cut in one direction, then across in the other direction, making sure the knife reaches all the way to the bottom of the pot.
After you've cut the curds into cubes, put the pot back on the stove over medium heat and heat it up to 105°F. This doesn't take long at all, so don't let your attention wander. (I've overheated a batch or two right here.)
Stir gently as it warms but don't break up the curds too much.
Remove the pot from the heat again, and continue to stir for another five minutes. The cubes of curds will begin to stick together and form a big clump, making a mass of curds in the liquid whey. It looks kind of like a lump of marshmallow cream.
Ladle the curds carefully out of the whey into the wire strainer with a slotted spoon. Turn the curds over a few times in the strainer to let the whey drain out of the little nooks and crannies.
Save some of the whey; you'll need it later for storing your cheese.
Plus you can feed whey to your dog, cat or chickens - or use it in lacto-fermented dishes - or to replace the liquid in bread recipes.
This is when you'll need that pot of water that I suggested you put on the stove at the beginning. It's handy to have it ready when it's needed, and not have to wait for the water to get hot while worrying about the curds getting too cold.
Set the strainer of curds in the pot of water so that the curds are submerged, and let them warm up in the water for five minutes. Stick the thermometer inside the curds; the interior should be 135°F.
Stretching the curds
Don your insulated food-grade rubber gloves and add the cheese salt, squishing it in well with your fingers.
The curds, which used to be one solid mass that was rather stiff, should now be melty and squishy after warming up in the water.
Using a big spoon, pull off a chunk of curds from the big mass in the strainer. I made four balls of cheese in all, and left three in the warm water while I worked with the first one.
Use your hands to stretch the curds. It's kind of like kneading bread dough, although it's done in your hands rather than on a flat surface.
I stretched the ball of dough apart, folded it under, rotated it slightly, stretched it again.
Don't overwork the cheese. Fold it into a ball and smooth the surface, then plop it into a bowl of cold water, and start on the next hunk of curds.
Keep an eye on the water temperature while you're stretching the curds, and don't let it start to boil. You might need to turn off the heat under the pot or water while you're stretching the balls of cheese to keep it from getting too hot.
Once the balls of cheese have all been stretched, smoothed into balls, and set aside to cool, you've officially made fresh mozzarella from scratch, and it's ready to enjoy or store for later.
Eating and storing your fresh mozzarella cheese
Mozzarella is ready to eat immediately, no draining, aging or curing required.
If you want to store your mozzarella in the refrigerator, mix a teaspoon of salt with a cup of the cool whey (the liquid that was left when you removed the curds from the pot), then pour this salt and whey mixture over the cheese in a small container so it's covered with liquid.
Mozzarella should keep in the refrigerator for about a week when stored in this manner.
Homemade and worth it
Making mozzarella with goat milk might take a little practice, but once you’ve done it, you’ll never look at store-bought cheese the same way again.
There’s something deeply satisfying about creating real food from scratch, and now you’ve added another skill to your self-reliant skills list.
More goat cheeses
If you're looking for a simple, easy soft cheese to start your cheese making journey, try farmer's cheese. With just two ingredients - milk and either vinegar or lemon juice - you'll find this a very beginner-friendly project.
Ricotta cheese is almost as simple and can be made with the leftover whey from making farmer's cheese, or with fresh whole milk for a greater yield. Learn how to make ricotta cheese here.
Kathi Rodgers is the gardener and writer behind Oak Hill Homestead (est. 2009) and the host of HOMEGROWN: Your Backyard Garden Podcast. With over 30 years of gardening experience in a variety of climates and soils, she helps new and aspiring gardeners grow healthy, organic food right in their own backyards.
A passionate advocate for simple, self-reliant living, Kathi is the author of multiple ebooks, a published magazine contributor, and shares practical advice with readers who want real-life solutions they can trust.
Kathi lives in Oklahoma, where she grows more cherry tomatoes than she can count and keeps a watchful eye on tornado season. A proud grandma and great-grandma, she believes that wisdom - like a bountiful garden harvest - should be shared.
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