Cheese with fenugreek: description, useful properties, nutritional value, species

On store shelves you can find a bright green and yellow cheese with the addition of spicy seeds. It is fenugreek, which gives the product a pleasant nutty taste.

What is fenugreek?

Fenugreek is an annual plant, the seeds of which have spicy aromatic properties. Occurs under other names: Greek hay, shamballa, fenugreek, helba, chaman. It grows in Eastern Europe, in the mountains of Central Asia, Turkey, Iraq and Iran. Seeds no larger than 4 mm ripen in the pods. They have a sweetish flavor, which is especially enhanced when roasting. The plant itself has a pronounced bitterish aroma of freshly mown hay.

According to its properties, fenugreek is like an aphrodisiac. The substances that are contained in the seeds of the plant, contribute to the production of male sex hormones and increase the level of testosterone in the blood.

Fenugreek contains vitamins, macro and microelements, which allow it to be widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, traditional medicine and cooking.

Fenugreek application in cooking

Fenugreek seeds are used as aromatic spices both independently and in special mixtures (chutney, chaman, hops-suneli, curry). On sale, fenugreek (seasoning) is often offered as a ready-made powder.

Young shoots, leaves and seeds of the plant are used in the preparation of many dishes, especially Oriental cuisine. They give the food a pleasant, nutty taste. The leaves are dried and used to make "green cheese", which has been a favorite treat for millions of Russians for many years.

Green cheese with fenugreek

Many European countries, France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, specialize in cheese making. They even became associated with certain types of cheese. Switzerland is not far behind these countries. It is here that the real green cheese of Shabziger is made.

The technology of its manufacture is slightly different from the traditional method. For cooking, use only skim milk, which is added dry grass - blue fenugreek. After that, the mass is heated to a certain temperature (90 degrees) and citric acid or acetic acid is added. As a result of the folding of milk, whey is formed, which is the basis for the preparation of cheese. It is poured into special forms, in which it is stored for about a week. Then they are suspended and in this position is left for a period of 2 to 6 months for maturation.

Thanks to the grass, the cheese with fenugreek Shabciger gets an unusual green color, nutty taste and strong flavor. It refers to fermented hard varieties. It has a low calorie content compared to traditional cheeses (137 kcal), a minimum of fat (1 g) and a large amount of protein (33 g). It does not contain carbohydrates and lactose, so this sour milk product is not only delicious, but also very useful. When the technology of production changes, the fat content and calorie content of the cheese can be significantly increased.

Cheese with fenugreek: useful properties

Hard cheese with fenugreek is sold in traditional round heads, in grated and powdered form. So it is added to the omelet and to pasta, used for cooking sauces and baking bread. This sour-milk product perfectly combines the useful properties of cheese and fenugreek. It contains vitamins A, C, E, PP and group B, minerals (zinc, iron, calcium, magnesium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, sodium).

Cheese with fenugreek has a high nutritional value. It is rich in protein, so it is useful for athletes who gain muscle mass, and children for growth and health of bones, and for elderly people for good health.

Belarusian cheeses with fenugreek: species

Cheese with the addition of fenugreek is prepared not only in his homeland, Switzerland, but also in other countries. By taste, the Belarusian cheese "Armel" with fenugreek is not inferior to the original.

He is not very strong, but spicy in moderation, with a light, unobtrusive shade of walnut. It is made from normalized milk, so the fat content and calorie content of such cheese is much higher than that of real green cheese. This is a classic fermented milk product of yellow color with the addition of spicy fenugreek seeds. The taste is well combined with white wine.

Another Belarusian cheese with fenugreek "Alpental" reminds of the quality of the beloved "Armel". It is fragrant, moderately sour, with a pleasant creamy taste. Cheese "Alpental" is yellow with bright splashes of fenugreek seeds.

How to make cheese with fenugreek seeds at home

To make cheese with a spicy nutty taste on its own, you need 1 kg of cottage cheese (9-18%), a liter of pasteurized milk, 3 eggs, butter, salt, soda and the main ingredient - fenugreek seeds.

First, the cottage cheese needs to be combined with milk, mixed well and placed on a slow fire for heating. Ensure that the mass does not boil. After a while, the milk will begin to curl up. The resulting mass can be thrown back on the cheesecloth, drain the serum. After about an hour the dry cottage cheese will be ready.

Now it should be transferred to a pan with non-stick coating, add eggs, 2 teaspoons of salt, soda at the tip of the knife, fenugreek seeds and butter (100 g). Stir well and place on a slow fire. Soon the mass begins to melt and will resemble a hot cheese melted cheese. Do not forget to stir constantly the contents of the pan. When the mass becomes uniform, it can be poured into a mold for cooling. After 12 hours cheese can be sampled. It will not be as dense as hard cheese from the store, but no less tasty and useful.