Feta


Feta is a brined curd white cheese made in Greece from sheep milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat milk. It is a crumbly aged cheese, commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture in comparison to other cheeses. Feta is used as a table cheese, in salads such as Greek salad, and in pastries, notably the phyllo-based Greek dishes spanakopita and tyropita. It is often served with olive oil or olives, and sprinkled with aromatic herbs such as oregano. It can also be served cooked, as part of a sandwich, in omelettes, or as a salty alternative to other cheeses in a variety of dishes.
Since 2002, feta has been a protected designation of origin product in the European Union. According to the relevant EU legislation, only those cheeses produced in a traditional way in particular areas of Greece, which are made from sheep's milk, or from a mixture of sheep's and up to 30% of goat's milk from the same area, can be called feta. However, similar white, brined cheeses are made traditionally in the Eastern Mediterranean and around the Black Sea and more recently elsewhere, often partly or wholly of cow's milk, and they are sometimes also called feta.

Description

Feta is a soft brined white cheese with small or no holes, a compact touch, few cuts, and no skin. It is usually formed into large blocks, which are submerged in brine. Its flavor is tangy and salty, ranging from mild to sharp. Its maximum moisture is 56%, its minimum fat content in dry matter is 43%, and its pH usually ranges from 4.4 to 4.6. Feta is traditionally categorized into firm and soft varieties. The firm variety is tangier and considered higher in quality. The soft variety is almost soft enough to be spreadable, mostly used in pies and sold at a cheaper price. Slicing feta produces some amount of trímma, "crumble", which is also used for pies.
High-quality feta should have a creamy texture when sampled, and aromas of ewe's milk, butter, and yoghurt. In the mouth it is tangy, slightly salty, and mildly sour, with a spicy finish that recalls pepper and ginger, as well as a hint of sweetness.

Production

Traditionally, feta is produced using only whole sheep's milk, or a blend of sheep's and goat's milk. The milk may be pasteurized or not, but most producers now use pasteurized milk. If pasteurized milk is used, a starter culture of micro-organisms is added to replace those naturally present in raw milk which are killed in pasteurization.These organisms are required for acidity and flavour development. When the pasteurized milk has cooled to approximately, rennet is added and the casein is left to coagulate. The compacted curds are then chopped up and placed in a special mould or a cloth bag that allows the whey to drain. After several hours, the curd is firm enough to cut up and salt; salinity will eventually reach approximately 3%, when the salted curds are placed in metal vessels or wooden barrels and allowed to infuse for several days. After the dry-salting of the cheese is complete, aging or maturation in brine takes several weeks at room temperature and a further minimum of 2 months in a refrigerated high-humidity environment—as before, either in wooden barrels or metal vessels, depending on the producer. The containers are then shipped to supermarkets where the cheese is cut and sold directly from the container; alternatively blocks of standardized weight are packaged in sealed plastic cups with some brine. Feta dries relatively quickly even when refrigerated; if stored for longer than a week, it should be kept in brine or lightly salted milk.

History

Though cheese made from sheep's or goat's milk is documented in Greece from the 8th century BC, and was widely consumed in ancient Greece and in later Greek gastronomy, feta cheese in particular is first recorded in the Byzantine period under the name prósphatos, and was produced by Cretans and the Vlachs of Thessaly. In the late 15th century, an Italian visitor to Candia, Pietro Casola, describes the marketing of feta, as well as its storage in brine.
The Greek word feta comes from the Italian word fetta 'slice', which in turn is derived from the Latin word offa. It was introduced into the Greek language in the 17th century, became a widespread term in the 19th century, and probably refers to the practice of slicing cheese in order to place the slices into barrels.

Certification

After a long legal battle with Denmark, which produced a cheese under the same name using chemically blanched cow's milk, the term "feta" became a protected designation of origin in October 2002—which limits "feta" within the European Union to mean brined cheese made exclusively of sheep's or sheep's and goat's milk in the following regions of Greece: Peloponnese, Central Greece, Epirus, Thessaly, Macedonia, Thrace, and the islands of Lesvos and Cephalonia.
In 2013, an agreement was reached with Canada in which feta made in Canada would be called “Feta style/type cheese” cheese, and would not depict on the label anything evoking Greece. Canadian companies using the "feta" name before October 2013 can continue to do so.
According to the Commission, the biodiversity of the land coupled with the special breeds of sheep and goats used for milk is what gives feta cheese a specific aroma and flavor. When needed to describe an imitation feta, names such as "salad cheese" and "Greek-style cheese" are used. The European Commission gave other nations five years to find a new name for their feta cheese or stop production. Because of the decision by the European Union, Danish dairy company Arla Foods changed the name of its white cheese products to Apetina, which is also the name of an Arla food brand established in 1991.

Nutrition

Like many dairy products, feta has significant amounts of calcium and phosphorus.
Feta is lower in fat and calories than aged cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano or Cheddar weight-for-weight because it has higher water content. The cheese may contain beneficial probiotics.
Feta, as a sheep dairy product, contains up to 1.9% conjugated linoleic acid, about 0.8% of its fat content.
Feta cheese is very high in salt, at over 400 mg sodium per 100 calories.

Similar cheeses

Similar cheeses can be found in other countries: