Sunday, April 5, 2009

Saganaki - Fried Halloumi Cheese

I absolutely love cheese, and one of my favorite treats is Saganaki or Greek Fried Cheese. Normally I use Kefalotyri, fry it up, dump brandy on it and put out the flames with a squeeze of lemon juice. But I have been gone all weekend and still need to go grocery shopping for the week. So I used the Halloumi I already had in the refrigerator and, sans flamage, made a quick snack after my trip back from Aliso Viejo.

Halloumi is a cheese from Cyprus, made from Goat and Sheep milk. It has an unusually high melting point, thus the ability to fry it and create a crust white the cheese remains intact as a cohesive slice. It has a piquant and salty flavor imparted from the brine it is stored in. Quite delicious..

4 oz Halloumi
1 tsp Olive oil

Slice Halloumi into 4 slices.

Heat oil in a skillet over medium flame
add the cheese and fry 2 minutes.

Turn cheese over and fry 2 more minutes.

Serve.


Simple, Quick, Delicious... Best served with warm Flat bread, however, much to my chagrin, I found out I was out of Flat bread after I was already frying the cheese, so a fork works too... Yeah, I definitely need to go grocery shopping tomorrow.

Mangia!
.
at

5 comments:

  1. BobApril 6, 2009 at 7:21 AM

    I love fried cheese. There is a little Greek restaurant in Cambridge that I go to sometimes and I always get something that looks kind of like that. I can't remember the name of it, but they set it on fire and the cheese gets all melty. They give you homemade pita to put it on and olives, if you are into that stuff. Man is that good.

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  2. Shane T. WingerdApril 6, 2009 at 7:25 AM

    YUM! Yeah, That is my favorite way to do it. I wonder if they are using Keflotyri or Halloumi?

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  3. SpryteApril 6, 2009 at 9:44 AM

    YUM!! That looks awesome!!!!

    I've never seen cheese that doesn't melt!

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  4. AlineApril 7, 2009 at 11:12 AM

    Just a little correction, Shane: in Greece we don't flame saganaki. Traditionally, in Greece, we use Kefalotyri, Kefalograviera or Kaseri (Halloumi is a Cyrpiot cheese [and no, Cyprus is not a Greek island, it's an independent Greek- and Turkish-speaking country]), either simply fry it, pan- or deep-fried, transfer to plate and serve with a wedge of lemon to be squeezed on top.

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  5. Shane T. WingerdApril 7, 2009 at 11:19 AM

    Aline - I have heard that before, I guess it has become a show piece in the restaurants here in the US. Thanks for letting me know that Halloumi was from Cyprus and not Greece. :)

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