Quesito Colombiano (Colombian Fresh Cheese)

May 16, 2022 · Modified: Sep 22, 2022 by Erica Dinho · 66 Comments

Homemade fresh cheese recipe, this quesito colombiano is a popular dish in Colombia. It's perfect to served on top of arepas.

Quesito Colombiano (Colombian Fresh Cheese)

Erica Dinho

5 from 56 votes

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 40

Total Time 55

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Colombian

Servings quesito

Calories 2294 kcal

Ingredients

1 gallon of whole milk
½ cup white vinegar
Salt to your taste

Instructions

Place the milk in a large pot. Heat over medium-high heat to 120 degrees F. if you don't have a candy thermometer, just touch the milk with your finger and the milk is ready when you can't stand the heat of it. Be careful, don't burn your fingers!
Remove from heat and add the vinegar. Stir well with a wooden spoon and Let it sit for about 40 minutes at room temperature.
Line a strainer with a layer of cheesecloth and place it over a large bowl.Pour the mixture into the cheesecloth Let drain for about 30 minutes. Squeeze out all the liquid, wrapping the curd with the cheese cloth. Add the salt and mix well.
Hang the cheese for about 30 minutes.
Place the quesito in molds or wrap with banana leaves and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 2294kcalCarbohydrates: 177gProtein: 124gFat: 121gSaturated Fat: 70gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 26gCholesterol: 454mgSodium: 1441mgPotassium: 5681mgSugar: 182gVitamin A: 6132IUCalcium: 4664mgIron: 1mg

Keyword colombian cheese

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Quesito Colombiano (Colombian Fresh Cheese)

Quesito Colombiano can be compared to Mexican Queso Fresco, and is made by simply processing the curds of cow's milk. The result is a creamy, soft and white cheese. We Colombians love our Quesito and it is widely used in Colombian cuisine. You will often find it in Colombian recipes, as a side dish for Colombian desserts, and as an arepa topping for a traditional every day breakfast.

Buen provecho!

Making Quesito at home is very easy. You can make it using cuajo or rennet tablets, or just white vinegar. Here is my simple recipe to make it using white vinegar.

Enjoy it!

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About Erica Dinho

My name is Erica and I was born and raised in Colombia and now live in the northeastern United States with my husband and family. This blog was inspired by my grandmother, Mamita, who was an amazing traditional Colombian cook.

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Comments

Kate @ Babaganosh.org

August 21, 2014 at 10:54 pm

I've made this cheese several times now, and it is so good and simple and so much cheaper than buying either queso fresco or farmer's cheese at the grocery store!

Can you make this with low fat milk? Also, is there any way to use all that whey that comes off from this? I love using everything and not wasting any potentially nutritious ingredients.

Reply
Jackie

July 19, 2014 at 10:21 pm

Hi Erica, just wondering what type of moles should I use if I can't find the leaves? thanks in advance!

Reply
DowntownFoodie

April 09, 2014 at 8:19 pm

This looks yummy and super easy! Do you have any other cheese recipes?

Reply
Ana

March 28, 2014 at 7:56 pm

Hola Erica, tengo una pregunta, que sinifica "place the quesito in molds?"

Reply
- Erica Dinho
  
  March 29, 2014 at 8:04 am
  
  Colocar el quesito en moldes.
  
  Reply
goldy

February 23, 2014 at 10:18 pm

Hola Erica, voy a hacer el queso pero quisiera saber si le tengo que hacer algo a la hoja de platano? o la puedo usar exactamente como la arranco de el arbol? thank you

Reply
- Erica Dinho
  
  February 25, 2014 at 7:48 am
  
  Wash them with hot water a couple of times.
  
  Reply
Monika

January 18, 2014 at 1:54 pm

Hola Erica. Acabo de intentar la receta. Lo tengo colgando. Una pregunta, toda la leche que queda ... Se puede volver a hacer mas queso o simplemente se pierde? Siempre es mucha 🙂 gracias!

Reply
- Erica Dinho
  
  January 18, 2014 at 3:24 pm
  
  Hola Monika,
  Yo no la vuelvo a usar.
  
  Reply
Martha Brewer

January 07, 2014 at 3:37 am

Erika,

I have a question. Do you know where can I order Quesito colombiano???

Thank you so much for your time.

Love all your recipes. Great job!!! I am so proud of you, and dedication!

Thanks again

Reply
- Erica Dinho
  
  January 07, 2014 at 8:28 am
  
  Hi Martha,
  I don't know!
  
  Reply
- Lynn H.
  
  August 07, 2019 at 7:44 pm
  
  Hi, Try a site called Amigo Foods. They have the El Viajero brand in a pack of 3- 10 oz. pieces, and they are individually wrapped.
  
  Reply
Alan Bowman

August 31, 2013 at 9:46 am

Amy and others, don't forget to use the whey, (the liquid that drips from the curds) to make ricotta. Ricotta cheese (the name means twice cooked) is traditionally made from the whey that is a by-product from making Mascarpone or Mozzarella but there is no reason you can't use the whey from making any other soft white cheese.

Reply
- Angela T
  
  July 19, 2021 at 11:13 am
  
  Hi Alan, it’s a long time since but could you please explain how to do this? Thanks
  
  Reply
Ana Frye

August 30, 2013 at 9:53 am

Wow! this sounds completely amazing! I currently live in new mexico and for one reason or another, i've not been able to find queso colombiano, its been really frustrating to be honest with you, but with this recipe, i might not have to worry about that anymore! I'm going to definitely try it out real soon! Thank you!!!

Reply
andrea

July 29, 2013 at 6:54 pm

Hola Erika,

Cuanto cuajo se necesita?, yo vivo en estados unidos y tengo las rennet tablets. Cuantas se necesitan para un galon de leche?

Gracias por tus recetas. A mis hijos les encanta comer comida colombiana!!!

Reply
- Erica Dinho
  
  July 29, 2013 at 7:39 pm
  
  Yo uso 1/2 tableta de cuajo para un galon de leche.
  
  Reply
  - Laura
    
    February 11, 2022 at 11:08 am
    
    Hola Erika, muchas gracias por todas tus recetas ❤️
    
    ¿Se puede hacer el queso con la leche que se compra en el supermercado?
    
    Gracias, y que Dios te bendiga
ANDREA

May 04, 2013 at 4:57 pm

awsome!! im gonna do it right now!!!

Reply
Adriana

March 10, 2013 at 11:54 pm

Nunca lo he echo con vinagre! what a great idea, I'll try it this week I think. I've made it with rennet before but never with vinegar.
Gracias

Reply
Mary Mackay

January 02, 2013 at 11:11 pm

Thanks for the recipe! What could I do with all the extra milk/vinegar, though? it seems pretty wasteful. 🙁

Reply
Ty

December 13, 2012 at 10:11 am

I made this cheese yesterday and it came out great. We ate it with arepas. I put one teaspoon of salt in the cheese which seemed like too much, it was fine to have on an arepa but I would suggest 1/4tsp to 1/2tsp for next time.

Reply
Anonymous

October 01, 2012 at 7:45 am

Hola. Que buena receta!

Tengo una pregunta, entre el paso 4 y 5, debo sacar el quesito del cheesecloth antes de envolverlo en las hojas?

Gracias

Reply
- Erica
  
  October 01, 2012 at 11:26 am
  
  Si.
  
  Reply
  - Cristina Ridout
    
    February 03, 2018 at 5:04 pm
    
    I used 4 liters of milk for 1/2 cup of vinegar. I followed all the steps but I only got a very little amount of cheese. There is a lot of uncurled milk left . I tried to use more vinegar overnight but it didnt curl. can somebody tell me what I did wrong?
Cindy

September 03, 2012 at 12:56 pm

Hi - I just made this cheese, it's currently hanging. I felt like there was a lot of extra milky whey left...it only made one big ball of quest. Is that correct? If so, any ideas for what to do with all of the left over whey?

Thanks

Reply
- Ana
  
  September 09, 2012 at 6:13 am
  
  Hi! you could try " almojabanas" uhmmmm..that's really nice
  
  Reply
  - María G
    
    April 16, 2020 at 12:45 pm
    
    Could we use 2% milk for this recipe? I forgot to buy whole milk Thanks!! I love your recipes
  - vicente perez
    
    August 10, 2022 at 4:51 pm
    
    para hacer queso se necesita una leche con bastante grasa. si se la rebaja, el rendimiento de queso va a ser muy poco