Description of Manchego, manufacturing method, energy value and composition. Health benefits and harms, use in cooking. History and photos of Manchego cheese.
Manchego is a Spanish hard cheese made from pasteurized sheep's milk (or raw). The texture is dense, the eyes are lonely, small; color - ivory, off-white or yellowish. The taste is sweet-fruity, piquant, pungent, pronounced nutty, and the aroma is of cut grass. Manchego's heads are in the form of a flattened cylinder with a diameter of 22-25 cm, a height of 10-12 cm and a weight of 1.8-2 kg. The crust is formed in a natural way, it is unevenly colored, brownish, with an imprint of a wheat spike on the lateral surface (the imprint is obtained due to the peculiarities of pressing).
How is Manchego cheese made?
At home, according to the Manchego cheese recipe, cow's milk is often used as the raw material, although the original product is made only from sheep. This is not surprising: the daily milk yield of a female ram is up to 2 liters of milk, and to get 1.5 kg of Manchego, you need 10 liters.
A mesophilic culture (2.5 ml per 10 l) is used as a starter, and liquid rennet from a lamb's stomach (1.25 ml) is used for curdling. Wet salting, in 20% chilled brine. Olive oil is added for flavor.
Recipe for making Manchego cheese:
- Sheep milk is heated to 30 ° C, dry sourdough is added, left for 5 minutes, and then mixed. The rennet is poured in and curdling is awaited.
- The kale is checked for a "clean break" by prying with the handle of a knife. Before checking, it should be treated with boiling water. When the layer splits rather than crumbles, you can start slicing. The finer the cheese grains, the tastier the final product will be. Experienced cheese makers use stretched strings for grinding and reach the size of a "grain of rice".
- Slowly heat the contents of the boiler - by 1 ° C per minute to 37 ° C. Leave for at least 10 minutes until the curd has settled. Part of the whey is poured out, mixed, and again waiting for sedimentation.
- Throw the cheese mass into a colander covered with a cheese cloth. Then, when a larger amount drains, they are transferred into forms, also covered with matter.
- For half an hour, oppression is set with an average weight of 4-4, 5 kg, overturned, again placed under the load. Change the fabric, press for 12 hours, increasing the weight of the oppression. For pressing, the head is wrapped in natural esparto grass and placed between two planks. Because of this, an imprint in the form of a wheat spike remains on the edge, and the variety's business cards are on the surface of the "wooden pattern".
- The formed heads are placed in a strong brine for 20-24 hours. For its preparation, salt is dissolved in boiling water in a ratio of 1: 5, and then the "brine" is cooled to 4-8 ° C.
- Drying is carried out at room temperature. The readiness is checked by touch. This process takes 2-3 days.
- At home, the cheese is placed in a chamber with a temperature of 12 ° C and a humidity of 85%. The farmer's version matures naturally, in well-ventilated caves. The cylinders are turned over every day 2 times, and the crust is wiped with olive oil. If mold forms, remove it with a soft cloth soaked in brine.
Farmed types of Manchego cheese:
| Types of Manchego cheese | Ripening period | Taste |
| Semi Curado young | 3 months | Herbal |
| Curado | 6 months | Caramel-nutty, with sourness |
| Viejo | From 12 months | The sourness disappears, the sweetness intensifies |
You can taste a young product after 2 months, and the ripening of aged Manchego cheese lasts at least 10-12 months. During this time, the color of the crust changes from gray and light brown to dark, and the side surface resembles the pattern of the coils of a coiled rope.
Whether or not to pasteurize the raw materials, each cheese maker decides on his own. Farmers prefer options made from raw sheep's milk. If it is not enough, mix with goat or cow.
Composition and calorie content of Manchego cheese
The fat content of the product on dry matter is estimated at 41-47%, that is, it does not apply to dietary ones. Natural starters are not used for curdling - this variety is not suitable for vegans.
The calorie content of Manchego cheese from raw milk is 476 kcal per 100 g, of which:
- Proteins - 38, 02 g;
- Carbohydrates - 0, 51 g;
- Fats - 35, 8 g.
For comparison: the energy value of Manchego from pasteurized milk, made at the factory from a mixture of sheep and cow milk, is 395 kcal.
Vitamins per 100 g:
- Thiamine - 0.04 mg;
- Riboflavin - 0.33 mg;
- Niacin - 7.2 mg
- Pyridoxine - 0.2 mg;
- Folic acid - 21.8 mcg;
- Cyanocobalamin - 1.5 mcg;
- Retinol - 211 mcg;
- Vitamin K - 234 mcg;
- Vitamin D - 0.19 mcg
Minerals per 100 g:
- Calcium - 848 mg;
- Iron - 0.75 mg;
- Iodine - 34 mg;
- Magnesium - 33.5 mg;
- Zinc - 3.2 mg;
- Selenium - 1.6 mg;
- Sodium - 670 mg;
- Potassium - 100 mg
Saturated fatty acids per 100 g:
- Myristic acid - 3.32 mg;
- Palmitic - 7, 7 mg;
- Stearic acid - 3.32 mg.
Monounsaturated fatty acids per 100 g:
- Palmitoleic - 0, 67 g;
- Omega-9 - 6, 93 g.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids per 100 g:
- Linoleic acid - 2.98 g;
- Linolenic - 3, 2 g.
The composition of Manchego cheese contains only 74.4 mg / 100 g of cholesterol, which is much less than in fermented milk products of this type.
If it is necessary to control weight, it is better to refuse to use this variety. An ounce (28 g) contains 90 calories, and the body gets 70% of the energy value from fat and only 20% from protein. With an inactive lifestyle, the consumption of 1 g of cheese increases the weight by 1 g due to the formation of a fat layer.
Recommendations for the use of Spanish Manchego cheese: 50-60 g per day for women and 80-90 g for men.
Useful properties of Manchego cheese
Sheep milk is more nutritious and contains more easily digestible milk protein than cow's milk. Lactose is transformed after fermentation and blood sugar rises more slowly. But this is not the only beneficial effect on the body.
The benefits of Manchego cheese:
- Increases the body's defenses, has a calming, anti-inflammatory and anesthetic properties.
- Tones up, improves blood flow, normalizes the work of the cardiovascular system.
- It stimulates taste buds, awakens appetite, promotes rapid weight gain after exhausting irrational diets and long-term diseases that require dietary restrictions.
- Increases the production of melanin, improves the protective properties of the epithelium to protect against the aggressive effects of melanin.
- Stops the development of rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults.
- Reduces the number of attacks in asthma, obstructive bronchitis and whooping cough and reduces symptomatic manifestations.
- It accelerates the regeneration of epithelial tissues, stops age-related changes, maintains the elasticity of the skin, improves the quality of the skin, nails and hair.
- Prevents degenerative-dystrophic changes in the optic nerve.
A young subspecies of Manchego cheese made from pasteurized milk, ripening up to 3 months, can be introduced into the diet of children under 3 years of age. This variety is recommended for people adhering to fermented milk diets and athletes involved in strength sports.
Contraindications and harm of Manchego cheese
You can not get acquainted with a new taste with intolerance to sheep's milk. It is worth avoiding abuse in obesity, if necessary, monitor your weight.
Manchego cheese made from raw sheep's milk can cause harm if the cooking technology, storage conditions or transportation are violated. Eating unprocessed food increases the risk of contracting salmonellosis or listeriosis. These diseases are most dangerous for young children and during pregnancy.
Due to the increased amount of salt in the composition, the content in the daily menu should be limited for chronic kidney disease and impaired liver function. Overeating should be avoided in chronic pancreatitis and a tendency to diarrhea due to the high fat content of the fermented milk product.
Manchego cheese recipes
The variety is served as a separate dish with savory salted sausages, olives and freshly baked caraway bread to complement the thick red homemade wine. It is introduced into culinary recipes for salads and sauces, baking fillings and casseroles.
Manchego Cheese Recipes:
- Dessert tampas … Heat butter, 100 g, in a pan and pour in honey, 3-4 tbsp. l., reheat. Stir constantly so as not to burn. Place the cut buns on a plate, each with a slice of cheese. Sprinkle with melted honey and sprinkle with crushed walnuts. And the last highlight is a pinch of coarse sea salt. Serve until it's cold.
- Hot salad … Wasabi sauce, 1 tbsp. l., in 50 ml of water and leave to infuse. 1 kg of pork fillet is washed, excess fat removed, cut into ribbons and generously rolled in a mixture of black pepper and salt. Preheat the grill pan and fry the meat until half cooked, stirring constantly so that the golden brown crust appears evenly, on all sides. While the pork is cooking, cut the celery root into strips - 0.5 kg, add it to the pan and bring it to soften as the meat is finally cooked. In a salad bowl, mix 150 g of green lettuce leaves, torn by hand, 150 g of thin radish semicircles and a bunch of chopped spinach. Pour 100-150 g of Manchego into the same dish, cut into small cubes. 100 g of black bread is fried in butter, so that it becomes golden and dense. All are mixed with frying, season with wasabi. Seasonings and herbs to taste.
- Corn casserole … 2 Poblano pepper pods are fried on a hot grill. A few minutes are enough for the pod to become soft, and on one side the skin is even fried. Put in a plastic bag and leave for 15 minutes. Then the seeds and partitions are removed, and the fruit body is cut into strips. Preheat the oven to 180 ° C. Fill the blender bowl with 2 eggs, half a standard pack of butter (120 g), after softening it and cutting it into pieces, 1, 5 cups of corn kernels. All are mixed, added and put in a bowl. Pour half a glass of corn flour and 250 ml of sour cream there. Add 150 g of ham and Manchego cubes, half a glass of whole corn kernels. Transfer to a greased pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.
- Dessert salad … Juice is squeezed out of half of the orange, and the whole citrus is divided into segments, the seeds and white partitions are removed, and the pieces are cut in half. A bunch of watercress, cut in half, is added. 40 g almond flakes and 60 g cheese cubes. Gloves, salted, seasoned with balsamic or sherry vinegar and olive oil.
- Tartlets with onion and apple … Thinly cut 8 heads of yellow onions - half rings, 3 green apples into slices. 100 g of ripe Manchego is rubbed on a fine grater. Apples and onions are caramelized. First, it is fried in olive oil, and then butter is added and covered with a lid, kept for half an hour over low heat for 30-35 minutes. Open the lid, pour in 1 tbsp. l. apple cider vinegar, so that it is distributed over the entire surface, leave to soak for 5 minutes. Knead 500 g of shortbread dough according to the standard recipe: 1 part butter, 2 parts flour, chicken egg yolks, a little water and a pinch of salt. Allow the batch to stand for 15 minutes under a lid or cling film, roll it into a thin layer, cut out circles. Cover the baking sheet with foil and lay out the blanks. While they are "resting", grind the onion and apples with a blender. Spread the filling in the center of the dough circles, sprinkle with grated cheese and add a little black pepper for piquancy. You can add a drop of powdered cloves. Fold the edges inward to make "mini-cheesecakes" and put them on the refrigerator shelf for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180 ° C and put a baking sheet. You can try it after 45-50 minutes, when the tartlets turn golden.
See also Langres recipes.
Interesting facts about Manchego cheese
Fermented milk products from sheep's milk appeared much earlier than those for the manufacture of which cow is used. Even in Ancient Greece, shepherds grazed numerous flocks of sheep and treated Gods and villagers with heads made from sheep's milk. Making such cheese began more than 8000 years ago.
For the manufacture of Manchego cheese in Spain, only the milk of sheep of the same breed is used, which is grazed exclusively in Castile, in the provinces of Cuenca, Ciudad Real and Toledo. Milk is taken only from animals that were taken out to the meadows. This variety was mentioned by Cervantes in his famous work “Don Quixote of La Mancha”.
In 2012, Manchego cheese won in the nomination "The Best Cheese of the World" among 2,700 applicants. The competition was held in the UK, in Birmingham. True, as the registered name was indicated "Gran Reservé Deesa de Los Llanos", this is the second variety denomination used for international presentations.
The best matured cheese is exported - Manchego Gran Reserva with a black label. Qualities are assessed according to 16 parameters: smell, consistency, taste compliance, etc.
The variety has another important positive property - shelf life. If the head is cut open and wrapped in wax paper, the cheese can be stored in the refrigerator for 6-7 months. The beneficial properties are reduced slightly.
Watch a video about Manchego cheese:
