| Anari | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country of origin | Cyprus |
| Region, town | Islandwide |
| Source of milk | Goat or sheep milk |
| Texture | Very soft to very hard |
| Aging time | None |
| Certification | N/A |
Anari (Greek:αναρή,Turkish:nor) is afresh mildwhey cheese produced inCyprus. Although much less known than other Cypriot cheeses (e.g.halloumi), it gained popularity following publicity. One of the main industrial producers on the island won a silver medal award for anari in the 2005World Cheese Awards in theUK.[1]
Thewhey used is usually a by-product in the production process of other harder cheeses, commonly that ofhalloumi orkefalotyri cheese.[2] The whey is gradually heated to 65 °C (149 °F) in a large cooking bowl. A small amount of goat orsheep milk (5–10%) can be added at this temperature to improve the end product quality. The temperature is then increased to boiling point, whilst mixing. At 80–85 °C (176–185 °F) small crumbly curds of anari start forming and are skimmed off the surface using aslotted spoon or acolander. They are placed in a container that allows further drainage and then cut into cubes of roughly 10 cm sides.[3] Excluding the drainage, the above process takes roughly one hour.[citation needed]
In its simple form, anari has a chalk-white appearance with a very soft consistency, similar in many ways to the likes ofmizithra cheese,cottage cheese andricotta. Salt is often added and the product dried through gentle heating (in bygone times it was just left in the sun) and further maturation to create an extremely hard variant.
100 g of commercially produced fresh anari has a typical composition of:[4]
| Fat | 15 g |
|---|---|
| Carbohydrates | 2 g |
| Proteins | 11 g |
| Cholesterol | 80 mg |
| Energy | 195 kcal |
Anari is also known in Cyprus asanalati anari (Greek:ανάλατη αναρή) meaning "unsalted anari", since the regular anari is salted. Also anari has a prominent place in Cypriot culture as it is mentioned in the traditionalfairy taleSpanos and the forty dragons.[5][6][7]
