The transformation of milk into a more stable, concentrated food by separating curds from whey, typically with rennet or an acid, then salting, pressing, aging or otherwise finishing the curd. Perforated pottery vessels roughly 7,000 years old, recovered in Kuyavia, Poland, and shown by lipid residue analysis to have strained dairy fat, provide the earliest direct evidence of cheesemaking, with comparable evidence of Mediterranean cheese production found dating to around 7,200 years ago. The technique subsequently diversified into thousands of regional cheeses, from the fresh mozzarella that tops Italian pizza to the aged wheels of French and other European traditions.
Facts
Origin Period, From (Year) Origin RegionThe Kuyavia region of Poland, where perforated pottery sieves used to strain curds from whey carry milk fat residues, the earliest direct archaeological evidence of cheesemaking; cheese production is also depicted in Sumerian temple reliefs by the fourth millennium BCE. 1 Connections
Expressed By
Source Khachapuri (Wikipedia)
Source The Oxford Companion to FoodAlan Davidson
Sources
1. Earliest Evidence for Cheese Making in the Sixth Millennium BC in Northern Europe (Nature)
NatureAbstractQuote, Abstract
Here we apply the same approach to investigate the function of sieves/strainer vessels, providing direct chemical evidence for their use in milk processing.
On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen
Harold McGee, Scribner, 2004technique discussion: cheese and fermented dairy
The Oxford Companion to Food
Alan Davidson, Oxford University Press, 2014Expressed By: Pizza Margherita, s.v. Mozzarella
Khachapuri (Wikipedia)
WikipediaExpressed By: Khachapuri, section: Imeretian khachapuriQuote, Expressed By: Khachapuri, section: Imeretian khachapuri
The most popular form, made with a yeast dough filled with white Imeretian salted cheese.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.