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How To Make Quark Cheese

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Quark is a wonderfully creamy, spreadable soft cheese that’s deliciously versatile in both sweet and savory dishes.ย  Now you can make it yourself for a fraction of the cost and it tastes better than store-bought!ย  Learn how to make homemade quark cheese the right way for the BEST flavor and texture!

how to make quark homemade recipe

Being from southern Germany, Quark is something I grew up eating on a regular basis.ย  Since moving to the U.S. I’ve had to adjust to the fact that I can no longer readily or cheaply find it in the grocery stores.ย  For anyone living outside of Western Europe, quark is not only challenging to find (in some places downright impossible), it’s also very expensive.ย  This tutorial will show you how to make quark right at home that not only tastes better than the store-bought stuff, but is also much cheaper!

What is Quark?

Quark is a kind of soft, creamy, spreadable cheese that has been around for millennia and is known by different names in different countries.ย  The most popular version of this cheese is Germany’s Quark.ย ย It’s very versatile and is used in both sweet and savory recipes.ย  Some have dubbed it as “Germany’s Greek yogurt” but it’s really not an accurate comparison because not only is it thicker (a spreadable cheese) and has a different flavor (less tart and tangy, mild but more complex), the process of making it is also different.ย  It has also been described as something of a mix between yogurt and cottage cheese.

Is Quark Healthy?

Quark is a great source of protein, calcium, vitamins A and B, and probiotics.ย  Quark is traditionally made with whole milk and so cup for cup has a higher protein content than plain, low-fat Greek yogurt or skyr.ย  Being made with whole milk it has a higher fat (and therefore calorie) content than low-fat yogurt so keep that in mind if you’re on a calorie-restricted diet.

How Do You Use Quark?

Quark is very versatile and, like cream cheese, cottage cheese and yogurt, is used in a lot of both sweet and savory recipes.ย  Here are a few ideas to get you started:

  • Spread it on toast or bagels with your favorite savory or sweet toppings
  • Use it as a base for parfaits
  • Mixed with fruit preserves or fresh fruit for a quick and healthy dessert
  • In smoothies for a great velvety texture
  • Use it in anything that calls for cream cheese
  • On baked potatoes
  • Add herbs and garlic to make a delicious spreadable cheese or serve with boiled potatoes
  • Add lemon zest or cinnamon and honey for a delicious fruit spread or dip
  • Filling Danish pastries
  • In your muffin, cupcake or cake batter
  • In bread doughs
  • In creamy salad dressings
  • In creamy sauces in place of sour cream, heavy cream or yogurt

German cheesecake is also made with quark.ย  Many of our readers have lamented the fact that they can’t make proper German cheesecake because it’s so difficult to find quark and when you do it comes with a hefty price tag.ย  Friends, problem solved!

What are you favorite ways to enjoy quark?ย  Share them in the comments below!

how to make quark homemade recipe

How Long Does Quark Keep?

Made as described in this recipe your quark will keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator.

Can You Freeze Quark?

You can but it isn’t idea as the texture and consistency will change.ย  As it thaws the liquid will separate so give it several good stirs.

Should I Use Whole, 2%, Skim or Non-Fat Milk?

For the best texture and flavor we recommend using whole milk.ย  But you can use 2% or skim milk if you prefer.ย  We do not recommend using non-fat milk.

Hands down, raw milk will give you the best texture and flavor (that’s what I use).ย  However, you can make great quark with pasteurized milk also.ย  If you can find non-homogenized, even better.ย  If not, proceed with what you have.

Do I Have To Use Rennet?

Traditionally quark was made without rennet.ย  But that’s because traditionally quark was made with raw milk.ย  Pasteurized milk will not “set” or thicken as well as raw milk and so a tiny bit of rennet is used.

If you’re vegetarian you can use vegetarian rennet, however some people report that it has a bitter flavor.

Do Have to Use a Culture or Can I Use Buttermilk?ย ย 

Here’s the deal:ย  The vast majority of recipes out there for quark call for heating milk, mixing in buttermilk, letting it sit for several hours until it thickens and then straining it.

The problem with using buttermilk to make quark:

Let’s start with a little background.ย  Traditionally buttermilk was what was left behind after creamed was made into butter.ย  The leftover liquid would be left to sit at room temperature for several days and undergo fermentation wherein milk sugars would be converted into lactic acid and bacteria/cultures would grow.ย  The end result would be a mildly sour and slightly thickened buttermilk with healthy live cultures that could be consumed directly or used in a variety of cheesemaking processes.

The challenge today is that virtually all dairy products are pasteurized, including the buttermilk you get at the store.ย  What this means is that all the benefits of the fermentation process are gone and that all the live cultures/bacteria have been killed off.ย  And those live cultures in the buttermilk are the very reason many recipes call for it when making quark.

So to try and circumvent, manufacturers simply reintroduce bacteria to pasteurized low-fat milk and then market it as “cultured buttermilk.”ย  The result in a completely inferior-tasting product (no wonder many people say they dislike buttermilk – and would likely change their minds if they could taste the “real thing”).ย  This likewise results in an inferior-tasting quark.ย  And how do manufacturers make up for the loss of the naturally-thickened texture of REAL buttermilk?ย  They add salt and thickeners: Starch and/or carrageenan.

So for the best-tasting and best-texture quark, we highly recommend skipping the fake, inferior-tasting buttermilk and using a real culture to inoculate your quark.ย  This particular culture is called mesophilic culture and is the culture that is found naturally in REAL, traditionally fermented buttermilk (more on that below).

In Short….

Using buttermilk is an “easy quark” method and while it will get you a thickened milk product that you can use as quark in a pinch, but it will lack the same thickness and creaminess and will not have nearly as good or complex a flavor.ย  We highly recommend gathering up the ingredients you’ll need to make quark that has the best flavor and the best texture.

how to make quark homemade recipe

What Do I Need To Make Quark?

You’ll need:

  • A large stainless steel pot
  • A stainless steel skimmer
  • Whole Milk
  • Mesophilic culture
  • Calcium chloride
  • Liquid rennet
  • Thermometer
  • Cheesecloth

If you’re into cheesemaking you’ll already have these items on hand.ย  The pot and skimmer you can of course use forever and a good quality cheesecloth can be reused many times over.ย  There’s enough calcium chloride and rennet in a bottle to make more quark than you’ll know what to do with.ย  And the mesophilic culture will be measured out in 1/4 teaspoons per batch of quark and will make several batches.ย  In other words, these items are good investments if you plan on making quark or other cheeses frequently.

Let’s look at a few of these items in detail.

Stainless Steel Skimmer

You’ll use this to draw the culture and rennet into the milk.ย  You can find skimmers in most kitchen stores or here on Amazon.

what is a skimmer

Mesophilic Culture

A standard cheese-making ingredient, this is the live bacteria that provides the flavor for you quark.ย  You can find mesophilic culture in cheesemaking and winemaking speciality shops or here on Amazon.

what is mesophilic culture

Calcium Chloride

A standard cheese-making ingredient when using store-bought pasteurized milk, it helps the milk coagulate and set more firmly.ย  If using raw milk you can omit this.ย  You can find calcium chloride in cheesemaking shops or here on Amazon.

calcium chloride for making quark

Rennet

A standard cheese-making ingredient, in conjunction with the calcium chloride this also helps coagulate and thicken your milk.ย  You can find rennet in cheesemaking and winemaking specialty shops or here on Amazon.

what is rennet

Thermometer

You will need a thermometer to check the temperature of your milk.ย  You can use a dairy thermometer or a regular digital thermometer.ย  I use an instant read thermometer which I already have on hand and use regularly for bread-baking and other things.

Cheesecloth

This is what you will use to drain your thickened milk.ย  I use and recommend this cheesecloth because itโ€™s 100% unbleached cotton, is high grade, is very durable for multiple uses, and you get a ton of it.ย  Overall itโ€™s the best value I have found for the quality.

cheesecloth

How to Use the Leftover Whey

Whey is the natural by-product whenever you’re making a cheese or yogurt product and the longer you strain the product the more whey you will get.ย  Whey is milk minus the fats and solids, so basically water with lactose and protein. ย And itโ€™s the protein thatโ€™s the valuable ingredient here. ย Milk contains two types of protein, casein and whey. ย Most of the casein ends up in the quark and the whey is in the liquid by-product.

How can you this leftover liquid whey?ย  Here are a few ideas:

  • Use it to make ricotta cheese
  • Use it in place of water when youโ€™re making broth or soup for an extra rich broth.
  • Use it in place of water for baking bread or pastries.
  • Add it to your smoothies of an extra protein boost.
  • If you have a vegetable garden, use it lower the pH level of your soil if youโ€™re growing things that prefer soil with a higher acidity level, like tomatoes.

Whey can be frozen and will keep in the freezer for up to 6 months.

whey left over from making quark

How To Make Quark

Let’s make some homemade quark!

Put the milk in the sterilized pot over medium heat.ย  Slowly heat it to 77 F.ย  Don’t try and speed up this process or the milk will not set properly.ย  Stir the milk gently with a sterilized stainless steel spoon to prevent scorching.ย  Remove the pot from the heat.

Sprinkle the mesophilic culture evenly over the surface of the milk and let it sit for 5 minutes to rehydrate.

how to make quark

Use a sterilized stainless steel skimmer, moving it in a gentle up-and-down motion to draw down and mix in the culture, avoiding breaking the surface of the milk.

Dilute the rennet in 1/4 cup of cool, non-chlorinated water.ย  Give the milk a gentle stir and while it’s swirling, add the diluted rennet to the milk.ย  Immediately stir the milk with the skimmer using the same up-and-down motion.ย  Do this for about 2 minutes, making sure the rennet is thoroughly mixed throughout the milk, otherwise the milk will not set properly.

homemade quark

Cover the pot and let it sit in a draft-free location at room temperature for 24 hours (wrap the pot in a large towel if needed).

After 24 hours check the milk.ย  Tip the pot carefully to drain off the whey on the surface.

how to make quark

If the milk is properly set it will have pulled away from the sides.

Use a long, sterilized knife to check for a clean break in the thickened milk/curd (bottom right picture).ย  If you can cut through it and get a clean break the milk is properly set.ย  If it isn’t, let it continue to sit and check again after 30 minutes.ย  Repeat if needed.

quark recipe homemade best

Use a long, sterilized knife to cut 2-inch-wide strips from top to bottom through the curd.ย  Then follow the same process to cut 2-inch strips horizontally from side to side.

how to make quark

Now that you’ve used a long knife to cut the curd vertically, next use the skimmer to cut the curd horizontally into cubes as you scoop them out of the pot.

Place the curds in a colander lined with cheesecloth.ย  Depending on the size of your colander you may need to work in batches.ย  Let the curds drain for about 4 hours (it may be less depending on the mesh size of your cheesecloth).

homemade quark recipe

Let the curd drain until you get a thick, spreadable consistency.ย  Transfer the finished quark to a bowl, give it several good stirs to break up any lumps, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.ย  It will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

how to make quark recipe

For an even creamier consistency you can make what the Germans call Sahnequark, or “cream quark”, by stirring in a little heavy cream.

sahnequark recipe

Enjoy!

how to make quark homemade recipe

Be sure to also check out our tutorials on:

how to make quark homemade recipe

How To Make Quark Cheese

Quark is a wonderfully creamy, spreadable soft cheese that deliciously versatile in both sweet and savory dishes.
4.98 from 68 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Resting Time 1 day
Total Time 1 day 35 minutes
Course condiment, Ingredient
Cuisine All, German
Servings 0

Ingredients
  

Instructions
 

  • Put the milk in a large sterilized pot over medium heat.ย  Slowly heat it to 77 F.ย  Don't try and speed up this process or the milk will not set properly. Stir the milk gently with a sterilized stainless steel spoon to prevent scorching.ย  Remove the pot from the heat.
  • Sprinkle the mesophilic culture evenly over the surface of the milk and let it sit for 5 minutes to rehydrate.ย 
    Use a sterilized stainless steel skimmer, moving it in a gentle up-and-down motion to draw down and mix in the culture, avoiding breaking the surface of the milk.ย ย 
    Stir the calcium chloride in 1/2 cup of cool, non-chlorinated water.ย  Give the milk a gentle stir and while it's swirling, add the diluted calcium chloride to the milk.ย  Immediately stir the milk with the skimmer using the same up-and-down motion.ย  Stir the rennet in 1/2 cup of cool, non-chlorinated water and repeat the process of using the skimmer with the up-and-down motion. Make sure the calcium chloride and rennet are thoroughly mixed throughout the milk, otherwise the milk will not set properly.
    Cover the pot and let it sit in a draft-free location at room temperature for 24 hours (wrap the pot in a large towel if needed).
    After 24 hours check the milk.ย  Tip the pot carefully to drain off the whey on the surface.ย ย 
  • If the milk is properly set it will have pulled away from the sides.ย ย 
    Use a long, sterilized knife to check for a clean break in the thickened milk (see pics in blog post).ย  If you can cut through it and get a clean break the milk is properly set.ย  If it isn't, let it continue to sit and check again after 30 minutes.ย  Repeat if needed.ย 
    Use a long, sterilized knife to cut 2-inch-wide strips from top to bottom through the curd.ย  Then follow the same process to cut 2-inch strips horizontally from side to side.ย 
    Now that you've used a long knife to cut the curd vertically, next use the skimmer to cut the curd horizontally into cubes.ย ย 
  • Place the curds in a colander lined with cheesecloth.ย  Depending on the size of your colander you may need to work in batches.ย  Let the curds drain for about 4 hours (it may be less depending on the mesh size of your cheesecloth).ย ย 
    Let the curds drain until you get a thick, spreadable consistency.ย  Transfer the finished quark to a bowl, give it several good stirs to break up any lumps, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.ย  It will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.ย ย 
    Yield: This will vary according to what type of milk you use and how long you let it drain. Yield will be approximately 4 pounds.
  • For an even creamier consistency you can make what the Germans call Sahnequark, or "cream quark", by stirring in a little heavy cream.
Keyword Quark
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

 

kimberly killebrew the daring gourmet

Hi, Iโ€™m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!

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Recipe Rating




4.98 from 68 votes (40 ratings without comment)

156 Comments

    1. Hi Mike, white vinegar is sometimes used as a substitute for rennet in cheesemaking but I haven’t tried it to make Quark so I can’t comment on how well it will work from a texture or flavor standpoint. If you decide to try it please let us know how it goes.

  1. I’ve been hearing that most all rennett is produced by pharma companies and have some ill effects on our health. is there a certain non-pharma produced variety we can use? What do you know about rennett in general?

    1. Hi Danielle, my understanding is that only vegetable, microbial rennet, and FPC rennets are produced in pharma labs, not natural animal rennet. Animal rennet is extracted from animals and is usually produced by specialized cheese-making companies. I personally only use animal rennet. Whether the pharma-produced rennets are harmful, I don’t know. I’m doubtful there has even been enough research done on it – trying to control for that one variable in longitudinal human studies would be very difficult, and very costly.

  2. Hi there,

    I would like to half the recipe, how would I half the rennet? Is it a 1/4 tsp in 1/2 cup of water or 1/4 teaspoon in a 1/4 cup of water? I appreciate your help.

  3. Thank you for all this wonderful information. I regularly make yogurt and use some of the previous batch to innoculate the next batch. I see the comment here about using the whey to innoculate the next batch…how about using some quark to iinnoculate the next batch? Is that possible?

    Thank you again.

    1. Hi Valerie, the difference is that yogurt only requires the bacteria to set whereas quark needs the bacteria culture in addition to calcium chloride and rennet. Using whey or quark from the previous batch will not have a sufficient amount of the latter two ingredients in order to set properly.

  4. Hi!
    I’d love to make quark with raw milk. You mentioned that one doesn’t need calcium chloride if using raw milk, but what about the rennet?
    In addition, do you think it’s safe to use an electric quark maker (I’d have to scale down your recipe, though….)? I was surprise how warm it gets, and am worried it might be too warm for the culture.
    On another note, would you be willing to also provide a recipe for raw milk quark? (like the recipe “card” with ingredients/ instructions as above) (Please!) :)

    1. Hi Sunshine, that’s correct, you don’t need the calcium chloride but I still like to use the rennet to ensure a good set. You can always experiment with a smaller amount of raw milk and see if you can get a proper set without it. I haven’t used a quark maker and am not familiar with how hot it gets, so I can’t say whether or not it will kill the cultures. To make raw milk quark you’ll just follow this recipe as written minus using the calcium chloride.

  5. Hi, thanks a lot for the recipe. We first made it with whole milk and it turned out very good. But interestingly, the commercial quark available here is usually less 1% fat. Everywhere it says that quark naturally doesn’t have saturated fat. But I guess it depends on the milk. So we tried to make it from skimmed milk and it didn’t work very well. The resulted quark was bitter and had a sort of winery smell. Not sure what was wrong.

  6. I make yoghurt in my Instant pot: one gallon whole milk and 1/4 cup fresh yoghurt with live cultures from the grocery store. The Instant pot has one setting for heating the milk to 180F. When that is done, put the inner pot in a sink of cold water to cool it to about 100F. Add the yoghurt, mix well, towel dry the outside of the inner pot, then put it back into the Instant pot. Choose the “low” yoghurt setting. I culture for 12 hours, then I ladle the yoghurt into a cloth lined colander set over a big pot to catch the whey. (I use a piece of a 200 thread count 100% cotton sheet for the cloth.) I drain it 8-12 hours. It’s mildly tart, delicious with a bit of maple syrup or whatever. People pay lots of money for whey, which doesn’t even contain live cultures. It’s good for smoothies, soup or just drinking. From a gallon of milk you will get about 1 1/3 quarts of quark.
    (A fiddley detail you can ignore: when the Instant pot heats the milk to 180F it forms a layer of little granules on the bottom. I try to not include these when pouring/spooning the yoghurt into the colander. No big deal tho.)

  7. I have another question. I cannot find that culture here in Canada โ€“ I do not like Amazon and shipping from US is too expensive – do you know which would be the equivalent in another brand?

    1. Hi Gina, I totally understand. The brand makes no difference, just choose calcium chloride that is food grade. I would suggest doing a search for winemaking or cheesemaking supplies stores in Canada, they will have it. They may even be able/willing to tell you if the product you have is suitable and how to use it. But you can find food grade calcium chloride in both liquid form and in pelleted form. I just found this pelleted calcium chloride online. It’s Amazon but I’m just showing you this as a point of reference. If you scroll down a ways under “product description” they provide instructions on how to use it (that’s a really big batch of it!). Whichever product you end up getting, if it’s food grade it should come with directions.

      1. I know that the calcium chloride I have is the right kind and after I posted my previous question I found a YouTube video that explains how to convert the pellets into liquid calcium chloride suitable for making cheese so I’m all set – thank you!

  8. Great recipe! I look forward to making it when the culture arrives. I already have calcium chloride but it’s in pellet form. How much should I use?

  9. Hi Kimberly
    Two gallons of whole milk? I do not think I have an 8 quart pan. I was looking for a recipe for cheese Danish filling and I think that might be a bit more Quark Cheese than I would need. Can the recipe be reduced in any manner.

    1. Hi John, in cheesemaking so much of the liquid is lost in the form of whey so the end product isn’t anywhere near the amount of the original quantity of milk. But yes, if you don’t have a pot big enough you can cut the recipe in half.

  10. HALLO KIMBERLY, I TRIED THIS 2 TIMES , EVERY TIME IT COMES OUT VERY BITTER. ALL CLEANED AND STERILIZED. BOUGHT EXACT INGREDIENTS FROM AMAZONE . ANY SUGGESTION’S ?

    1. Hi Nicole, are you using vegetable rennet? Many people report that vegetable rennet tastes bitter. Without tasting your batch I can’t say whether yours tastes the way it should. Have you had German Quark before as a comparison? Quark is supposed to be slightly tangy but no, it shouldn’t taste “bitter” or unpleasant in any way.

      1. Hi again, yes i know the Taste of Quark, I am German living in the US now, so I grew up with Quark. I just noticed that I did not read the Instructions all the Way at the End. So I did not dilute the Calcium Chloride! :( !!! Could this be the reason for the very bitter Taste. Or is it possibly my Whole Milk and I should omit the Calcium Chloride? Sorry do many Questionsโ€ฆ. I really miss Quark and want this to work so badly. Thank you for your patience!

        1. Hi Nicole, not diluting the calcium chloride would interfere with the Quark setting properly but I’m not sure that it would impact the flavor. Whether using whole milk or skim you’ll still need the calcium chloride. If you’re using raw milk you don’t need it. And on that note, Quark tastes MUCH better when made with raw milk (as does any cheese). I don’t push that point though because many people don’t have access to raw milk or are afraid of it.

    2. I have made Quark twice with Raw Whole Milk. I used the M Culture and the Rennet. After draining the the Quark, it comes out very dry. The last time I made the Quark, I used less Rennet, only let the Quark drain for 1 hour. The result of the Quark after it set in the refrigerator for one day is dry and rubbery. I am thinking of leaving out the Rennet and only using the Culture, since I am using Raw Milk. Also, is there a specific temperature the milk needs to be fermented at? It is cold here in the Northeast right now. I am trying to keep it in the oven at 76 degree Fahrenheit, but I have to get some sleep and cannot stay up all night watching the temperature!

      1. Hi Renate, I prefer to use raw milk as well and when I do I omit the calcium chloride but I still use the rennet and the texture turns out great. Regarding the temperature you don’t want it “too” warm. Aim for anywhere between 66 to 74 degrees F.

  11. Hello Kimberly,

    I made quark using this recipe several times now (though only half) and it turns out great.

    My question is: Can you use the whey as a starter for the next batch and would you still need to use the rennet and chloride?

    1. Thank you, Daniel, I’m so glad it’s been a success! That’s a great question. I haven’t tried that so I don’t know for sure, but I’m skeptical that it would be “strong” enough to inoculate a new batch of milk.

    2. Hi Daniel, I have read that you can use the whey as a starter for the next batch. The only caution would be not to keep the whey longer than a week in the fridge. After a week, I would discard if you haven’t used it. I use 1/2 gallon Raw Milk and for that amount, you’d only need about two tablespoons.

  12. I live in Labrador so not much choices , I use Greek yoghurt and drain it a little bit ,it works for German cheesecake

    1. Many many years ago i lived in Switzerland and ate quark with muesli quite often. If memory serves me well, I believe the quark seamed thinner than what I see in your pictures, more like the consistency of yogurt. I don’t know if it was homemade or store bought quark because it was always served to me in the home of friends and I was too young to wonder. I want to try making it and am wondering if letting it firm up less than your directions will give me the desired consistency.

      1. Hi Keith, regular Quark is thick like in the pictures and so would not be very suited or serving with Muesli, which leads me to believe that what you’re remembering is “Sahnequark”, which is Quark that has heavy cream added to it for a smoother, thinner consistency. To make Sahnequark you would make this recipe and then at the very end stir in some heavy cream until you get the desired consistency. Regular Quark with its thick consistency is used like cream cheese in Germany for making things like cheesecake, herbed spreadable cheese, etc.