My Childhood CHEESE Recipe! 😍 How to Make Halloumi At Home?

Today is the day of Halloumi. I learned how to make halloumi from my aunt, who is from Lefke. We milked the cows/goats in the morning and until about eleven am we already got the got fresh halloumi! That is how easy to make halloumi. Today I would like to show to how to make halloumi from scratch and I believe that it is even easier than making your own bread at home!

5 L raw milk, you can use pasteurized milk as well but it tastes better with raw milk.
1/2 teaspoon rennet powder
1/2 cup water
2 handfuls salt
Salt
Fresh mint

Bonus Recipe, Curdle cheese Lor(or Nor as we say in Cyprus)
2 lemon juice
1 L milk

• Pour the raw milk into a big pot and warm it to 35 C (95 F).
• If you don’t have a thermometer, you can dip your finger inside the pot. It should feel just a bit colder than your body temperature.
• To turn the milk into cheese, combine the rennet powder with warm water (35 C-95 F) and mix until it dissolves.
• Add the rennet mixture into the milk and stir gently.
• Close the lid with leaving some space and cover the pot with a blanket.
• Let it sit for about 30 minutes. During this time, milk will form into curd.
• To wake the curd up make small and gentle cuts with a spatula or knife. Then use your hands and break up the curd into rice size particles.
• Put a sieve on the curd and let it sit for 5 minutes to let the curd sink and separate from whey.
• After 5 minutes, sieve what is in the pot and collect the whey in a pot.
• Divide the curd in three and put each one in the cheese sacks/baskets. Then press each one to get rid of the excess water and shape them.
• While you are placing the curds into sacks pour some cold water to help the cheese hold together. Flip each cheese for 4-5 times and pour over cold water each time.
• After all halloumi are placed into sacks, add the 1L milk into the whey to make curdle cheese. Boil the milk and add lemon juice or vinegar to separate the whey and curdles. Sieve the milk and collect all the curdle cheese. Salt if desired That is the by-product of halloumi.
• Boil the whey again and add the salt. Transfer the cheese in the baskets to the pot and boil until they float. This is the step where we cook the raw milk so it is essential and will give the amazing form of halloumi.
• Take out the cheeses from the whey and add 3-4 pinches of salt to each one while they are warm. Fold over each cheese and place some fresh mint leaves into each one.
• Enjoy with your sandwiches, pasta recipes or sizzle with some butter and garnish your soups with delicious halloumi!
►Rennet Powder links,

To follow what is happening in our kitchen and cooking school;

[milawong]

On behalf of all the living things: animals, veggies, bacterias etc., thank you for not wasting anything. You are an amazing person! On top of being the best chef and a teacher!

[aimeemorgado]

My mother always said: "Enough is as good as a feast." Using what you have and connecting abundance with stewardship and sustainability is such a beautiful concept. Gratitude is one of the lovely outcomes. I am grateful for your channel and your followers.

[hananyousef]

In my country, we have the famous halloumi sandwich, fried with a sprinkle of za'tar, sliced olives and tomatoes 🥰

[aybikemeelis]

This is not a cooking show anymore, its like a biology/chemistry lesson😄Dont you love Refika!❤

[letstalkem]

I’m half Turkish Cypriot and Half Turkish but born and raised in London, UK. I love watching you guys, you not only show beautiful morals and manners and represent Turkish people well but you introduce traditional cooking to us all and make it so easy for us to cook! Thank you guys ♥️

[irinadimulescu]

I immensely enjoyed watching this clip. Since I retired, I have been an amateur cheesemaker, making all kinds of aged cheeses, but I have never made Haloumi! I am making something somewhat similar, an Italian cheese called Piacentinu Ennese. After you press it, you put it with the basket in the hot whey and keep it there for several hours, but then you have to age it for 2-3 months. I am so inspired by your clip that I just sent my husband to the market to buy 2 gallons of milk so I can make it today. Thank you so much. I love your channel and the great recipes you share with us.

[jensonlim]

Lovely! Just to say, "Lor" is similar to "ricotta" - the byproduct of a previously made cheese. Equally awesome.

[cstz]

I still remember watching my grandmother milk the goats and making cheese by hand, when I was very little, here in my country. Even if the process here is quite different, seeing your care, and how you use traditional instruments, is making me remember her so much, and I'm actually a bit emotional. One of my biggest regrets is that I was too young to learn the whole process from her, so I might give this one a try as a way to honour both cultures. Such a pleasure to watch this one, thank you.

[sushilaluchoomun]

Hi Refika and team. I'm from Mauritius. Don't know if you ever heard about this country. I've been to Istanbul some ten years back and only two person knew my country.... I came across your videos while browsing and since I'm addicted. I loved Turkish cuisine and now this..wow. ive been preparing some of them. Here we do prepare Nor but we call it paneer. And i use the liquid to prepare any dough. There's many things in common in our cuisine and some vocabulary too. Well dear continue to please us. Thanks

[Meggs]

"A cow attacked me..." I can only assume Refika was trying to make friends with the cow and the cow was just having a bad day. Refika is pure love and light. Thank you lady for all that you do.

[janetbarkwith]

I very often make adighe (Circassian) cheese, (not dissimilar from halloumi, but I use yoghurt as a starter and it's raw, not cooked cheese) and then make my bread using the whey instead of mixing with water. it makes lovely, light and tasty bread.

[saldimaggio]

Thanks Refika for your great video which has finally made sense to me. Have watched so many others and they just don't explain the basic science of it as they go alone. Well done and thank you. Ciao :)

[Armymum]

I love trying to make different cheeses at home!!! I like you comparing it to making bread. Everytime I think it's too difficult to make, I remind myself these are ancient food products that people have made for centuries, long before cookbooks or technology. We can do this!!!! I can't wait to try this!!!

[JezreelFigura-veql]

Refika, I love your stories and background that you share with us during your videos. It’s sweet and the time you take to shoot videos in English is much appreciated! Thanks Refika and team! ❤

[admiralgran]

I live in Wyoming USA - cheese options are slim - and it costs too much to have it mailed in. I am so excited to see your recipe and look forward to trying it. As for the whey - I heard you can use it to water plants, , but this has salt in it so am not sure it would be good for that, hopefully someone here knows. Bless you and I pray things get better - all over the world.

[neloreal]

“This is the whey” 🤣🤣🤣🤣cracked me up with that Mandalorian reference. You guys are the best, I'm always learning and laughing.

[laviniap]

You look great Refika. Better every time. Thank you for the recipe 😊

[vivianramsay]

I'm collecting all kinds of raw milk recipes as I have a neighbor with a small dairy. Just made my first butters today 😀and now want to make sure I'm using all the milk parts up! Yes, we feel the same, can't waste any! I'm finding you have all the recipes I need plus a few extra I didn't know about! Thank you! Your channel is amazing!

[mariafusco]

You brought me back to my childhood when my mother made rennet custard, sweet, delicious! Thank you so much!

[mertakcay]

Bu tarifin hem Türkçesini hem İngilizcesini izledim, bir noktadan sonra neden aynı tarifleri burada da izliyorum bilmiyorum :D Harikasınız, tarzınızla ve savunduklarınızla. 💖