And ‘cheese in a sack’ is…

‘Cheese in a Sack’ it doesn’t really sound like anything extraordinary, but when the sack is the skin of a sheep, then it starts to sound like something a little bit…, um, what’s the word I am searching for… ‘different’…

Sir iz Mijeha (“cheese in a sack”) from Herzegovina is one of those traditional food producing practices that has just fascinated me. Apparently it goes like this… the skin of a sheep, a full size one, is used as the casing in which the milk from a either a Pramenka sheep, a heritage breed from Herzegovina, or cow’s milk, (or a combination of the two) is the basis to a curd which matures in this casing to become the cheese.

From what I have read, the sheep is slaughtered, and the skin removed without damaging it. It is then shorn and washed with boiling water and whey. When the sack is dried, the legs are tied and it is filled with air – probably to make sure there are no holes. It is then washed again, to make it supple and then filled with the curd and allowed to mature as with any other cheese; a process which can take two to three months. It is a labour intensive and fascinating process, a process highlighted, honoured and protected by the Slow Food Presidia.

If you would like to know more about this interesting and extraordinary process, Slow Food Sunshine Coast is going to feature a documentary, starting at 10:30am, about some of the Slow Food Presidia foods (while I am not sure if it covers the cheese in a sack, it covers foods along a similar vein) at the Maleny Community Centre on Thursday 3rd September.  Go and have a look, and find out more about some of these interesting food processes that Slow Food is ensuring that we do not forget and afterwards you might like to enjoy Sudha’s lunch offerings at the Sacred Chefs Slow Cafe.

If you would like to read more about ‘cheese in a sack’ visit:
www.slowfoodfoundation.org/eng/presidi/dettaglio.lasso?cod=310

This post was written by Petra Frieser – Local Harvest

Author: Local Harvest