Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by RPDO (talk | contribs) at 10:50, 30 January 2007. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Bryndza or brânză is a Romanian sheep's milk cheese and as of 2005, it is a product with protected designation of origin of Romania.

As the very word brânză means "cheese" in Romania, one must disambiguate between bryndza as a PDO brand and bryndza as the general term for cheese (for example, the telemea, also a PDO product, is called brânză telemea in Romanian, rather than just telemea). Moreover, there are several types of bryndza, all recognised by the Protected designation of origin law as such. Each has it`s own specific, given by the geographical or manufacturing process charactheristics.

Brânză de Moeciu Brânză de Făgăraş Brânză de Taga Brânză de Nasal Brânză de Vlădeasa Brânză de Mănăstur Brânză de Satu Mare Brânză de Moldova Brânză de Dorna Brânză de Napoca Brânză de Sibiu Brânză de Alba Brânză de Bistriţa Brânză de Homorod Brânză de Brădet Brânză de Rarău Brânză de Covasna Brânză de Sibiu Brânză de Arad Brânză de Satu Mare Brânză de Harghita

The process for making bryndza is similar to that for making quark. The sheep's milk is strained through linen into small wooden casks named putină or, traditionally, into a leather truckle made from the skin or stomach of a cow, sheep or buffalo, called a burduf in Romanian. The putina are often made from spruce or fir wood. The temperature of the milk is raised to 30-35°C before further processing takes place. After numerous stages of processing, a cheese paste is produced. This is shaped and then left to lie for 5 to 6 days. During that time, in order to prevent mould and to ensure that the cheese matures equally, the cheese is regularly turned and wiped. After six days, a thin crust develops. This is removed and the cheese is melted and salt is added to it. This fine melted salt cheese is the finished bryndza. In some regions, onion or chives are added to the plain cheese.

After the process, the cheese contains roughly 40-50% of fat, 50-55% of water and 2-3% of salt. Like similar soft cheeses, bryndza does not keep well. Lovers of the cheese especially enjoy it when it has matured.

The "Mamaliga with brânza" is a one of the most popular of the many traditional Romanian dishes using bryndza.

Brzndza is also made in the Balkans, Eastern Austria, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, and Ukraine, but even if the recipe might be the same, it is not officialy ackowledged as bryndza. This type of cheese originated in Romania and it spread to Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, etc. in the course of the settling of northern Carpathians by the Vlachs from the 14th century to the 17th century.

The first written mention of bryndza in Slovakia appeared in the late 15th century. After improving the traditional method of bryndza production, a Slovak merchant Ján Vagač founded the first manufactory in 1787, in Detva. His new, longer-storable kind of bryndza began to spread to neighbouring regions afterwards. Vagač's method also distinguishes Slovak bryndza from its counterparts in other countries. In Slovakia, bryndza made from sheep milk (such as the so-called Liptovská bryndza) is only produced and sold for a few months of the year. However, some producers mix stored sheep's cheese paste with fresh cow's cheese to prepare the so-called "winter bryndza".

Bryndza is an essential ingredient for Liptauer and for bryndzové halušky, which is a Slovak national dish.

Notes

• This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding article from the German Misplaced Pages, retrieved on May 3, 2005.

• Slovak cheeses
• Polish cheeses
• Romanian cheeses
• Sheep's-milk cheeses