Blessed are the cheesemakers
Trip Start
Jan 30, 2007
1
80
816
Trip End
Dec 31, 2011
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Athens,
Greece
Friday, May 23, 2008
I made three cheeses: feta, ricotta and cottage cheese.
Feta, as you may know, comes from Greece, and is a curd cheese, marinated in brine. Traditionally made with sheep or goat milk, it is also made with cow's milk.
And since 2005, I theoretically can't call the cheese I make feta, because of some EU regulation about it having to come from the country of origin and having at least 70% sheep's milk. That's the bad news.
The good news is that I am in China, where anything goes, and copying is encouraged. So all you protective types in the eastern Mediterranean, watch out, cos soon China is going to swamp the EU with cheap feta.
We'll be shipping huge blocks of the grainy white cheese in vats of salty water to the tables of Europe, for salads and pastries. We'll be swamping Greece with tangy, semi-hard feta for spanakopita and tyropita (cheese pie). So you Crete peasants and Balkan farmers, watch out. There will be feta-style cheese coming to a shop near you with a 'Made in China' stamp on the back.
