Beyaz peynir / Греческий сыр Фета
Фета (греч. Φέτα от итал. fetta — ломоть) — традиционный удивительно вкусный греческий сыр из овечьего или козьего молока, белого цвета.
Время выдержки сыра составляет не менее 3 месяцев. Жирность от 30 до 60 %. Производится со времен Византии. Способ приготовления феты был описан еще Гомером, и до сих пор его готовят так же.
Сыры, похожие на фету, изготовляют по всей юго-восточной Европе, в Средиземноморских странах, на Среднем Востоке - в Греции, Болгарии, Боснии и Хорватии, Румынии, Турции, Израиле и Египте (где его делают в основном из коровьего молока). Существует три типа феты:
1. В основном из овечьего молока
2. Из коровьего молока традиционным способом, который сохраняет особенную крошащуюся структуру сыра и соленый вкус.
3. Сыр, называющийся фетой, но приготовленный современными способами, в результате которых получается сыр другой структуры.
Фету следует хранить в рассоле, и тогда ее можно хранить почти бесконечно. Чтобы убрать лишнюю соленость, фету можно замочить в минеральной воде или в молоке на несколько минут перед подачей на стол.
«Фета» — защищенное правом ЕС указание на географическое происхождение сыра, поэтому фетой в ЕС может называться лишь греческий сыр.
Также можно найти сыр «Фетаки» - это тоже самое, что и «Фета». Название изменено, так как «Фета» теперь - только сыр, произведённый в Грециии, а другие страны вынуждены использовать уже собственные бренды.
Является важным ингредиентом греческого салата.
Beyaz peynir koyun, inek veya keçi sütünden yapılan, salamurada bekletilerek hazırlanan beyaz renkli bir peynirdir.
Beyaz peynir Türkiye ve komşu ülkelerinde en çok tercih edilen peynir türüdür. Özellikle kahvaltı sofralarının vazgeçilmez bir unsuru olan peyaz peynir, ayrıca börek, pide, makarna ve diğer hamur işlerine lezzet vermek için de sıkça kullanılır.
Feta (Turkish: Beyaz Peynir 'white cheese') (Greek: φέτα, also spelled fetta) is a brined curd cheese traditionally made in Greece with goat's and sheep milk. Since 2005, feta has been a protected designation of origin in the European Union, and defined as having at least 70% sheep's milk, with the remainder being goat’s milk. Outside the EU, cheeses sold as 'feta' may include cow's milk, or even be comprised of exclusively cow's milk.
Feta is an aged cheese, commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. It is used as a table cheese, as well as in salads, pastries and in baking, notably in the popular phyllo-based dishes spanakopita ("spinach pie") and tyropita ("cheese pie").
Similar white brined cheeses (often called 'white cheese' in the various languages) are found in the eastern Mediterranean and around the Black Sea.
Feta is salted and cured in a brine solution (based on water or whey) for several months. Feta dries out rapidly when removed from the brine. Feta cheese is white, usually formed into square cakes, and can range from soft to semi-hard, with a tangy, salty flavor that can range from mild to sharp. The cured cheese easily crumbles. Its fat content can range from 30 to 60 percent; most is around 45 percent milk fat. Most feta cheese has a pH of 4.4 to 4.9.
Feta is also an important ingredient of Greek salad. Feta, like most cheeses, can also be served cooked; it is sometimes grilled as part of a sandwich or as a salty alternative to other cheeses in a variety of dishes.
History
Feta cheese is first recorded in the Byzantine Empire (which expanded over the East Mediterranean), under the name πρόσφατος (prósphatos, "recent", i.e. fresh), and was associated specifically with Crete. An Italian visitor to Candia in 1494 describes its storage in brine clearly.
The Greek word "feta" comes from the Italian word fetta ("slice") and that from Latin offa "bite, morsel". It was introduced in Greek in the 17th century, likely referring to the method of cutting the cheese in thin slices to serve on a plate.
Traditionally, feta has been made by peasants in the lower Balkan peninsula from sheep's milk, although goat's milk has been used in more recent times. It is also used for banitsa.
Certification
After a long legal battle with Denmark, which produced a cheese under the same name using artificially blanched cow's milk, the term "feta" is since July 2002 a protected designation of origin (PDO), which limits the term within the European Union to feta made exclusively of sheep's/goat's milk in Greece. According to the Commission, the biodiversity of the land coupled with the special breeds of sheep and goats used for milk is what gives feta cheese a specific aroma and flavor.
When needed to describe an imitation to feta, names such as "salad cheese" and "Greek-style cheese" are used. The European Commission gave other nations five years to find a new name for their "feta" cheese, or to stop production. Because of the decision by the European Union, Denmark changed the name of their product to apetina.
Similar cheeses around the world
Similar cheeses are common in Albania (djath), Bulgaria (sirene сирене), Republic of Macedonia (бело сирење, belo sirenje; 'white cheese'), Serbia (sir сир), Israel (gvina bulgarit Bulgarian cheese), Turkey (beyaz peynir 'white cheese'), Egypt (domiati), and Sudan (gibna beyda), Romania (brânză telemea), Russia (brynza, брынза), Ukraine (brynza, бринза), Iran (panir liqvan), Malta (Ġbejna tan- nagħaġ 'sheep's cheese' ) , and other countries. In some of these countries, the name "feta" is used interchangeably with the native, while in others "feta" is not used at all or refers to other (mainly imported) types of cheese.
