As the name suggests, the Adygei cheese variety was born on the northern slopes of the Caucasus. This whey fermented milk product has been known there since ancient times. It was made - and continues to be made at home - from sheep's milk, fermenting it with abomasum. Until now, not a single feast in Adygea is complete without the presence on the table of a low white cylinder with convex edges and obvious traces of shape on the sides.
Such cheese is good to eat with the "accompaniment" of red dry wine and fresh vegetables. And also locals widely use it for cooking cheesecakes, khachapuri and other dishes. We mainly sell fresh white products, but the smoked version is also extremely popular. Such Adyghe cheese is cooked at home. Basically it is done in a traditional hearth and in a smoke.
Fresh cheese, since it belongs to the category of soft, is not stored for long - only 30 days in the refrigerator, but its smoked counterpart can lie for years without losing its wonderful taste. Previously, it was smoked only to take with you on a long trip. In Russia, as in many northern countries, hard cheeses or fresh crumbly cottage cheese are mostly popular, but such a "transitional" product is popularly popular in Mediterranean cuisine. He is a close relative of the Georgian suluguni, Italian ricotta and mozzarella, Greek feta, Bulgarian cheese. Calories of Adyghe cheese significantly lower than in hard varieties, which makes it possible to use it in diets.
In the factory, the manufacturing technology of the product has changed. Now, as a basis, they can take not sheep’s milk, but goat’s milk (and even with the addition of cow’s milk). This is the most unfortunate effect on the nutritional value of the whole product. The calorie content of Adyghe cheese will be higher if cow milk was involved in its preparation, and lower if it was fermented and ripened according to traditional rules.
This product has many beneficial substances. Nutritionists have calculated that it is enough to eat only 80 g of Adyghe cheese per day to maintain the necessary supply of calcium and phosphorus in the body. And he is rich in B vitamins, amino acids. Despite the fact that Russian factories use cow's milk in the Adygea cheese brand, calories This product is still lower than in hard grades, thanks to the unique technology of its manufacture. Milk is pasteurized at high temperatures. From this, the final product has a distinct taste of ryazhenka or yogurt. Milk fermented with a Bulgarian stick passes through two stages of processing - heat, and then, in molds, cold. Only at the last stage is it salted.
The immaturity of the product, its curdled structure can reduce the calorie content of the Adyghe cheese. It is only from 240 to 252 kcal per 100 g of product. Compared to hard varieties, this is a very low indicator. In fact, such a low energy value brings this soft sour-milk product closer to cottage cheese, but a full flavor bouquet puts it a notch higher than the last.
Such a low calorie Adyghe cheese, as well as its exceptional benefits for the body, it can be used in diet food and during fasting days for weight loss. It can be used not only for "exotic" Caucasian dishes like khachapuri, but also added to our traditional dishes: salads (instead of too salty feta cheese), dumplings. And you can just eat with brown bread and fresh vegetables - it will be very tasty!