How Is Chechil Cheese Made?

Chechil cheese is a type of cheese produced in abundance in Eastern Anatolian provinces. Civil is also called yarn, string cheese. Çeçil cheese is an odorless, white, semi-soft, easily dispersed and milky-tasting cheese.

The materials to be used to make chechil cheese at home are:

8 liters of milk
3% thermophilic culture (or 250 ml yoghurt can also be used)
Yogurt
Gloves for kneading

Cow’s milk is heated to 30 degrees . In the meantime, the most important point is to take care not to burn the bottom of the pot/cauldron you are using.

thermophilic culture is added into the milk that reaches 30 degrees and the milk is left to mature.

Maturation. It is very important that the left cream has been removed and this waiting process takes 10-18 hours. It is important that the milk left to ripen is in a cold environment.

Yeast is added to the matured milk and left for 15 minutes for the clot to form.

The pot/cauldron is put back on the stove and It is heated for 45 minutes. During this time, the temperature is ensured to reach 60 degrees. Stirring is continued while the milk is heated.

Curdling begins to form during this heating process.

After 45 minutes, curd is formed. The curd formed wraps around the bucket during mixing. The curd wrapped in the ladle is taken into the kneading bowl and the curd formed is kneaded by wearing gloves. In the meantime, the temperature should not fall below 60 degrees.

If the temperature starts to drop, the stove is lit again.

During kneading, the cheese is stretched and folded to form wires.

Cheese with wire mesh is dried for 1.5-2 hours. In addition to knitting, folding or hanging can also be done.

Drying cheeses are placed in 12% salty brine.

How to Make Thermophilic Culture?

Fresh raw milk is heated up to 51 degrees. When it reaches this temperature, it is continued for 20-30 minutes, keeping it constant at 51 degrees. The milk is cooled until it reaches 43 degrees. It is kept at this temperature until it is cut. When the milk is cut, 10% is set aside and the remainder is used. After that, it is returned to the first stage. Fresh milk is heated to 51 degrees and cooled to 43 degrees. Then, curdled milk, 10% of which is separated, is added. The bacterial count of the thermophilic culture formed in this way is increased. These processes are repeated 7-20 times and the number of bacteria in the thermophilic culture increases each time.