Rumi cheese ( , also spelled ) is one of the main types of
cheese
Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...
in
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
. Despite its name (
Rūmī, literally "Roman"), the cheese is Egyptian. It has a pungent smell, and different degrees of saltiness depending on the age.
It is also known, e.g. in the United Arab Emirates, as Ras cheese.
Description
Rumi is the main hard cheese in Egypt. It belongs to the same family as ''
pecorino romano
''Pecorino romano'' (; ) is a hard, salty Italian cheese made from sheep milk, often used for grating over pasta or other dishes. The name ''pecorino'' means 'ovine' or 'of sheep' in Italian; the name of the cheese, although protected, is ...
'' and ''
manchego
Manchego (, ) is a cheese made in the La Mancha region of Spain from the Sheep milk, milk of sheep of the Manchega breed. It is aged between 60 days and 2 years.
Manchego has a firm and compact consistency and a buttery texture, often containin ...
''. Rumi cheese is made from cows' milk, or from
buffalo milk
The water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis''), also called domestic water buffalo, Asian water buffalo and Asiatic water buffalo, is a large bovid originating in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Today, it is also kept in Italy, the Balkan ...
.
No
starter culture
A fermentation starter (called simply starter within the corresponding context, sometimes called a mother) is a preparation to assist the beginning of the fermentation process in preparation of various foods and alcoholic drinks. Food groups w ...
is used. The milk is natural, with full cream.
Peppercorns may be added. After 3–4 months the cheese develops an open texture and a sharp, pungent flavor. Rumi is available in disks or as slices with variable weight in vacuum packing. There are 100
calorie
The calorie is a unit of energy that originated from the caloric theory of heat. The large calorie, food calorie, dietary calorie, kilocalorie, or kilogram calorie is defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of one liter o ...
s in an
ounce
The ounce () is any of several different units of mass, weight, or volume and is derived almost unchanged from the , an Ancient Roman unit of measurement.
The avoirdupois ounce (exactly ) is avoirdupois pound; this is the United States ...
serving, with about 28%
saturated fat
A saturated fat is a type of fat in which the fatty acid chains have all single bonds between the carbon atoms. A fat known as a glyceride is made of two kinds of smaller molecules: a short glycerol backbone, and fatty acids that each cont ...
.
Related products
The addition of low levels of
pregastric esterase (used in
blue cheese production) or lipases from ''R. miehei'' or ''R. pusillus'' has been reported to improve the flavor of ''ras'' and ''
domiati'' cheeses.
In 1985 an experimental Ras cheese was made using equal amounts by volume of cow and buffalo milk, plus an additional 20% to 30% of soy milk. The fat content was lower than natural cheese, and the flavor was affected slightly, but the aged result was said to have "satisfactory sensory properties". Although the fermented cheese ''
mish'' is traditionally made from
Areesh cheese, commercial products similar to ''mish'' may be made from ''ras'' and ''
domiati'' cheeses.
See also
*
Egyptian cuisine
Egyptian cuisine makes heavy use of poultry, legumes, vegetables and fruit from Egypt's rich Nile Valley and Delta. Examples of Egyptian dishes include rice-stuffed vegetables and grape leaves, hummus, falafel, shawarma, kebab and kofta ...
*
List of cheeses
This is a list of cheeses by place of origin. Cheese is a milk-based food that is produced in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms. Hundreds of types of cheese from various countries are produced. Their styles, textures and flavors dep ...
*
Areesh cheese
*
Domiati
Notes
References
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{{Cheese
Egyptian cheeses
Egyptian cuisine