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Cheese from Georgia, Samtskhe-Javakheti

Meskhuri chechili (Meskhetian chechili)მესხური ჩეჩილი

Skimmed cow milk is left to sour to 45–50 °T, then set in 5–10 minutes at 38–40 °C. The curd is heated and stirred at the same temperature until large pieces stick together, and the cheese is pulled by hand into threads 6–8 cm long. The threads are coiled on a table, cooled and tied into rope-like bundles; a smoked version also exists.

Fully documentedCheese5 min – 10 minGeographical indication (Georgia reg. no. 8, 24 January 2012); PGI in the UK under the UK–Georgia agreementFamily: Pasta filata (stretched-curd) cheese family

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification sets the acidity, temperatures and times but no batch size or doses. A bundle weighs 0.5–3 kg.
Skimmed (fat-free) cow milk[uk-spec]

Total time across the recorded steps: 5 min – 10 min

Start
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Milk sugarLactic acid

What changes: The skimmed milk ripens until its acidity reaches 45–50 °T

Step 1 of 5
Ripen the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Skimmed cow milk is left to sour to 45–50 °T, then set in 5–10 minutes at 38–40 °C. The curd is heated and stirred at the same temperature until large pieces stick together, and the cheese is pulled by hand into threads 6–8 cm long. The threads are coiled on a table, cooled and tied into rope-like bundles; a smoked version also exists. Made in 5 steps over 5 min – 10 min. The longest step, set the curd, takes 5–10 min (Georgian geographical indication specificatio…) and runs at 38–40 °C (Georgian geographical indication specificatio…).

Key numbers
Main step5–10 minSet[uk-spec]Set the curd
Temperature38–40 °CSet[uk-spec]Set the curd

What makes this one different

The Meskhetian form of chechil, made from fully skimmed cow milk that is soured before setting. The curd is pulled into short threads and tied into bundles.

Size
Rope-like bundles of 0.5–3 kg
Composition
The specification lists moisture at most 60%, fat in dry matter at least 20% and salt 4–8%, under a heading that names Megruli sulguni, so the block appears copied from that cheese's file

Related ferments

Variants

  • SmokedThe same cheese, smoked.

Safety

The specification does not say whether the milk is heat-treated; it gives only the curd temperature, 38–40 °C. In a study of Cecil cheese, a related Turkish string cheese, Staphylococcus aureus was found in 8 of 15 household samples.

Hazards the sources name: Staphylococcus aureus (mean 6.4 x 10^2 cfu/g, not detected in 46.66 % of samples) and coliform bacteria (mean 8.5 x 10^1 cfu/g in the positive samples), in Cecil cheese from Erzurum households, a related Turkish string cheese (no study of the Georgian cheese itself was found).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Registered as a Georgian geographical indication on 24 January 2012 at the request of the Ministry of Agriculture of Georgia, and protected in the UK as a PGI from 31 December 2020 under the UK–Georgia agreement.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
  1. [uk-spec] Georgian geographical indication specification 'Meskhetian Chechili', registration no. 8 of 24/01/2012 (English text published by Defra)spec
  2. [uk-spec-2] GOV.UK, Protected food name 'მესხური ჩეჩილი / Meskhuri Chechili', PGI, registered 31 December 2020 (UK trade agreement)gov
  3. [dikbas2010] Dikbaş N., Şengül M., Ertugay M.F. 2010, Microbiological and compositional characteristics of Cecil cheese collected from households in Erzurum, Turkey, Asian Journal of Chemistry 22(1):483–491 (abstract, via the Atatürk University AVESIS record)paper
  4. [elmali2011] Elmalı G., Uylaşer V. 2011, Geleneksel gıdalardan çeçil peynirinin üretimi ve özellikleri (Production and properties of Cecil cheese, a traditional food), Uludağ Üniversitesi Ziraat Fakültesi Dergisi 26(1) (abstract)paper