Labneh is a creamy fresh cheese that is particularly popular in the Orient. It is versatile in savory and sweet dishes. Making Labneh yourself is not difficult, we will tell you how in a few steps.
Difference between Greek Yogurt and Labneh
Greek yogurt and labneh are relatively similar and can be used the same way. Both varieties are made by draining conventional yoghurt. Greek yoghurt is drained for only a few hours, while labneh is drained over many hours or days.
This gives labneh a firm consistency and higher fat content than Greek yoghurt.
Arrange and refine the Labneh
Labneh is traditionally eaten with bread and served with olive oil and the spice mixture zatar. This includes pickled olives and fresh vegetables.
The cream cheese is suitable with fresh herbs as a spread on bread or omelettes, as a dip for grilled meat, salad or roasted vegetables. But it is also a delicious ingredient or side dish for sauces.
It is also ideal as a filling or dough ingredient in cakes and desserts.
Labneh and Zatar: a great team
The aromatic spice mixture, also spelled satar, zaatar, za’tar or za’atar, refines many oriental dishes. In addition to a specific type of wild thyme, zatar also contains sumac, sesame and salt. Other ingredients such as nuts, coriander, anise or fennel are also added regionally.
Since the wild thyme used is hardly available in our latitudes and tastes different than the local thyme, it is best to buy Zatar already mixed. If you want to make the mixture yourself, it is better to use oregano instead of thyme, which comes closest in taste to the original.
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The spice mixture has a sour, spicy and nutty taste.
durability
The cream cheese can be stored unsalted in the fridge for about 1 week. Salted labneh stays fresh for up to 2 weeks. You can also marinate labneh in olive oil, which should completely coat the cream cheese. Then the shelf life increases to 2 months.
Also try other types of cream cheese and skyr or plain yoghurt.
Homemade Labneh
Monitor stays on
- 1 kg Natural yoghurt, at least 10% fat
- ½ tsp Salt, optional for the savory variant
- If you want to make savory labneh, mix the yogurt with the salt first. Then, hang a colander in a bowl or saucepan and line it with cheesecloth.
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Place the yogurt in the cheesecloth. Gather the four corners of the cloth, form a ball, squeeze out the yoghurt well. Put the ball in the cloth back into the colander. Leave the yogurt in the fridge at least 24 hours drain long. It is best to squeeze the ball out again and again during the dripping time.Tip: The creamier the labneh should be, the shorter you have to let it drain.
- The next day, take the finished labneh out of the cloth. Scrape the leftovers off the cloth with a spatula. The Arabic cream cheese is now ready to eat.
- Pour the homemade labneh into the sealable glass jar for storage.
serving: 100G | Calories: 130kcal
