Quick Ricotta Cheese
- Soomaali
- Farmaajo Rikoota
- Français
- Ricotta Rapide
- العربية
- جبنة ريكوتا
By Leila & Abdullahi · ·
It is possible to think of cheese and not think of Somalia. When it comes to cheese, we believe Somalia is the closest you can get to a country that is the direct opposite of France. Yes, we are a nation of milk, with meat and milk (cad iyo caano) being the closest thing we have to a national dish. Yet, cheese is not in our vocabulary.
So what happens when you start making cheese in a non-cheese country? For a start, your name gets changed. Your last name becomes “cheese”. So, for example, if your name is Hassan, everyone starts calling you Hassan “Farmaajo”, farmaajo meaning cheese from the Italian formaggio. And Hassan “Farmaajo” was actually what everyone called the only cheesemaker in Mogadishu, Somalia.
Hassan made different kinds of cheeses, but the one we remember well was the fist-sized, creamy balls of fresh mozzarella. He had a large clientele and used to supply the major hotels in Mogadishu. We also remember him delivering to some of his regular customers.
We did not grow up on cheese, and back in Somalia even our homemade pizzas, surprise, had no cheese topping. Before you start feeling sorry for us, we would like to tell you that since leaving Somalia, we have made up for every gram of cheese we did not eat during our childhood. We LOVE cheese, all kinds except the very stinky ones.
Homemade ricotta is not only easy to make but is also so much better than most of the store-bought varieties. We like to spread it on a good, crusty bread and have it for breakfast or a snack. It is not justy tasty but also healthy.
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Ingredients
1 cup = 237 mL · 1 Tbsp = 15 mL · 1 tsp = 5 mL. All are level measurements.
Recipe #1
Recipe #2
Method
Tap a step to mark it done.
Steps for preparing the ricotta Pour the milk into a 5.5 litre stainless steel or non-reactive pot and place it over medium heat. For a creamier ricotta add cream. Stir every 5 minutes to prevent scorching. Heat until the milk begins to steam, gets foamy, and just starts to simmer at 190°F/ 88°C.
Remove the pot from the heat, then add the salt and vinegar (or lemon juice). For every litre of milk, add 3 tablespoons white vinegar or lemon juice.
Stir gently three or four times to distribute the acid evenly. Cover and let it stand for 15 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, gently transfer the curds to a fine-mesh sieve.
If you do not have a fine-mesh, line the sieve with paper towels.
Drain for 20 minutes or less for a moister ricotta cheese. You can rinse the cheese with two cups of cold water if you wish to get rid of the vinegar or lemon taste.
Comments
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Guys plz tell meh how to make mozzarella ?
So delicious and easy. I also loved your little story about Hassan Farmaajo. 🙂
Assalamualaikum, could u pls tell me that how many cups of cheese will i get with this recipe? JazakALLAH.
Makkah , ksa
Assalaam alaykoum from Bosnia and Herzegovina!
I just want to tell you how awesome your blog is and how useful it is for me and my family. We love your recipes, the way you present them in videos and the music too… May Allah bless you and award you for your deeds and efforts. It is hard to find nice food blogs made by Muslims on the Internet these days, and yours is shining like a bright star…
Best wishes! 😀
Wa’alaikum Assalam Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.
Thank you very much for your kind words. It is appreciated. It is good to know that we have friends in Bosnia who follow our blog.
Merci pour cette recette
Mais’ j’ai une question
؟كم كمية الريكوتا الناتجة ؟
وفيم يمكن استعمال المصل ؟
وجزاكم الله خيرا
لم نوزنه، يمكن استعمال المصل في تحضير المرقة او بعض انواع الشربة