Sirene

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For the mythical being, see Siren.

Sirene (Bulgarian: сирене; Macedonian: сирење; Serbian/Croatian: сир/sir) is a type of white brine cheese made in Bulgaria and Republic of Macedonia, similar to feta cheese. It's a very popular cheese not only in Bulgaria and Republic of Macedonia, but also in surrounding countries. It is usually made with a combination of sheep and cow milk. It is crumbly with a fat content of 40-45%. It is commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. Sirene has a fresh lemony taste. It is used as a table cheese, as well as in salads and in baking.

[edit] Recipes

White cheese, together with yoghourt, is the national food of Bulgarians. Every Bulgarian eats almost daily some white cheese and yogourt in some form. Traditional dishes using sirene are:

Soups: Potato or vegetable soup with white cheese (сиренява чорба).

Salads: Shopska salad with tomatoes, peppers, cuccumbers, onions and white cheese. Ovcharska salad ("shepherd's salad") with the above mentioned vegetables, cheese, ham, boiled eggs and olives. Tomatoes with white cheese are a traditional light salad during the summer.

Eggs: Bulgarians often eat fried eggs and omelettes with white cheese. There is also a very popular kind of boiled eggs over mashed white cheese with a souce of yogurt, garlic, persil and walnuts (яйца по панагюрски; eggs a la Panagyurishte).

Pasta and cornmeal: Bulgarians very often eat spaghetti with white cheese and tomato sauce or ketchup. For breakfast makaroni or flat noodles (юфка) with cheese and sugar are popular. Kachamak (the local variant of cornmeal, polenta or the Romanian mămăligă) is always eaten with cheese.

Pastry: The traditional banitsa and other kinds of pastry are also made with white cheese.

Stuffed peppers: Stuffed peppers are more often made with rice filling but there is a very popular recipe with cheese-and-eggs filling.

[edit] White cheese in other countries

Sirene originated on the Balkan peninsula, in a region called Trakia (Thrace), today a part of southern Bulgaria. Bulgarians also refer to sirene as "white brine cheese". It was originally made with goat's milk, but the predominant variation today is made with sheep and cow milk.

The word "feta" originated in Italy, but feta cheese is commonly thought to be a Greek cheese. It has been promoted this way, although different types of feta cheese are made in many different countries.

In Romania white cheese is called brănză and in Russia - брынза.

In Turkey white cheese is called "beyaz peynir".

In Israel a hugely popular style of white brine cheese is called "bulgarit" (בולגרית) - literally, "Bulgarian."

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