Tulum cheese - cheese making technology and main characteristics

摘要

Tulum cheese is a specific kind of cheese which is typical of the countries of the Balkan Peninsula, but some of its varieties are also produced in Algeria and Lebanon. In the different countries the cheese is designated with different names. In Romania it is known as branza de burduf, in Bosnia and Hezegovina its name is mjeh, in Croatia it is called misina or sir iz misine. In Algeria it is known as bouhezza and in Lebanon as darfiyeh. In Turkey and Bulgaria it is designated as tulum cheese. In fact, the variety of names for this kind of cheese in the different languages is related to the specific step of technology which is applied in the production of the cheese.The unique traditional technology is characterized by ripening of the cheese curd in an animal skin bag (tulum), which has been prepared for this purpose in advance. Traditionally, the cheese is made from raw sheep's or goat's milk, but it is also possible to use cow's milk or a mixture of these kinds of milk. There is also some variety in the technological processes in the cheese production.The lactic acid bacteria are the main microflora of the cheese, but in some cheese varieties yeast and moulds are also found. The specific and strong taste and flavour of the cheese is due to the proteolytic and lypolytic activity of its specific microflora which takes part in the processing of the cheese curd and during the cheese ripening.