I Tried The Viral Vegan Buffalo Mozzarella From TikTok

[@MerleONeal]

Hey friends! If you want more vegan madness, check out my vegan ice cream ranking:kzbin.info/www/bejne/l2GuYaKrfauKm9U&ab_channel=MerleO%27Neal

[@kiwifeijoa]

Precision fermentation of cow milk is becoming more popular in scientific circles, and it doesn't exploit cows as much, so that's an improvement. Not my thing as a vegan, but it may lead to better information into exactly how to ferment plants to taste even more like the old cow milk cheeses. So you might eventually get a closer mozzarella flavour Merle. I think Miyoko has the right idea about fermentation giving good flavour to vegan cheeses.

[@MerleONeal]

Very interesting!

[@someguy2135]

For those who are not familiar with precision fermentation, it is like clean, cultured meat using lab technology, except it produces casein, or diary protein instead of meat.. Brave Robot ice cream uses it.

[@nicolefegan]

okay i am OBSESSED with your shirt, keith haring supremacy

[@MerleONeal]

Ahh thank you🥺

[@dragonpop]

A video on lentils would be good. maybe explore the different types and tips on how to best cook them so they don't explode into a mushy mess... unless you hate lentils of course.

[@MerleONeal]

Funny you should say that.... I might have a lil somethin coming down the pipeline

[@dragonpop]

@@MerleONeal Great minds!!! ❤

[@boo2564]

There’s culturally so many ways to cook lentils too. I grew up eating and loving them in my Mexican home which are cooked WAAAY differently than lentils in south Asian cuisine. Different textures and flavors, different types too.

[@bodyofhope]

My favorite way to lentil is to sprout them 😊

[@storitella-bx9xx]

@@MerleONeal yes yes please!! I hate lentils!!! make them fun again!!!

[@Tashaaaa19]

Squishability….what a word. Also, your whole look was fabulous.

[@MerleONeal]

Thank you, my friend - squishibility, a term totally underused in the science community IMO

[@looloo.M]

Again This is why I love Merle! Her honesty God bless her. Merle gives it to us with no BS just truth. My fave, Thank you Merle. 😊👍🙏❤️.

[@MerleONeal]

You're makin me blush 🥹

[@thehunthasbegun]

I tested this recipe about a week ago and honestly…I‘m impressed 😀 (i used miso paste instead of yeast). Maybe this works with sunflower seeds or tiger nuts as well, in case of someone is allergic to nuts

[@joyellacuna4541]

I have made a recipe similar to this. It helps to add salt to the water that you drop the mozzarella balls in! Also, I have had a ninja vs vitamix in the past. My vitamix was more expensive but it blends cashews so smoother in my experience, I don’t even have to soak them or boil them.

[@MerleONeal]

o0o0o thank you for the tips!!!

[@romykruse6266]

Hey. So it looks like you forgot to add the miso paste (key flavour ingredient) and used roasted? cashews. Cashews are supposed to be white, not brown and they may have added to a different taste.

[@MajesticShells]

I thought all of these same things immediately.

[@someguy2135]

Please do a sequel adding miso paste. If you haven't tried miso paste (both red and white) you need to! Oooh, mommy it's tasty. (Umami, get it?) Dr. Greger even gives it his seal of approval!

[@davidwong656]

You brighten up my day so much! :) I've started eating vegan at least half the week (i know, not brave enough to say bye to dairy just yet) so thanks for that!

[@MerleONeal]

I'm so happy to hear I can make ya smile - prouda you for incorporating some vegan meals!

[@dr.westwood]

They make vegan gelatin sheets now, which is really convenient. You can also get cellulose casings for sausage, too.

[@loveforeva12]

Woah where does one get that

[@ratwithahat2]

Daaang I gotta buy some cashews... And then a second bag to try this recipe. Great video, Merle! I thought the part where you dropped the mozzarella back into the bowl was hilarious.

[@misspeaches1144]

For stuff like this i suggest cashew pieces! They are cheaper than the whole and they get ground up anyway ☺️

[@analozanonorheim9466]

Have you seen chef Jana 's cheese recipes? They are amazing!! You should make a video trying one of them. Her mozzarella has really good reviews.

[@Crypticred]

I so have to try this. Thanks for sharing. I reckon a squeeze of lemon juice may be good 👍

[@MerleONeal]

Try it! The acid in the vegan yogurt did a good job of adding that "tang" but hey, I'm all about the lemon juice, lmk if you give it a whirl!

[@Crypticred]

@@MerleONeal 😊 thank you. The UK is catching up with vegan choices. I'm yet to find a vegan yoghurt with a good tang here. Always jealous when I see the US options. Keep up the great work 👍

[@himauppili4964]

Merle, Try Tirunelveli Halwa made from milk extracted from cracked wheat berries. It's gelatine like texture but pure vegan. Good luck 👍

[@MerleONeal]

Thanks for the tip!

[@juand0194]

you could maybe try making vegan camembert :D there’s a video by a channel called Gourmet Vegetarian Kitchen… they even use the actual bacteria and let it ferment. And it looks near identical

[@_DRMR_]

In general I've found the cashew based cheeses to have the best taste and texture. Most of the other ones are based on coconut oil and that stuff just leaves a really meh aftertaste. This recipe looks quite easy and not really any ultra fancy ingredients. Will definitely try it out some time!

[@adrianselder7924]

Cashews need to be raw and they do work better when soaked and boiled. If you have a Thermomix even better result, Particularly if you threw a couple of ice cubes in with the cashews

[@supervegetariangeek]

Look into vegan lactic acid! It's usually made from beets! Saucestache uses it to make cheese, so I got it and its great for mozzarella. My advice is to use only a little (its strong) and use it in addition to and not instead of nutritional yeast!

[@joeynathan6073]

Not sure if you’ve been to London but your look is giving me very much Brixton vibes! (Also as a German, your auf Wiedersehen was close enough lol)

[@JJ-mh4xd]

I love your videos and commentary and honest review

[@carolinerushmore2975]

Hey Merle!! can you try a vegan cheese recipe that doesnt use cashews? that would be so good for people with allergies/no access to cashews

[@poonumjethwa4383]

Hi Merle, do you think you could try making vegan paneer? Thanks! 🧀

[@MerleONeal]

Great idea!

[@shriniketemuri0169]

That is called tofu

[@WesEats]

Good cheese is one of the only things I miss :(

[@user-jc5ll1rx3f]

If you ever take a trip to Chicago you should check out their vegan scene, there is a vegan restaurant/bar called Fancy Plants Kitchen and the chef is amazing at making realistic vegan cheeses from scratch, including mozzarella balls. There's many other great Chicagoan vegan spots with specialties from the chefs but wanted to let you know about Fancy Plants specifically since you have mentioned your love of mozzarella a few times now. They make it look, feel and taste just like the real thing.

[@bazli83]

Definitely a good base to add flavours in

[@KoreyByrne]

Been watching a channel called chef TJ is vegan cheese seemed to look like the best I have seen I’ll try making it.

[@sarahdee374]

I do something similar for a pourable mozz type sauce. It's a lot easier to add the cooked agar mixture into the blender and blend vs mixing.

[@Social_Pugatory]

Maybe if after you have the slurm mixed up you knead it a bit with more of a sprinkling of tapioca flour it’ll have more bounce that a similar process gives layers in mozzarella making.

[@tntaryn2070]

I love that your shirt is giving 90s Doug vibes 😍

[@Melody-lc6dt]

could you add salt to the ice water bath to make them have that salty mozzarella taste? also, a small amount of acidity like from lemon juice or vinegar, would cut the cashew taste a little bit.

[@MerleONeal]

Great idea!

[@Lala47362]

I think the problem with all vegan cheese is that they’re based on carbohydrates like starches/fibre, when dairy cheese is based on protein. Specifically casein, which is what gives cheese it’s great flavour, bouncy stretchy texture, and meltiness. There isn’t really a naturally occurring vegan protein that resembles casein, but they are working on making cheese from synthetic casein!

[@susanp5393]

In order to make this cheese melt when grilled, you need to add half a cup of some oil like refined coconut oil, or sunflower oil to the mixture.

[@loveanddreambig]

Have you tried Miyoko’s mozzarella? I think it’s a pretty darn close replica of the real thing.

[@marcruz6701]

It does!!!

[@stephanieemond9715]

It's sooooo delicious!

[@sunny5ma]

I love our vegan queen Merle providing wholesome vegan content which is so much needed. and yes you did, you said that right!! thank y for everything that you do I so appreciate it!!💖❤️

[@sandrodellisanti1139]

Looks delicious too, thank you.. i will share your Video at Facebook 🙂 many greetings from Brunswick in Germany.

[@joaopedroanjos8248]

It would be great if you could try to recreate Vuna since it’s still so expensive! 😭 it would be nice to know how it’s made to hopefully save some coins

[@louisedawson3251]

Is it raw cashews that you used or roasted?

[@marcruz6701]

Your content is entertaining

[@sinchansahoo5604]

You are doing a great job Merle.... hat's off to you.....❤️

[@kallisto3263]

Please please please do a vegan chicken ranking 😍 Sending you some love 💕

[@swethabalu5503]

Love love your shirt that's looking awesome 😍

[@someguy2135]

Please do a sequel adding miso paste. If you haven't tried miso paste (both red and white) you need to! Oooh, mommy it's tasty. (Umami, get it?) Dr. Greger even gives it his seal of approval!

[@blueefanta8710]

ms merle i NEED to know where that shirt is from im in love i need it in my life

[@rachelk2457]

It's missing an acid like apple cider vinegar which helps nutritional yeast taste more cheesy.

[@LadyVader33]

What about nutzerrella because of it's base ingredient?

[@roseaste7575]

I love how you added that clip of you washing your hands so that people wouldn't comment "yOu tOUcHeD tHe CaT aNd ThEn tOuChEd yOuR FOoD? GroSSsss!!!"

[@Palindrome_Shmalindrome]

Where is your shirt from? 😍

[@KnickKnackPatty]

I wonder if you'd get the bounce if you boil the notzarella balls

[@realalien1]

I’m going to try it but add some butter flavoring and less water.

[@vickithompson3039]

Can you use almonds instead of cashews? I'm allergic to cashews😥

[@MerleONeal]

I bet you could! It's essentially just making a nut-milk so I don't see why not, the ONLY thing that might throw it off is the fact that cashews have a high fat content, so consider substituting with some refined coconut oil maybe?

[@jerryramey1849]

Well, even if the flavor wasn't great at least it looked fun to push/poke/play with. Like the Nickelodeon slime from the 90's.

[@lorenheinbach7917]

did you use something akin to a vitamin or a regular blender?

[@MerleONeal]

Ninja Blender!

[@madarch3r]

Great video, Merle! We featured your video this week on my website on our "Concessions" page. Link is in my bio!

[@MerleONeal]

Thank you for the feature!!

[@madarch3r]

@@MerleONeal no problem! Feel free to promote your own content on my site as well. Sign up is free. Have a wonderful day!💚

[@leapolczman8308]

ahhh thank you for greeting your german fans! Auf Wiedersehen Merle 🥰

[@srhdfhcvbftg8067]

So basically, big cheesy (not cheesy) boba? I'm into it.

[@blackrosenuk]

What kind of vegan yogurt did you use for this? I'd love you to do this, comparing various yogurts.

[@MerleONeal]

I'm definitely going to have to rank vegan yogurts at some piont. And I used Foragers Cashew Yogurt

[@Rochelny]

Confused what the liquid was that you dropped the cheese into? Was it plain water?

[@SerenityJanee]

Yes. The agar agar allowed them to individually solidify once dropped into cold water

[@natdesjardins24]

didn't you forget the miso?

[@MerleONeal]

His recipe said optional... but then I noticed he included it in the video🤷🏻‍♀️ If you try it with miso LMK how it is! I bet it'd be really good. Either way, I liked this version!

[@QueenDerp]

Maybe add a tiny bit of xanthan gum to help with the squishability of it :D looks great tho!

[@ravensmoon1992]

as a German, your "Auf Wiedersehen" made my day.

[@MerleONeal]

I'm so glad!!! Sorry if I absolutely butchered it

[@knirpslyn2107]

HOLY CRAP YOU SAY 'OH MY GOURD' TOO? I do that. I now feel an unrealistic sense of attachment to you. YAY!

[@TheOtterPup1]

So in the TikTok I saw that the person used miso paste and you didn't. Could that have been the reason for a difference in taste?

[@TheOtterPup1]

Side note I do question the use of miso paste and then heating it up as that generally dulls the flavor

[@SusanaSantei]

Can you try comparing different recipes of vegan cheeses please. Aged vegan cheeses or even mozzarela. Connierawsome kitchen has really good recipes. Would love to see more complicated recipes. Since I'm not going to try them myself for now, I would like some honest opinion if its really good or not. Maybe then, I might change my mind and try to make it.

[@MilnaAlen]

Biologists use a lot of agar agar, the gels used to separate DNA or protein molecules (Western blot and such) are literally just water and agar agar. But we also use antidodies from laboratory animals, so definitely not vegan lol.

[@jkabhishek16]

Pigtails 🤩

[@heathergarcia3087]

What was the Buffalo piece of this 🤔 I'm confused 😕

[@Bazziness]

"I guess it's mozzarella channel now" Well at least you can now experiment with new recipes and have new tastes so that other people can refer to your video

[@baldbearded9601]

Isn't this Miyoko's recipe with added yeast?

[@carmelaciummo8887]

Miss Rachel’s Pantry in Philly has a spot on vegan fresh mozzarella!

[@MerleONeal]

I wish I could have it sent here 😭

[@Oonagh72]

Tapioca starch will get you a better texture. It will also give you the stretch of mozzarella.

[@sonialoves444]

as i agree it’s gross and weird…i’ve heard you say in more than one video that “gelatin is bones” or “it’s made from crushed up bones” it’s actually the liquid produced from boiled animal bones, not the actual bones themselves. it is like broth when it’s hot but once it’s room temp or chilled, it gets like meat juice jello. i don’t know what manufacturers do to it to get it flavorless, but i doubt i want to know. a good example that many omnivores probably have seen is in the grocery store rotisserie chicken, once you put it in the fridge, the stuff in the bottom of the container is gelatin and it was made from those chicken bones cookin’

[@706danie]

It’s probably grainy because you used a Ninja blender. Invest in a Vitamix-it will change your life!

[@Lilyteap0ts]

Merle o'neal the science vegan *merle merle merle merle merle merle merle*

[@Kacenka35]

As my mental health is getting better, so are my intolerances, so I think I may try this recipe ! 😍

[@MerleONeal]

Yessss if you do please let me know what you think! happy to hear you're feeling better

[@Kacenka35]

@@MerleONeal okay I’ll definitely let you know 😍 thank you 🥰

[@nadiarambles]

The vegan mozzarella is cool... but I'm delightfully distracted by your beautiful plant babies and fun button down this whole video. 😍

[@hannahsanders7290]

Solid Keith Haring fit

[@dieizzi5119]

Can you make vegan cottage cheese?

[@wildgeese5707]

Maybe lactic acid and olive brine would help get the cheese funk and tang…

[@popicalbubbles]

YUM!

[@_sch_eme_]

Merle: ..and then i got somee.. Me: *bODY ONCE TOLD ME* Honestly she kept doing it so much i had to stop but i was doing it every time she did that long pause after "some" likeeee why would you stop so much before the same word if you werent invinting us to sing lmao

[@smilley792]

On the preview, taking it out of water and it looked like perioghi, and I got excited. Despite knowing it was mozzarella from the title. Lol

[@MerleONeal]

One can dream...

[@elizabethpawlowski2673]

MozzaRisella in the uk is a great vegan mozzarella

[@venusvalera8692]

Did you forget the miso paste it’s in his recipe

[@Erigato2010]

That’s what I thought

[@chrislayne9440]

Agar-agar definitely is a ‘Leviosa’ type of word.

[@hb3549]

Check out rainbow plant life's vegan cheeses please! She has loads of amazing vegan recipes! Xx

[@Vanessa_Sharma]

You know that mozzarella is Italian and not German? 😱🤣🤣🤣💜💜💜

[@שירהשיר-ח1צ]

I love you shirt!

[@MerleONeal]

thank you!!!

[@Jelleybean18]

♥️❤️

[@reinq_5584]

🍃

[@yanjijay6752]

Woah looks good & weird haha I tried making some last time but came out weird lols

[@Adyma1997]

I want that shirt tho

[@pumpkinscorner394]

I've never been this early! To anyone reading this comment, I hope you have a great day!

[@MerleONeal]

You too!

[@oAgL214]

Wasn't that too much agar agar?

[@creaturefromchannel13]

You put too much water…& it’s better to blend all the ingredients together & plop it all / gently whisk into a dough on a nonstick pan before placing in silicone molds in the fridge. I brine mine after they firm up with basic salted : peppered vinegar brine with a touch of freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice.

[@laurenelizabeth1390]

Wait why is it called "Buffalo" mozzarella? I feel like i missed something

[@Shadeadder]

That's the full name of the style of fresh mozzarella that's popular in stores. It was traditionally made with buffalo milk, although most are cow milk these days.

[@laurenelizabeth1390]

@@Shadeadder oohh ok. I was so confused cause I've never heard it called that before and i even work at a grocery store that sells fresh mozz 😅😆

[@EditsByLyra]

I think Buffalo mozzarella is supposed to be softer so than other types of mozza. Kinda like a melting texture.

[@jkabhishek16]

Merle looks like Dorothy ( w o oz)

[@MerleONeal]

5 year old me is so happy rn

[@jkabhishek16]

@@MerleONeal 😍haha Yay a reply from Merle!!!

[@jshu-_-]

You missed the miso!

[@geema2281]

I wish she'd eaten the toast..

[@wiffsniff5756]

Ok. So this is the first video of merle that i've watched, and i rlly enjoyed it, but my girl speaks as if someone taped her mouth on the sides lol, just open your mouth a tad bit more lol

[@MerleONeal]

a very specific request