One of the simplest Armenian cheeses to make is to take the ubiquitous muenster and transform it into a wonderful, gooey, hot cheese for your toast or cheoreg.
One of my favorite cheeses for a quick breakfast is actually one of the very simplest one to make. I don’t really know if it even has a proper name – it was just something the my grandmother always had on hand. Its taste is very close to the traditional Armenian string cheese, but its eating texture is very soft and gooey. It’s terrific on toast or cheoreg.
There are no real measurements to follow. Simply buy a brick of muenster cheese at the grocery store and slice it into chunks that are about ¼ - ½ inch thick, about ½ inch wide and about an inch long – but don’t get out a measuring tape…it doesn’t have to be “exact.”
Next take a jar or plastic bowl that you can cover tightly and some kosher salt – enough to cover the amount of cheese you’ve just cut up. I have also used regular table salt to cure the muenster in – it seems to work just fine – but my grandmother always used kosher salt for this process.
Sprinkle a nice layer of salt in the bottom of the container, add a layer of cheese, then salt, then cheese and so on, until you have used up the cheese and salt is the last layer. Seal tightly and put it into the refrigerator to cure for about two weeks – or until the cheese is now hard and the milkfat and whey have rendered of the cheese.
To prepare this cheese, take a small saucepan and fill it with water (about 1n inch). Add the cheese you want to use and bring the whole thing to a gentle simmer (DON’T BOIL). The cheese will soften and become gooey – and much of the salt will come out. Then, just spread the cheese on bread and enjoy!
