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Tzfat cheese ( he, גבינה צפתית, ''gvina tsfattit'') is a semi-hard salty
Israeli cheese goes artisanal
/ref> The cheese has an elastic texture and low fat content. The milk is pasteurized at a low , which preserves the food proteins. Trimming is based largely on the action of
Fresh Tzfat cheese is used in salads and sandwiches. The aged variety can be grated for use in baking or cooking.
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
produced in Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, originally from sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...
's milk. It was first produced in Safed
Safed (known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardi Hebrew, Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation, Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), i ...
(''Tzfat'' in Hebrew) in 1840 and is still produced there by descendants of the original cheese makers.
History
The cheese began to be produced in 1818 at HaMeiri Dairy, established in the home of Meir Arzoni (later HaMeiri), whoimmigrated
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
from Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
Gvina sfattit is a mild curd cheese molded in a basket that gives the cheese distinctive circular striations./ref> The cheese has an elastic texture and low fat content. The milk is pasteurized at a low , which preserves the food proteins. Trimming is based largely on the action of
enzymes
Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrate (chemistry), substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecule ...
contained in a special ferment and on calcium chloride
Calcium chloride is an inorganic compound, a salt with the chemical formula . It is a white crystalline solid at room temperature, and it is highly soluble in water. It can be created by neutralising hydrochloric acid with calcium hydroxide.
Ca ...
rather than on the action of lactic acid
Lactic acid is an organic acid. It has a molecular formula . It is white in the solid state and it is miscible with water. When in the dissolved state, it forms a colorless solution. Production includes both artificial synthesis as well as natu ...
. The fermentation
Fermentation is a metabolic process that produces chemical changes in organic substrates through the action of enzymes. In biochemistry, it is narrowly defined as the extraction of energy from carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen. In food ...
is quick, about an hour. After the separation of most of the whey, the cheese is stored for several hours in straw or plastic baskets to drain the remaining whey and to form its round shape.
For the remainder of the draining time, the cheese is inverted several times to help the draining and to form the basket's pattern on all sides.
Fresh Tzfat cheese is used in salads and sandwiches. The aged variety can be grated for use in baking or cooking.
Water Buffalo
The water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis''), also called the domestic water buffalo or Asian water buffalo, is a large bovid originating in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Today, it is also found in Europe, Australia, North America, So ...
Tzfat cheese is usually flavored with nigella seeds
''Nigella sativa'' (black caraway, also known as black cumin, nigella, kalonji or siyahdaneh) is an annual flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to eastern Europe (Bulgaria and Romania) and Western Asia (Cyprus, Turkey, Iran and Ir ...
.
See also
*List of sheep milk cheeses
This is a list of sheep milk cheeses. Sheep milk cheese is prepared from sheep milk (or ewe's milk), the milk of domestic sheep. The milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products, such as cheese.
Sheep milk cheeses
* Abbaye de ...
*Israeli cuisine
Israeli cuisine ( he, המטבח הישראלי ) comprises both local dishes and dishes brought to Israel by Jews from the Diaspora. Since before the establishment of the Israel, State of Israel in 1948, and particularly since the late 1970s, a ...
References
{{reflist Israeli cuisine Sheep's-milk cheeses Middle Eastern cheeses