Halloumi Levantine cheese: manufacturing methods, calorie content and chemical composition, benefits and harms when consumed. Food recipes and product history.
Halloumi (halloumi) is a pickled cheese popular in the national cuisines of the Middle East: Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt. Cypriot chefs brought the product to Europe. Traditionally it is made from a mixture of goat and sheep milk, but sometimes cow's milk is used as a raw material. The shape of the head is a semicircle, the mass is no more than 270 g. The color of the flesh is white, the texture is layered, very dense, elastic, the taste is slightly salty, with a menthol aftertaste. The special properties are due to the technology of preparation: the cheese mass is heated before salting. As a result, the product has a high melting point, as a result of which it is fried on the grill or in the oven.
How is Halloumi cheese made?
In Levant, the product is made in small portions, using 2-3 milk yield of a goat or sheep. To prepare Halloumi cheese, European cheesemakers collect whole cow's milk and acquire a special enzyme called rennin.
You need to prepare a very sharp knife with a thin blade or string to cut the curd, thick-walled saucepan, silicone spatula, sterile cheesecloth or ironed cotton cloth and bend from two 4 kg weights.
How to make Halloumi cheese yourself:
- Milk, 2 liters, is poured into a saucepan and put on fire.
- At the same time, the enzyme is diluted - at the tip of a teaspoon in 25 ml of cool water, added to milk, without waiting for boiling.
- Leave for half an hour - the raw material should be curdled and boiled.
- A jelly-like, but dense enough clot is cut into even cubes with edges up to 1.5 cm.
- The cubes are mixed in whey and infused over the fire. The temperature should not rise above 40-60 ° C. Leave for 40 minutes under the lid.
- When the whey acquires a creamy hue, and the cubes become firm and springy when pressed, strain the whey with a colander.
- You need to wait for the intermediate raw materials to dry, and then transfer to gauze (or fabric), squeeze and wrap tightly, creating the final shape.
- Placed on a drainage mat, set oppression with a weight of 3.5-4 kg. After 30 minutes, turn over and re-place the oppression.
- Turn over, increase the oppression by 1, 5-2 times, leave for 1 hour and turn over again. When the serum stops draining and the fabric dries up a little, you can proceed to the next step.
- The whey is heated to 90 ° C while checking the temperature with a cooking thermometer. Dip the cheese curd for 1-2 minutes, and then remove the pan from heat. Leave to "rest".
- Mix sea salt with dried mint leaves. As soon as the curd cake rises to the surface of the hot whey, it is taken out, rolled in a salt-menthol mixture. Cheese makers advise you to fold the flatbread in half to get a more pronounced minty flavor.
Before tasting, the semicircle is left in the refrigerator for a day, wrapped in plastic wrap. But you do not need to drain the serum.
To extend the shelf life of Halloumi cheese to 2 weeks, put it in the refrigerator in a saucepan of salty liquid, covered with a lid. The longer it costs, the sharper the taste.
If you use a microwave to cook Halloumi, you can cook Halloumi cheese in 1 hour. Milk, 2 l, heated to 35 ° C, dissolved in 3 tbsp. l. warm water rennin, bring to a temperature of 43 ° C and vigorously stir with a whisk. As soon as the curd curd rises, break it with a spoon. Allow to stand, removing the pan from the heat, for 15 minutes, mix the pieces and pour everything into a heat-resistant dish.
Place in the microwave for 2 minutes, setting the power to 800 watts. Take out, mix, put in the microwave again for 1 minute. Knead the pieces with your hands: if they are not elastic, the heating in the oven is repeated again. Throw the curd mass onto cheesecloth, squeeze it well with your hands. Pour in oregano, salt, mint, mix, squeeze again. If there is time, they hang the serum so that the glass is glass, if not, they immediately put it in a mold, level it and put it in the freezer for 15 minutes. You can taste it right away.
In terms of quality, homemade Halloumi is inferior to cheese made according to all the rules of cheese making, but the taste is almost the same. You can also fry it. When stored on a refrigerator shelf, it deteriorates after 2-3 days, and in a freezer it retains useful properties and original qualities for a year.
The composition and calorie content of Halloumi cheese
The fat content of Levantine cheese depends on the raw material. If it is sheep and goat milk, it is 30-47%, cow's - 17-25%.
The calorie content of Halloumi cheese is 316-352 kcal per 100 g, of which:
- Protein - 23 g;
- Fat - 26 g;
- Carbohydrates - 2 g.
Vitamins per 100 g:
- Vitamin K, phylloquinone - 2, 6 mcg;
- Vitamin E, tocopherol - 0.73 mg;
- Vitamin C, ascorbic acid - 228.3 mg;
- Vitamin B6, pyridoxine - 0, 11 mg;
- Vitamin B5, pantothenic acid - 0.451 mg;
- Vitamin B4, choline - 7.6 mg;
- Vitamin PP, niacin equivalent - 1, 084 mg;
- Vitamin B2, riboflavin - 0.04 mg;
- Vitamin B1, thiamine - 0.067 mg;
- Vitamin A - 624 mg
Minerals per 100 g:
- Selenium - 0.6 mcg;
- Copper - 0.23 mcg;
- Manganese - 0.15 mg;
- Iron - 0.26 mg;
- Phosphorus - 40 mg;
- Sodium - 2 mg;
- Magnesium - 22 mg;
- Calcium - 18 mg;
- Potassium - 417 mg
Halloumi contains amino acids, organic and fatty acids. It is easily absorbed and restores energy reserves.
With a deficiency in weight, a fatty option should be introduced into the diet - Traditional Village Halloumimade only from sheep's milk, even without the addition of goat's milk. The composition of such a product contains an increased content of useful microelements. When made according to the traditional recipe, the curd mass is not heated above 40 ° C. Arab and Israeli cheese-makers keep the peculiarities of sheep milk processing a secret.
Losing weight is recommended to give preference to a low-calorie variety - Halloumi low fat from the milk of cows. If made according to the recipe and carefully boiled whey, you can get a low calorie content - 257 kcal per 100 g.
Useful properties of Halloumi cheese
The pleasant taste of spicy-spicy cheese raises mood by stimulating the production of serotonin, normalizes the state of the nervous system and improves nerve conduction.
But these are not the only benefits of Halloumi cheese:
- The work of the immune system is normalized.
- The general tone and blood pressure increase.
- Impulse conduction is accelerated, the rate of reactions increases.
- The likelihood of osteoporosis and night blindness is reduced.
- Fluid loss is prevented.
- The secretion of digestive enzymes and bile acids is stimulated.
- Blood clotting increases, the work of the cardiovascular system is stabilized.
- The quality of skin, hair, teeth and nails is improved.
- Reduces blood sugar levels.
With the help of Halloumi, you can stop enuresis in children over 3-4 years old. To do this, it is enough to eat a small piece and drink 2-3 sips of water. The salt will bind the water and you will not have to urinate involuntarily.
Due to the high amount of choline, harmful cholesterol, which enters the body along with monounsaturated and saturated fatty acids, is not absorbed. That is, the product, despite the increased fat content, does not have a negative effect on the vascular walls.
Mint has a pronounced analgesic (albeit short-term) and antimicrobial effect, and salt binds water. For angina, pharyngitis or SARS, which causes inflammation of the tonsils, in order to get rid of the pain, you can put a piece of a salty product with a spicy taste in your mouth and dissolve it. This will help relieve the pain.
Contraindications and harm of Halloumi cheese
You should not introduce this fermented milk product into the diet on an ongoing basis. Despite the relatively low calorie content, fatty acids are quickly absorbed. This stimulates the formation of fatty layers both under the skin and around the internal organs.
The greatest harm to Halloumi cheese is due to excess salt. The liquid is retained in the body, the water-electrolyte and sodium-potassium balance is disturbed, which leads to a slowdown in metabolism.
Symptoms of negative changes: increased blood pressure, an unpleasant taste in the mouth, constipation, swelling, heaviness in the legs and headaches. If abused, bad breath can occur.
If you have kidney failure, you shouldn't get to know a new taste. Abuse is dangerous for arterial hypertension with a tendency to high blood pressure, diseases of the digestive system, accompanied by high acidity, obesity, osteochondrosis, arthritis, arthrosis. You should not introduce a product into the diet for gout. Even a small piece can provoke a strong and prolonged painful attack.
In addition, it should be borne in mind that cheese is usually fried. Such heat treatment enhances the negative effect on the digestive organs, carcinogens enter the body.
A vegetable garnish will help neutralize the harmful effect - not only a tasty, but also a healthy addition to this product. But it is not worth drinking with liquid, especially when eating before bedtime. In the morning, the view in the mirror will not please - the face will be swollen, the skin will be yellowish.
Halloumi cheese recipes
Locals prefer to combine the taste of this product with fruits and berries. It is especially delicious to complement your meal with watermelon. But you can cook other meals as well.
Halloumi Cheese Recipes:
- Grilling … Spread slices approximately 8-10 mm thick on the grill and lemon slices on top. Bake for 2 minutes on each side, remove the lemon, bring to readiness for another 4 minutes. Sprinkle with juice that has drained into a tray, sprinkle with basil and arugula - the herbs are torn by hand. Serve hot.
- Vegetable rolls … Peel off the eggplant and cut it into thin slices lengthwise. Grease the grill with olive oil, bake vegetables and small pieces of Halloumi on both sides, slightly lower the cherry. Spread on each slice of eggplant a piece of fried cheese, cherry, greens - to taste, if necessary - pepper. Roll up the rolls and put them back on the grill for 1 minute.
- Tiropita … Knead the filo crustas dough. Mix 1 kg of flour with 4 tsp. baking powder and 4 tsp. salt, pour in 4 tbsp. l. olive oil, 2 tbsp. l. vinegar and 500 ml of warm water. Knead the dough so that it does not stick to your hands (you can add flour). Combine 700 g of Halloumi and 300 g of cottage cheese, knead with a fork. Sprinkle with pepper. Beat 5 eggs, add 70 g of olive oil, pour 800 ml of milk. The dough is divided into separate lumps, each rolled into a thin, almost transparent layer. Spread 3 small layers in random order on a baking sheet, closing it completely, pour over with olive oil, spread a layer of filling. Again, arrange the sheets of dough in random order. The last layer is oiled from the outside with olive oil. Bake at 180 ° C for 1.5 hours, until golden brown appears.
- Vegetable salad … Spread several sheets of lettuce on the bottom of the salad bowl, and pour on them a mixture of sliced bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, fresh cucumbers, garlic and herbs - parsley, dill. Mix with pieces of Halloumi, fried in a pan, season with lemon juice, olive oil, sprinkle with oregano and pepper.
Interesting facts about Halloumi cheese
The first mentions of this product are found in the memoirs of the Doge of Venice, Leonardo Donato, who traveled to Syria. But Halloumi appeared much earlier, since the Bedouins fed their captives with cheese, which was called (and is still called) Hellim - for sure, the sedentary Cypriot peasants borrowed the name from the nomads.
In the manufacture of Halloumi cheese from sheep's milk, production was limited to March - the time after the lambing of the sheep. But as soon as cow's milk was used as a raw material, it became possible to make this fermented milk product all year round. In the 16th-17th centuries, the cheese could tell where it was made. The peasants valued every piece of land, so goats were grazed high in the mountains, sheep in the foothills, and cows in the lowlands. Alpine Halloumi was elastic, crumbled - it was made only from goat's milk. When mixed with sheep, the structure remained firm, but the consistency became softer. The more cow's milk in the raw material, the more the cheese looks like the usual feta or feta cheese.
Thanks to Halloumi, whole clans were formed, relationships were struck. One family, even a wealthy one, could not afford to make cheese, and special communities were created to make it. (From 40 liters of raw materials, only 1.5 kg of the final product was obtained). They collected milk from the public cattle, and bought boilers. Such cheese-making clans can be called the prototype of modern cooperatives. Simultaneously with Halloumi, Anari was made - a light companion cheese made from whey.
Since 1930, the production of fermented milk product has increased. They built food factories that purposefully dealt with these cheeses. But in the composition of industrial raw materials only a small part of sheep's milk, in contrast to the home product.
Watch the video about Halloumi cheese:
If you happen to visit Cyprus, it is advisable to try the national product - raw and fried. Just do not necessarily introduce it into the diet on an ongoing basis, as already mentioned, when Halloumi is abused, there is more harm than good.
