What irritates me, olive oil... Nothing but olive oil. What the fuck is with 20 different brands of olive oil but a single avocado oil, generic "vegetable oil", and if you're lucky a single type of peanut oil. So many grocers do this crap.
i'm half greek and we always had a large tub in the fridge with a giant block of feta cheese that we got from euromart or armenian shops. we would often rotate between greek, french and bulgarian feta. all are great. but now that i'm away for college i can't find feta sold in brine anywhere near me. also a classic greek snack or appetizer is pita bread, feta cheese and olive oil. it goes without saying the higher quality your ingredients the better it will taste. you can add stuff to it like garlic, black pepper. but if you add more than just a couple things you might as well just make a greek salad and serve with a side of pita.
Brine is boiled water and salt just make it yourself lol. If i am bored i do not boil the water, it would not last as long but is is the same thing boiling kills the bacteria in the water.
I live in Greece and I’ve never heard of feta with cow’s milk. I just asked friends and it turns out you can’t call cheese made from this kind of milk feta here, so that’s why. I think that’s true all over the EU. Instead, it’s called ‘white cheese’ and it’s cheap and tasteless to be honest. There are so many varieties of feta here, from sharp to creamy, each for different flavor pairings. Greece has lots of other great cheeses too, btw
well thats your opinion. cow style feta or salt brined cheese call it whatever you want is made all across the balkans. People just make cheese with whatever animals they have. My family used to have sheep and cow and made cheese of both. Just because sheep feta is more famous doesn't make it better than anything else lmao
I’ve always been a sucker for greek cuisine, especially feta cheese (feta sprinkled on your oven fries is some primo stuff). For the longest time, apart from what I’d be getting from restaurants in retrospect hoping it’s authentic, I only ever bought the grocery store feta. I never complained because it still had that great feta taste that you can’t get with many other cheeses. Until my local Greek market opened back a few months ago and I got the real shit. Can never go back. Gonna plug Dodoni feta. It’s authentic, made with a blend of sheep and goat milk, set in brine. The depth of flavor, the saltiness, the tang, it just doesn’t compare to the feta you’d get in grocery stores, really to any other cheese you can get. I think trying the real deal solidified the fact that feta may just be my favorite cheese. Anyone looking to try authentic feta, check if you have a local Greek market, not only for feta but for anything authentic Greek cuisine. This partial Greek American thanks you for your support!
I'm glad Dodoni has gone full circle. I grew up in greece and it used to be really good. Then for a while it went downhill in taste and quality, but now like a full 12 years later it sounds like it came back. Gonna have to try and get some.
I just got back from Greece a few weeks ago and all of the stipulations around what can and can't be truly qualified as feta absolutely blew my mind. AND the amount of pride the Greek people hold for real deal Feta is admirable, to say the least. This video does such a great job of breaking it all down, as always. Thank you sir!
Feta cheese is first attested on Homer's Odyssey. I don't know the exact details but i know that when they registered it as european protected name they used a passage from the Odyssey as evidence
It’s pretty common here in Europe. You’ll find hundreds of regulated names for traditional food. Parmigiano, Roquefort, Blue Stilton, Manchego, many cheeses can only be named as such if they’re from the region and made under certain processes and ingredients. Even in some food you probably wouldn’t expect, like German pumpernickel or Spanish nougat. It’s a great thing for the consumer, as you know just by the label that the product will have a minimum quality. And if you want a cheaper product you can buy the imitation, you always have an alternative. I think it’s a great way to preserve the culture and help the industry to keep higher standards. If you buy “Parmesan” in the US, you don’t know if it will meet expectations (unless you buy something with the Parmigiano EU label). In Europe, you can’t call it Parmesan unless it’s the real one.
@@quentindesca281 I was just gonna say, we have strict rules on product naming… if it ain't cutting it, you can't call it that… same goes for olive oil, parmeggiano reggiano, Champagne and so on
@@AlexandreBFK it's not about the quality of the product, it's only about where it has been made. The rule is called PDO - Protected Destination of Origin, so only feta made in Greece can be actually called feta.
Good video. Quick tip: when handling feta in brine, do not use your fingers; use a utensil like a fork instead. Your fingers can introduce bacteria which can cause mould and shorten the shelf life of the feta.
@@theveyron164 The brine would generally halt the growth of any introduced bacteria, yes. It's one of those things where it's a good idea to use a fork or whatever, but if you use your hand it's going to be fine.
It's his own stuff. Who cares. I doubt he's serving it up to everyone. All these people who make these food videos literally buy the stuff to waste just for the videos. Relax.
As a greek, who actually lives in Greece i agree with most of the stuff said in this video. In our family we consumed sheep and goat feta cheese for the longest time before we start buying cow's cheese which here is under the name white cheese (λευκό τυρί) NOT cow's feta. Right now i am vegan and i have to say that vegan white cheese is quite more saltier than feta and that's a new achievement lol
This is interesting because there's a Greek cafe near where I live (in Scotland) that sells tiropita which is described as being made of 'feta and white cheese'. I found this confusing, because feta IS a white cheese, in the literal sense. Thanks for clearing it up!
Hi, I am confused. Is vegan white cheese is plant based or you're calling yourself vegan by mistake instead of vegetarian? I follow plant based diet. What plant based greek cheese would you recommend? Thanks.
@@fgaze72 i am vegan. My family aren't. So they consume white cow cheese, but i make a concoction of tofu vinegar and spices as long as buying actual VEGAN cheese
This is one of the major issues with the Australian-EU Free Trade Agreement. Greece is trying to 'regional brand' the Greek word for cheese. The largest Greek community outside Greece is quite grumpy about this, as they have been making it according to their family recipes since emigrating in the 1950s.
@@TheGfxJG In Sweden the same product is called Apetina. It's thanks to Arla only real Greek Feta can be sold as Feta. They launched this product in the 90's as Feta - leading to Greece getting mad and us getting these rules.
Been born and raised in Greece, and living in the UK the past 15 years, the best way to get the real deal is simple. Trust the greek brands ie; FAGE, MEVGAL, DODONI, etc … they normally mention “produced in XXXX XXXX city, Greece”
I don’t know how it is now with Brexit, but until recently, the UK had to follow EU regulation. So you only had to look for the EU label and you could know it was feta.
Hi Ethan, great video (as always). One caveat: any cow-milk cheese does not qualify as 'feta' here in Greece to begin with. So, we're talking either sheep or a sheep-goat combo (in particular ratios). I would recommend either "Dodoni" or "Epirus" brands. Although "Mevgal" is not bad either... ;)
@@ChaosSwissroIl Ever had lamb from Greece and Wales? Same animal, wildly different taste. Had milk from a pasture-grazing grass-fed cow and a grain-fed cow confined in a tiny stall? A Cabernet Sauvignon wine with grapes grown in France and one with grapes grown in China? Same fruit, same variety, very different results. Where the animals have been raised makes a difference. What they have been fed makes a difference. Where their food has been grown makes a difference. Then, you have the difference between craftsmen. If you and I make the same dish, chances are they won't taste the same, even if we follow the same recipe. How I like to season may not be how you like to season. Maybe I want to add that extra pinch of salt. Maybe I want to pick a more peppery olive oil and you like a sweeter/fruitier one. Maybe I like to boil my pasta 2 minutes longer and you like to keep them al dente. Does that mean you can't make a cheese similar to feta in another part of the world if you follow the same guidelines? Obviously not, it exists and it's called white cheese or feta-style cheese or anything in between. It can be delicious, it might be cheaper and if it covers your needs, more power to you. I like certain bubbly wines far more than I like the region-protected Dom Perignon champagne. And they are much cheaper, score! But I don't have any kind of internal need to call them champagne nor do I feel like I am the victim of some big corporation conspiracy that wants to take away my rights to claim I am having champagne. Call my bubbly wine "Princess Consuella Bananahamock III" and I will still cheerfully consume it any day of the week over Dom Perignon and laugh my way to the second bottle I can easily afford over splurging on the single one of "the real stuff". However, not all bubbly wines are made the same but when I get champagne, I expect certain things, which I am guaranteed to get if they are called champagne. And I can understand that Dom Perignon is not the same as Moët Impérial, even though they are both champagnes. Same way I understand my Dr. Martens made in England are not the same as my Dr. Martens from their factory in China. They look the same... they are called the same... They are definitely not the same and I do wish they weren't called the same, cause I paid the price for what the UK-made Martens used to mean in terms of quality, but got their far inferior but equally expensive Chinese version. All the above would explain why while only a specifically made cheese made in a specific part of the world can be called feta, there can still be a difference between different manufacturers of that specific cheese in that specific region of the world. Hope it helps. I am personally not that concerned about the stifling of all producers of white cheese in the world nor of the sparkling wine-makers nor of those who make Parmesan cheese and can't call it Parmigiano Reggiano. They seem to be doing ok.
This is a great idea. The other benefit is that you can control the saltiness of your feta. After a couple days, the cheese will reach equilibrium with your brine.
That was also my immediate thought since I do it all the time. You can also further modify the flavour profile by changing the saltiness of the brine. Low to no salt will drain salt from the cheese, not last as long but still longer than exposed to air. High salt will increase saltiness and I sometimes add some chilli for an interesting kick. But Feta is not really an ideal vessel for flavour so unless you want to surprise people just make a flavoured oil.
You could make basically the exact same video for halloumi. Mediterranean, should be goat and sheep milk, but cow milk approximations are more common in some countries. Salty and delicious.
I have McGee's "On Food and Cooking" as well. When I read about how True Ricotta is made entirely of whey protein, I thought of using hydrated whey protein powder to make the cheese. Since Ricotta is recooked milk protein coagulated with acid, I figured whey protein powder would work. Whey protein powder is already cooked and slightly denatured, so all that's needed to make Ricotta from the powder is adding water, heat to 190F, and add acid. I tested the theory and IT WORKED! True Ricotta can be made from whey protein powder.
@@Serena-or7sl because water + whey is not naturally acidic like siero, the acid added to the water + whey primarily influences freshness. I have not experimented with different acids yet, and primarily used distilled white vinegar for a proof of concept. Maybe acid from citrus fruits produce a fresher cheese?
I love how informative and well-structured your videos are. Just a suggestion, when you include pictures for comparison between the different types of food (e.g. in this video an example is the pictures of the nutrition label of different types of feta cheese), highlight what you want the viewers to see because I found myself having to pause and look for the detail you were trying to point out
I spent a summer in Greece and fell in love with feta. I ate it almost everyday. Coming back to America, feta is not good at all. The crumbles is equivalent to the Parmesan powder people often put on pizza.
@@lilliehalumi8770 There is no "Bulgarian" Feta, Feta is a Greek cheese and since you are Greek, you should know about it. I guess you are talking about a Bulgarian cheese that has a similar style to Feta.
I’m a Canadian of Greek descent and u shared a great idea … “use the brine for chicken!” Here are a few more tips … 1. Never put your fingers in the brine, it won’t last as long. 2. Cut the cheese in a manner that the remainder is always submerged in the brine. It will last longer. 3. Dodoni is available at my local Costco, though I’ve tried to save money by buying Kirkland Greek cheese. It’s not the same. 😕 I hope this helps someone.
Another one from the Balkans here (I am from Bulgaria). If I may add- the crumbles are used in baked pastry. They are made from something like “leftovers” from the making of the feta cheese. Usually they are not so salty because the salt is added on later stage of the making- they are more tasteless and used in pastry so you can actually taste the pastry (as you said the feta is very salty). Edit: for us (the Bulgarians this thing you call yogurt has nothing to do with the Greek one).
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I'm from Germany and lived over 6 months in Mexico. When i found 'feta' cheese in a store i was so happy and wanted to show it to my friends, because i love it! Little did i know, that everything is allowed to be called feta... It was the worst cheese i had in my life. When i looked at the ingredients because it tasted bad to me i found out that i was made of skimmed cows milk. I thought it was the same with the protected name than in Europe. I was so disappointed that i never bought 'feta' cheese there again. I'm going back to Germany soon and i cant wait to eat a good piece of feta cheese again 😍
Great video. The PDO marking doesn't just dictate the fact that the cheese is made in the geographical area, but also the production has to meet some standards. What this means is that they have to produce it by the EXACT same recipe and procedures and with the same tools used as in the historical version(this means that if the cheese has to brine in oak wood barrels they cannot switch for any other type of wood)
I personally prefer soft feta, because it's more fragrant and creamy, and hard feta is harder to chew and stinkier. In my supermarket I usually buy feta from the island of Kefalonia❤️🤗🇬🇷
Years ago, I lived near one of many Russian grocery stores in my city, and the store had fetas from multiple countries, like Greece, Bulgaria, Israel, and more. Each one was different.
I was literally thinking about making your Orzo salad tonight and saw this video! Thank you for the feta knowledge. I love your channel and all your videos
Hello. Great video. As a Greek and a cheese lover let me point this: "FETA" means 70% Sheep's milk and 30% Goat's milk. Anything other than that is "FETA-style", or as we call it here in Greece "white cheese". My personal favourite is pure goat's milk white cheese, you should try it if you get the chance.
As a cheese monger I thought I’d let you know that Goat milk actually is the lowest fat. In ascending order it would be goat, cow, sheep then Buffalo. It’s why people who are sensitive to lactose tend to not react to goats milk cheeses.
That's also why feta tends to have goat milk too! The Greek population has a low percentage of people who are able to digest lactose efficiently, so most of our traditional milk things tend to be low in lactose
in the late 90's I have been to Crete (with my parents on a holiday), we were a little bit of the tracks and then found a grocery store, where locals shopped. In that shop they had a large amphora with feta submerged in brine. Trust me there is nothing tasting like this in the western world.
We got some Myzithra from Crete back when I lived in Athens. Myzithra is a byproduct of making feta. The mizithra we got from crete we could kill for when we were kids. We ate it on bread as a spread. I think grandma kept it frozen in a plastic bag.
@@luiysia lol no, we are a mix of Asia, Europe, Balkan and Mediterranean. Just because the *foundations* of the western world were based on Greece's culture doesn't mean that it is like that. We are no America but also no Middle East. Take a look at Italy who is the closest one to our culture
As Konstantinos said, Myzithra is the real shit if you like sour cheese. But keep in mind, if you want to try it, come to Crete and go around some non touristic villages to buy some, the real stuff is hidden over there.
This really helps me plan for future uses. I however use feta most in a hot prep with eggplant and tomatoes where I actually prefer it to stay crumbly, not get creamy, so now I understand why the recipe using cow's milk seems to work better
As someone mentioned above, please make a video on oils! Would love to learn about what applications are best for each, what we should look out for when buying them, etc.
THANK YOU! I buy feta every week and store brand has failed me so many times. I opt to buy the most expensive variety I can find or from a cheesemonger by me to avoid disappointment but i’ll keep these tips in mind.
sheep's milk feta is so much more creamy and flavorful than cow milk "feta". You also get a much more salty kind of flavor and there's just much more smoothness and just general stronger taste to it. It spreads like firm cream cheese. The cow's milk stuff usually is way too rubbery in texture and kind of tastes bland and "cheap" to me at least. I also brine my sheep's milk feta after opening to store it in the fridge, just put it into a container, pour some water in and then give it a few big pinches of salt.
@@SuWoopSparrow I think Americans do care. The problem is our political structure is far to the right of the average American, 30 years older and significantly more white and male.
Love these detailed, informative and focused video clips. So helpful. There are lots of kitchen products that could use the same type treatment. Thanks.
Absolutely love the video, I was just thinking of buying a ton of feta cheese to make salads for the next few weeks as part of my diet and this was incredibly helpful. I had no idea what the differences were at all and this saved me a ton of time on research Keep up the amazing work!
as a greek person feta cheese is the most crucial thing to have in our country, just because it is so important to be made a specific way and the pride is definitely a huge part because it is a european protected name cheese and the judging from local people if the feta is 100% legit is extremely harsh even in our own country😅
@@pehash Europe sure does have weird obsessions with demanding their food be to extremely specific requirements to have the name that definitely referred to a far wider range of resulting end products traditionally.
not bad, i never stopped to think about many of the things you talked about. i always bought pre gratted feta, today I bought for the first time feta in brine.
Ingredient report: Pickled onions were seen at 0:15 - 0:20, 2:11 - 2:15 and 3:46 - 3:55. Mayo was not seen in this video. 200 sub special coming July 30th! I'm sorry about the delay, but I'm pretty busy with summer school right now. I swear you won't be disappointed! As always, this has been your ingredient report.
Was going to comment saying the lack of pickled onions was disturbing.. but I failed to notice them in the background. Thanks for your service, what would we do without you!
@@ethanspantryreport948 Still disappointed he didn't suggest a recipe that incorporated both feta cheese and pickled onions.. since apparently he eats lots of both in a week
The cows milk feta is also great for hot dishes where you want it to stay firmer, for example crumbles mixed into a turkey burger (with cumin, which I highly recommend).
I’d recommend the book, Real Food/Fake Food by Larry Olmsted to anyone who wants to know more about the rampant mislabeling and counterfeit foods that goes on in our grocery stores.
I am watching this as a Turkish viewer and a lower of Feta style cheeses. We have this cheese that can be translated as "White Cheese" which is basically the same style of cheese making. Having a cows milk cheese is much more common here in Turkey. A lot of sheep/goats variations have some percentage of cow to keep the price reasonable. To prevent the over salty taste we rinse the outside of the block and pat it dry before serving. Also having a percentage of fat is common. Full fat/high fats are common for eating i.e. breakfast or salads while lower-fat ones are for baked goods like börek, or pastries. When I'm out of the country and crave this familiar taste I go for Feta, or if I cant find greek variations I go for te Bulgarian cheses. As alongside this region a lot of countries have their take on this style of cheese making. Try them! Could be very useful when you cant find your fave in the market.
You should look into the Turkish variation called "Beyaz Peynir". These come in all sorts of milk and most brands offer different types with different fat contents. It might look strange that this cheese even comes in 1kg steel cans, but as it's easy to store and delicious i went through a couple of cans of cheese already. Quite a few chefs I know use Beyaz Peynir in dishes to replace feta as it's cheaper and easier to buy bulk. While the taste is not 100% the same as feta, a bit creamier in my opinion, Beyaz Peynir is 100% delicious as well. TL:DR the Turks do this type of cheese very well!
nice comment that was wat i try to say but my english is to bad:D idk why they love feta i aktually prefer cow milk the others have a to storng flavor.
i eat heaps of feta and didnt know a fair bit of this stuff, great vid! when buying feta id focus more on finding a type/brand which tastes the best rather than trying to find the perfect texture. i would much rather have a great tasting one which doesnt melt much or isnt that soft, compared to one which might be soft and melty but tastes like ass
My wifes Yia Yia makes pita and this chicken dish that's pretty insane. She never lets me see her making the chicken dish, but the potatoes in it are.... welll..... LOL YA!!!
It really annoys me when companies or countries ignore the food inventions and traditions of others. Feta is from Greece and made from Ewe or Goat milk. Simple. Anything else should have a completely different name, even if the product is similar. And not cheat by using "Greek-style" or something idiotic. We need more respect and more support for great food from around the world, and not live off rip-off products created by companies who don't give a damn.
I actually like crumbles for salad. The drier, more compact nature of it just works when you throw salad dressing (especially a ranch type) on it. For everything else, it's the best block I can find.
The Feta I buy is imported from Greece and carries the protected origin stamp. Thats how I know that it is Greek Feta. Feta style cheeses exist but are typically called salad cheese because they are not Greek Feta.
I get mine in dry blocks from a discount club but I bring it home, mix up my own brine and store it in that in an air tight container and it does really well.
You should try Bulgarian white cheese, Ethan!!! Feta is nice, but Bulgarian white cheese is the real deal, especially if made from sheep's milk. Great video though!
I never really understood why people focus on the greek one. All the neighbouring countries (bulgaria, turkey etc.) have something very similar, wish we got a little bit more recognition!
Yea. Though each of said countries does have a slightly different flavor to thier cheese, they are pretty similar to the Greek stuff. Its just that it happened that Greece was better at marketing it i suppose
Personally I really dislike the taste of goat/sheep milk and cheese so I love cows milk feta (which in the netherlands is often called ‘white cheese’ or ‘salad cheese’), not even feta
Right on! Based on the info I looked at for this video I think in the EU if it's made with cow milk its not allowed to be called feta, but in the US it's a naming free for all lol.
@@EthanChlebowski we take food names very seriously in europe. I cringe everytime someone calls weird american cheese "swiss", as though there werent hundreds of distinct types of cheese from switzerland
Very good information here. I am a home cheesemaker and routinely make feta and kefalotyri with cows milk. Just recently I discovered a source for goats milk and am looking forward to making these cheeses with it. They are really easy cheeses to make, and for a retiree on a tight budget, very economical. I can turn 10 ltrs of whole milk into almost 3 pounds of delicious feta cheese for an average cost of about $9.30 at todays prices.
There is a dish called μπουγιουρντί (i am sorry can't write in English) it's almost the same thing aw the pasta from tic toc but you use a clay container you put feta,a yellow cheese like kefalotyri(it's optional), tomato, salt, oregano, sliced pepper and put it in the oven. Then use the same clay container to serve it (no pasta) it's a traditional appetizer great for a Christmas or easter family table ore even a barbecue with friends (instead of the clay container wrap everything on aluminium foil and put above the charcoal for a few minutes )
I have taste French, Danish and Bulgarian style Feta nothing is better than the Greek feta. So I disagree with you when you saying being Greek it doesn't mean is better. In Greece we have hundreds of Feta producers. Most of them very local producers that you can only find them in specific regions of Greece. These producers makes Amazing Feta that can't compare with the famous export firms that you taste In America. If you want to try quality and tasty feta then you need to taste it here, in Greece not in America or anywhere else.
I frequently do tofu salads with minced green onion, century egg and sesame oil (pretty standard Northern Chinese salad). I added some crumbs of feta and it was genuinely amazing.
Hey, so now this is right up my alley. My extended family contains a few of the known and old makers/traders of feta of northern Greece, but I am not in the trade. I do dabble amateurishly in making cheese from time to time, but my input here is going to be outtakes from stories of the older family members, as best I can remember it. Plus some personal/family opinions. First of all: The "cow feta" term will make everyone laugh really hard. There never was any appreciable amount of cows in Greece. It's all goats and sheep over here, so as one would expect everything related to local cheesemaking always was just sheep/goat. But it is a much cheaper milk, so people around the globe tried to inject that term through marketing. And since Greece dropped the ball on the feta term/PDO really hard during the 80's/90's, it did catch on. And that's why it's prevalent in the US, but something that's in the same isle as santa in Greek markets. Same thing goes for the crumbles, first time I saw these is in your video. Some backstory on the sheep/goat contents: There's a saying here: Drinking milk from cows, yogurt from sheep and cheese from goats. So traditionally, goat was considered the superior of milks for cheese. The problem was that goat milk was (for sure), and still is (mayyybe?), the most expensive one. So cheese-makers started cutting the usual white goat cheese with sheep's' milk. Enter the creation of feta. Now the percentages of goat to sheeps milk varied from area to area, and given that my family herded goats, we like (and probably at some point made) 75% goat. But then (80's? 90's? not sure) there was a standardization of feta in Greece. And that's how the 75% sheep was established (is it actually 70? I'm not sure). Apparently the southerners had more political pull, and since they have less mountains, had more sheep. And that's how that went, according to the oldest of my uncles. There's a funky counter-productive (in my opinion) thing going on with the feta making: Since sheep's milk is so fat, part of the process is to skim the mixture or otherwise the feta is a no go. Which sounds super daft and lends credence to the "just put more goat milk in there". Also, there never was anything other than rennet in goat cheese/feta. Somewhere around the 90's the "dodoni" brand became quite popular and I think they started using cultures. The entire family was up in arms (they were trading that brand after all) for the insolence. It created a very mushy/creamy product that tended to ooze coagulated brine. It did catch on though and now is one of the most well known brands. But they spoiled our precious, and we hatses them for it :P Brine: I wouldn't store any piece of feta/goat-cheese is anything other than brine. It just dries out, flakes and goes yellow really fast. The brineless small packets you have can get away with this because they are such very small portions that they don't stick around long enough to go bad. We usually have 30kg metal tins with the feta in it full of brine. Which is actually where it usually matures (nope, never saw any wooden barrels in my life). As long as the cheese stays under the surface of the brine (there's usually a piece of paper that helps keeping the top wet), keeping the cheese around for months (not sure about a year). Also, you can actually re-use the brine. Just make sure it's the same type of cheese. It might start getting some odor or color after a few uses. In that case you can just boil it, strain it, and back in the fridge it goes. Opinions: So we're all goat cheese in the family. The flavor it packs is much more, and the texture is much firmer. It has a bite. So if there's a slice of cheese on the table (topped with some oil and oregano), it's going to be straight goat. In other applications where you might not want to have that much taste and texture, feta is acceptable. Let's say pies. Cooking is a maybe here. Oh, and goat cheese these days is often cheaper than feta, so it we went full derp on that end. As far as brands go, I can recognize the mevgal there. It's one of the biggest producers and apparently exporters. It's an ok product. I'm a fan of the drier goat cheese. Not a family produce, but trikki does make a mean "petroto" goat cheese. You can spot the kind through the shape (spherical) and the mesh markings on the outer edge of the cheese. That's because it's hanged in a mesh. But I think it's highly unlikely you would find something like this in the US. On the other hand, it's not rocket science. These cheeses are as simple as they can get, so I wouldn't be surprised if you can get good cheese from a local maker. There's some pretty crazy small cheesemakers in this world.
My egyptian grandmother has been buying authentic arabic feta for years, its delicious. It tastes like greek feta but is much more creamy rather than crumbly. Try a culture specific supermarket to get authentic stuff made in other countries.
So it's not a feta cheese, it's a feta like cheese. You cant make any cheese that looks like feta and name it that way if it's not a real feta cheese recipe
@@stefanostanatzis8067 Sorry, oh cheese god, he who is in charge of all cheese. It's feta. the cheese my grandmother buys is made to be feta cheese because its feta cheese. How are you going to comment on the validity of what I'm saying if you don't have the box of cheese my grandmother buys in front of you. The world is getting dumber and dumber.
@@IxXMadPenguinXxI you said it yourself smartass that it tastes LIKE greek feta and it doesn't have the same texture. Plus the feta is only greek so you can't call that cheese Arabic feta. There's no such thing like an Arabic feta
@@stefanostanatzis8067 You are one stubborn idiot. It TASTES EXACTLY LIKE GREEK FETA AND IS CREAMY IN TEXTURE. is that more exact for you? And the text written on it is in ARABIC, and it's made in a country that clearly speaks that language.
@@stefanostanatzis8067 thgere are no sutch thing as greek feta its just a Coyright chesse. all other balkan contry have the same chesse greek is not even special.
@@exsanguinatedd OP is the one coping, thinking that their country's regulations makes them superior. I only see Europeans (by that i mean people from EU countries) and Americans care about things like this, it's really stupid and bizarre
In the Eastern Mediterranean there is a lot of "White Cheese in Brine" made from Cow, Sheep and Goat milk. The Greek call it Feta. Just as widespread as in Greece is the white brine cheese in Bulgaria, Turkey, Macedonia, Serbia and the other Balkan and easter Mediterranean countries. In Turkey this cheese is called beyaz peynir 'white cheese', in Macedonia сирење sirenje, in Serbia сир sir, in Bulgaria сирене sirene, in Romania brânză and in Russia брынза Brynsa. In Israel, a well-known brand of brine cheese is called בולגרית bulgarit, which literally means 'Bulgarian, Bulgarian'. In France, Valbreso brand brine cheese is very close in taste to Bulgarian brine cheese. In Georgia, brine cheese is called sulguni, in Albania djathë. Feta is not the original, its just one of the many "White Cheese in Brine"
@@lepil00 White cheese is mentioned but it wasn’t called feta as the word feta in modern Greek comes from The Greek word feta (φέτα) comes from the Italian fetta 'slice', which in turn is derived from the Latin offa 'morsel, piece
There is a lot of this in Europe, because the EU has protected terms regarding food and wine. You can Google "eAmbrosia" and find the official database. There is 1557 foods, 1622 wines, and 251 spirits that have protected names. Most known are probably Feta, Champagne, Prosciutto de Parma (Parma ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, Camembert, Cognac etc. There are both regional protections etc. Champagne must come from the Champagne region, and ingredient protections such as Feta must be made a certain way
I might be wrong (if so, correct me) but in EU we have something called Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) that ensures that if something is called feta cheese in EU, it's in fact, feta cheese. That's why at the supermarket you can find that salty, crumbly cheese that resembles feta but is called salad cheese instead.
How much is it in the US? In Denmark, cows "Salad style cheese" is about $3,8 pr lbs. Where real feta is $7,1. Real cheddar is about 25% more expensive, and parmesan almost twice as expensive as real feta.
@@Akinto710 I live in germany, and I think the parmesan part is rather similar. However, it takes me so much longer to use up a piece of pamesan that I just grate over pasta, compared to feta I e.g. cook in the oven as a whole. I think the "salad style cheese" is about 1.something per block (200-300g), whereas authentic greek feta is about 2-3 € for the same amount of cheese
There is a simple traditional Greek food called Dakos that involves feta. Very easy to make with no cooking involved. Just some rock hard rusks that you have to wet to render edible. Olive oil, Feta, good tomatoes. Oregano and I don't remember what else. But it's a great dish and you can make it in minutes if you have the ingredients. Edit: I call it a dish I guess it's considered more of an appetizer or snack.
My Romanian family loves Feta cheese. I grew up believing that my mother always bought the Romanian variety, in brine of course. But since moving out and buying my own groceries, I have realized that my favourite Feta, the one that reminds me the most of the flavour and texture of my childhood, is Bulgarian Feta. I absolutely love it!
Thanks for the feta lesson ! I've often wondered why I get different results with certain hot and cold dishes with different brands and textures and what with goats and sheep's and cow's milk and this and that ! I genuinely thought it was more or less the same tbh.. I feel like the feta King now with this knowledge.. 😀 👍
The US need some regulation for these kind of cheese, this is basically scam to call some random cow milk cheese feta honestly. You can't do that here in France.
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Can we get a similar styled video on oils? Like Olive Oil. There’s so many kinds at the grocery store!
Yes please
Unfortunately, the extra virgin olive oil you buy at the grocery store is most likely rancid, unless you’re buying from a specialty store.
What irritates me, olive oil... Nothing but olive oil. What the fuck is with 20 different brands of olive oil but a single avocado oil, generic "vegetable oil", and if you're lucky a single type of peanut oil.
So many grocers do this crap.
A lot of Extra virgin olive oil is a fake. Mixed with refined olive olis and artificially coloured. It's a world wide problem.
Dang I would love to see something similar with oils too!
i'm half greek and we always had a large tub in the fridge with a giant block of feta cheese that we got from euromart or armenian shops. we would often rotate between greek, french and bulgarian feta. all are great. but now that i'm away for college i can't find feta sold in brine anywhere near me.
also a classic greek snack or appetizer is pita bread, feta cheese and olive oil. it goes without saying the higher quality your ingredients the better it will taste. you can add stuff to it like garlic, black pepper. but if you add more than just a couple things you might as well just make a greek salad and serve with a side of pita.
feta, olive oil, oregano. that's like the holly trinity. went through a phase where i would eat just that after school.
wtf no greeks eat this, we dont eat pita in our homes
@@theodosioskantasmd7388 you sit on a throne of lies!
Brine is boiled water and salt just make it yourself lol. If i am bored i do not boil the water, it would not last as long but is is the same thing boiling kills the bacteria in the water.
@@chicomarlin1246 born and lived my whole life in greece...we eat psomi not pita in our homes...when we go out for souvlaki we eat the pita...
I live in Greece and I’ve never heard of feta with cow’s milk. I just asked friends and it turns out you can’t call cheese made from this kind of milk feta here, so that’s why. I think that’s true all over the EU. Instead, it’s called ‘white cheese’ and it’s cheap and tasteless to be honest. There are so many varieties of feta here, from sharp to creamy, each for different flavor pairings. Greece has lots of other great cheeses too, btw
My dream is to go to Greece one day. I hope someday it happens 🤩
Yeah the cows milk variety is called salad cheese where I come from
well thats your opinion. cow style feta or salt brined cheese call it whatever you want is made all across the balkans. People just make cheese with whatever animals they have. My family used to have sheep and cow and made cheese of both. Just because sheep feta is more famous doesn't make it better than anything else lmao
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@@artan. It's not just their opinion, in Europe you literally can't call it "feta" if it isn't the real deal.
I’ve always been a sucker for greek cuisine, especially feta cheese (feta sprinkled on your oven fries is some primo stuff). For the longest time, apart from what I’d be getting from restaurants in retrospect hoping it’s authentic, I only ever bought the grocery store feta. I never complained because it still had that great feta taste that you can’t get with many other cheeses.
Until my local Greek market opened back a few months ago and I got the real shit. Can never go back. Gonna plug Dodoni feta. It’s authentic, made with a blend of sheep and goat milk, set in brine. The depth of flavor, the saltiness, the tang, it just doesn’t compare to the feta you’d get in grocery stores, really to any other cheese you can get.
I think trying the real deal solidified the fact that feta may just be my favorite cheese.
Anyone looking to try authentic feta, check if you have a local Greek market, not only for feta but for anything authentic Greek cuisine. This partial Greek American thanks you for your support!
I'm glad Dodoni has gone full circle. I grew up in greece and it used to be really good. Then for a while it went downhill in taste and quality, but now like a full 12 years later it sounds like it came back. Gonna have to try and get some.
Δωδωνη=dodoni
It's my favourite feta! I will eat other brands, but Dodoni is my household standard! Lidl has it too, often in discount :D
Great choice of Feta ,..dodoni is making a real effort in the past few years
Dodoni is magical.
I just got back from Greece a few weeks ago and all of the stipulations around what can and can't be truly qualified as feta absolutely blew my mind. AND the amount of pride the Greek people hold for real deal Feta is admirable, to say the least. This video does such a great job of breaking it all down, as always. Thank you sir!
It's a European protected name , this is centralized for all of Europe . I can't create any cheese and call it feta.
Feta cheese is first attested on Homer's Odyssey. I don't know the exact details but i know that when they registered it as european protected name they used a passage from the Odyssey as evidence
It’s pretty common here in Europe. You’ll find hundreds of regulated names for traditional food. Parmigiano, Roquefort, Blue Stilton, Manchego, many cheeses can only be named as such if they’re from the region and made under certain processes and ingredients. Even in some food you probably wouldn’t expect, like German pumpernickel or Spanish nougat. It’s a great thing for the consumer, as you know just by the label that the product will have a minimum quality. And if you want a cheaper product you can buy the imitation, you always have an alternative. I think it’s a great way to preserve the culture and help the industry to keep higher standards. If you buy “Parmesan” in the US, you don’t know if it will meet expectations (unless you buy something with the Parmigiano EU label). In Europe, you can’t call it Parmesan unless it’s the real one.
@@quentindesca281 I was just gonna say, we have strict rules on product naming… if it ain't cutting it, you can't call it that… same goes for olive oil, parmeggiano reggiano, Champagne and so on
@@AlexandreBFK it's not about the quality of the product, it's only about where it has been made. The rule is called PDO - Protected Destination of Origin, so only feta made in Greece can be actually called feta.
Good video. Quick tip: when handling feta in brine, do not use your fingers; use a utensil like a fork instead. Your fingers can introduce bacteria which can cause mould and shorten the shelf life of the feta.
Yep, I was cringing everytime he was touching the cheese and brine with his fingers. Great tip 👍🏾
Did not know this. Always reached in before. The brine wouldn't kill bacteria? But good to know, from now on.
Bacteria can't live in brine. That's why it's a preservative. Sheesh.
@@theveyron164 The brine would generally halt the growth of any introduced bacteria, yes.
It's one of those things where it's a good idea to use a fork or whatever, but if you use your hand it's going to be fine.
It's his own stuff. Who cares. I doubt he's serving it up to everyone. All these people who make these food videos literally buy the stuff to waste just for the videos. Relax.
As a greek, who actually lives in Greece i agree with most of the stuff said in this video. In our family we consumed sheep and goat feta cheese for the longest time before we start buying cow's cheese which here is under the name white cheese (λευκό τυρί) NOT cow's feta. Right now i am vegan and i have to say that vegan white cheese is quite more saltier than feta and that's a new achievement lol
This is interesting because there's a Greek cafe near where I live (in Scotland) that sells tiropita which is described as being made of 'feta and white cheese'. I found this confusing, because feta IS a white cheese, in the literal sense. Thanks for clearing it up!
@@fgaze72 don't sweat it. Its cheaper this way and a tiny bit lighter for the stomach
@@fgaze72 Feta is a white cheese, but not all white cheeses are Feta :D
Hi, I am confused. Is vegan white cheese is plant based or you're calling yourself vegan by mistake instead of vegetarian? I follow plant based diet. What plant based greek cheese would you recommend? Thanks.
@@fgaze72 i am vegan. My family aren't. So they consume white cow cheese, but i make a concoction of tofu vinegar and spices as long as buying actual VEGAN cheese
This could be a series covering all the cheeses!!
I know I'd love that
Pleaseeeeee ethannnn
Dude seriously. Understanding cheese differences would be a lifelong fundamental benefit. I'd watch the hell out of that.
Yes pleaseee
YESSS
In Europe only real Greek stuff can be called Feta, others are just called Greek style cheese
In Denmark the fake stuff is literally sold as "Salattern", or translated, "Salad cubes".
This is one of the major issues with the Australian-EU Free Trade Agreement. Greece is trying to 'regional brand' the Greek word for cheese. The largest Greek community outside Greece is quite grumpy about this, as they have been making it according to their family recipes since emigrating in the 1950s.
@@TheGfxJG In Sweden the same product is called Apetina. It's thanks to Arla only real Greek Feta can be sold as Feta. They launched this product in the 90's as Feta - leading to Greece getting mad and us getting these rules.
@@brendanrobertson5966
that’s their issue 🤷🏻♂️
I prefer it this way
In Bulgaria we just call it "white cheese" or just "cheese", it's a big part of the everyday cuisine and only the Greek stuff is called feta
Been born and raised in Greece, and living in the UK the past 15 years, the best way to get the real deal is simple. Trust the greek brands ie; FAGE, MEVGAL, DODONI, etc … they normally mention “produced in XXXX XXXX city, Greece”
I don’t know how it is now with Brexit, but until recently, the UK had to follow EU regulation. So you only had to look for the EU label and you could know it was feta.
@@jmiquelmb its exactly the same
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My favorite I've found in the UK so far is Yamas brand. It has PDO certification.
I am greek! And i love cheese like feta!
Hi Ethan, great video (as always). One caveat: any cow-milk cheese does not qualify as 'feta' here in Greece to begin with. So, we're talking either sheep or a sheep-goat combo (in particular ratios). I would recommend either "Dodoni" or "Epirus" brands. Although "Mevgal" is not bad either... ;)
@@ChaosSwissroIl I merely stated facts. What you make out of them (or you don't) is your concern...
@@ChaosSwissroIl Ever had lamb from Greece and Wales? Same animal, wildly different taste. Had milk from a pasture-grazing grass-fed cow and a grain-fed cow confined in a tiny stall? A Cabernet Sauvignon wine with grapes grown in France and one with grapes grown in China? Same fruit, same variety, very different results.
Where the animals have been raised makes a difference. What they have been fed makes a difference. Where their food has been grown makes a difference.
Then, you have the difference between craftsmen. If you and I make the same dish, chances are they won't taste the same, even if we follow the same recipe. How I like to season may not be how you like to season. Maybe I want to add that extra pinch of salt. Maybe I want to pick a more peppery olive oil and you like a sweeter/fruitier one. Maybe I like to boil my pasta 2 minutes longer and you like to keep them al dente.
Does that mean you can't make a cheese similar to feta in another part of the world if you follow the same guidelines? Obviously not, it exists and it's called white cheese or feta-style cheese or anything in between. It can be delicious, it might be cheaper and if it covers your needs, more power to you. I like certain bubbly wines far more than I like the region-protected Dom Perignon champagne. And they are much cheaper, score! But I don't have any kind of internal need to call them champagne nor do I feel like I am the victim of some big corporation conspiracy that wants to take away my rights to claim I am having champagne. Call my bubbly wine "Princess Consuella Bananahamock III" and I will still cheerfully consume it any day of the week over Dom Perignon and laugh my way to the second bottle I can easily afford over splurging on the single one of "the real stuff".
However, not all bubbly wines are made the same but when I get champagne, I expect certain things, which I am guaranteed to get if they are called champagne. And I can understand that Dom Perignon is not the same as Moët Impérial, even though they are both champagnes. Same way I understand my Dr. Martens made in England are not the same as my Dr. Martens from their factory in China. They look the same... they are called the same... They are definitely not the same and I do wish they weren't called the same, cause I paid the price for what the UK-made Martens used to mean in terms of quality, but got their far inferior but equally expensive Chinese version.
All the above would explain why while only a specifically made cheese made in a specific part of the world can be called feta, there can still be a difference between different manufacturers of that specific cheese in that specific region of the world. Hope it helps. I am personally not that concerned about the stifling of all producers of white cheese in the world nor of the sparkling wine-makers nor of those who make Parmesan cheese and can't call it Parmigiano Reggiano. They seem to be doing ok.
I grew up with Dodoni. Φakin Xell the best Feta ever.
Make your own brine for the other stuff. 2tsp salt in 1cup of water. Submerge. Preserved!
My mom does this all the time. Took me a while to figure out that the brine was the reason that I couldn't keep my feta lasting as long as her's.
This is a great idea! I think I saw they use a 10% brine for anyone doing metric.
Thank you!
This is a great idea. The other benefit is that you can control the saltiness of your feta. After a couple days, the cheese will reach equilibrium with your brine.
That was also my immediate thought since I do it all the time. You can also further modify the flavour profile by changing the saltiness of the brine. Low to no salt will drain salt from the cheese, not last as long but still longer than exposed to air. High salt will increase saltiness and I sometimes add some chilli for an interesting kick. But Feta is not really an ideal vessel for flavour so unless you want to surprise people just make a flavoured oil.
You could make basically the exact same video for halloumi. Mediterranean, should be goat and sheep milk, but cow milk approximations are more common in some countries. Salty and delicious.
Don’t believe it for a minute
I have McGee's "On Food and Cooking" as well. When I read about how True Ricotta is made entirely of whey protein, I thought of using hydrated whey protein powder to make the cheese. Since Ricotta is recooked milk protein coagulated with acid, I figured whey protein powder would work. Whey protein powder is already cooked and slightly denatured, so all that's needed to make Ricotta from the powder is adding water, heat to 190F, and add acid. I tested the theory and IT WORKED! True Ricotta can be made from whey protein powder.
Indeed.
Does it taste as fresh as ricotta? Even though it's main whey protein, there's a difference between siero and water + whey
@@Serena-or7sl because water + whey is not naturally acidic like siero, the acid added to the water + whey primarily influences freshness. I have not experimented with different acids yet, and primarily used distilled white vinegar for a proof of concept. Maybe acid from citrus fruits produce a fresher cheese?
I'm always microwaving cheese on a weird rock slab for some reason
Hahahahaha
I prefer to use my slates on the roof, can't stand getting food served up on a slate or a piece of wood
Right, what self-proclaimed foodie does this. lmao
I love how informative and well-structured your videos are. Just a suggestion, when you include pictures for comparison between the different types of food (e.g. in this video an example is the pictures of the nutrition label of different types of feta cheese), highlight what you want the viewers to see because I found myself having to pause and look for the detail you were trying to point out
I spent a summer in Greece and fell in love with feta. I ate it almost everyday. Coming back to America, feta is not good at all. The crumbles is equivalent to the Parmesan powder people often put on pizza.
Try Bulgarian Feta. I'm Greek, and I love it.
@@lilliehalumi8770 There is no "Bulgarian" Feta, Feta is a Greek cheese and since you are Greek, you should know about it. I guess you are talking about a Bulgarian cheese that has a similar style to Feta.
@@scarfacegr5 imagine gatekeeping feta to a Greek. Lmfao clown
Love that you didn’t just trash the cheap product. You did great really showing a good use for the different (not necessarily inferior) products.
I learn so much from this channel, one of my favorites out of all the cooking channels
I’m a Canadian of Greek descent and u shared a great idea … “use the brine for chicken!” Here are a few more tips … 1. Never put your fingers in the brine, it won’t last as long. 2. Cut the cheese in a manner that the remainder is always submerged in the brine. It will last longer.
3. Dodoni is available at my local Costco, though I’ve tried to save money by buying Kirkland Greek cheese. It’s not the same. 😕
I hope this helps someone.
Another one from the Balkans here (I am from Bulgaria). If I may add- the crumbles are used in baked pastry. They are made from something like “leftovers” from the making of the feta cheese. Usually they are not so salty because the salt is added on later stage of the making- they are more tasteless and used in pastry so you can actually taste the pastry (as you said the feta is very salty).
Edit: for us (the Bulgarians this thing you call yogurt has nothing to do with the Greek one).
I'm from Germany and lived over 6 months in Mexico. When i found 'feta' cheese in a store i was so happy and wanted to show it to my friends, because i love it! Little did i know, that everything is allowed to be called feta...
It was the worst cheese i had in my life. When i looked at the ingredients because it tasted bad to me i found out that i was made of skimmed cows milk. I thought it was the same with the protected name than in Europe. I was so disappointed that i never bought 'feta' cheese there again.
I'm going back to Germany soon and i cant wait to eat a good piece of feta cheese again 😍
Go better first to Greece before Germany 😂
@@Tenerisius They are not that far apart. It shouldn't be too hard to find genuine Greek feta imported to Germany in Germany.
You needed to get the Mexican cheese. coJita is amazing cheese in the same category as parm
Great video. The PDO marking doesn't just dictate the fact that the cheese is made in the geographical area, but also the production has to meet some standards.
What this means is that they have to produce it by the EXACT same recipe and procedures and with the same tools used as in the historical version(this means that if the cheese has to brine in oak wood barrels they cannot switch for any other type of wood)
Which is hilarious bullshit.
I go to a Middle Eastern produce market and purchase fresh Feta sitting in a brine bath they have multiple types from Domestic, Greek, Bulgarian
Bulgarian cheese is bomb
I personally prefer soft feta, because it's more fragrant and creamy, and hard feta is harder to chew and stinkier. In my supermarket I usually buy feta from the island of Kefalonia❤️🤗🇬🇷
Years ago, I lived near one of many Russian grocery stores in my city, and the store had fetas from multiple countries, like Greece, Bulgaria, Israel, and more. Each one was different.
I was literally thinking about making your Orzo salad tonight and saw this video! Thank you for the feta knowledge. I love your channel and all your videos
Hello. Great video. As a Greek and a cheese lover let me point this: "FETA" means 70% Sheep's milk and 30% Goat's milk. Anything other than that is "FETA-style", or as we call it here in Greece "white cheese". My personal favourite is pure goat's milk white cheese, you should try it if you get the chance.
I freaking love Greece 🇬🇷 med brothers 🇮🇹🤝🇬🇷
una faccia una razza
❤️
We love our Italian brothers
Spot on, no nonsense information delivered in an approachable way. This is why Ethan is THE MAN!
As a cheese monger I thought I’d let you know that Goat milk actually is the lowest fat. In ascending order it would be goat, cow, sheep then Buffalo. It’s why people who are sensitive to lactose tend to not react to goats milk cheeses.
Fascinating, I never knew that!
You're wrong.. Lactose is a sugar only produced by a cow. Goats don't create lactose
That's also why feta tends to have goat milk too! The Greek population has a low percentage of people who are able to digest lactose efficiently, so most of our traditional milk things tend to be low in lactose
@@therobot1080 exactly
Except lactose is a sugar, and not a fat?
The Mevgal you got there is like you're holding a gold bar. So precious!
in the late 90's I have been to Crete (with my parents on a holiday), we were a little bit of the tracks and then found a grocery store, where locals shopped. In that shop they had a large amphora with feta submerged in brine. Trust me there is nothing tasting like this in the western world.
We got some Myzithra from Crete back when I lived in Athens. Myzithra is a byproduct of making feta. The mizithra we got from crete we could kill for when we were kids. We ate it on bread as a spread. I think grandma kept it frozen in a plastic bag.
greece is like, the definition of the western world
@@luiysia lol no, we are a mix of Asia, Europe, Balkan and Mediterranean. Just because the *foundations* of the western world were based on Greece's culture doesn't mean that it is like that. We are no America but also no Middle East. Take a look at Italy who is the closest one to our culture
As Konstantinos said, Myzithra is the real shit if you like sour cheese. But keep in mind, if you want to try it, come to Crete and go around some non touristic villages to buy some, the real stuff is hidden over there.
I used to get Bulgarian feta out of a bulk bin in Montreal. Super-cheap and delicious!
This really helps me plan for future uses. I however use feta most in a hot prep with eggplant and tomatoes where I actually prefer it to stay crumbly, not get creamy, so now I understand why the recipe using cow's milk seems to work better
This answers the questions I've ALWAYS had about feta.
As someone mentioned above, please make a video on oils! Would love to learn about what applications are best for each, what we should look out for when buying them, etc.
THANK YOU! I buy feta every week and store brand has failed me so many times. I opt to buy the most expensive variety I can find or from a cheesemonger by me to avoid disappointment but i’ll keep these tips in mind.
i love this channel because you are not only learning how to cook but the science behind it too
sheep's milk feta is so much more creamy and flavorful than cow milk "feta". You also get a much more salty kind of flavor and there's just much more smoothness and just general stronger taste to it. It spreads like firm cream cheese. The cow's milk stuff usually is way too rubbery in texture and kind of tastes bland and "cheap" to me at least. I also brine my sheep's milk feta after opening to store it in the fridge, just put it into a container, pour some water in and then give it a few big pinches of salt.
Haha true. It seems cows milk feta is only good packaged in olive oil. Then again, what wouldn’t be good that way
Thanks for putting the orzo salad recipe in the description! 💕
I'm greek and I praise you my dear friend Ethan! Feta = Sheep ------> best cheese in the world.
You only need some bread and some feta and that's it!
A couple of tomato's would be good to.
@@patmos68 tomatoes 😘
@@patmos68 Of course my friend! How could I forget! A good ripe flavourful tomato is absolutely essential!
@@georgemantz2490 Preferably a really good ripe tomato eaten in a little taverna in Greece.
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I really like the topics you choose for your videos. You’re execution is great too.
Fun fact: in Germany only the real Feta is called Feta and the other stuff is called Hirtenkäse which translates to Shepherd‘s cheese.
your translation isn't quite there. Shepard is a Schäfer. You're looking for "herder".
Ethan it’s pretty cool visual explanation about differences in feta style cheese, hope it gonna be a series about differences in products.
The FDA needs to do a MUCH better job at labeling this stuff.
Facts
If the US cared more about food, then they would be better at labeling and all sorts of other things. Change the people and the FDA will follow
@@SuWoopSparrow I think Americans do care. The problem is our political structure is far to the right of the average American, 30 years older and significantly more white and male.
American businesses are against food labeling because apparently is not good for business.
@@Baphomets_Kid Openly racist is openly racist
Love these detailed, informative and focused video clips. So helpful. There are lots of kitchen products that could use the same type treatment. Thanks.
I love the little meme reference at 2:33
😏
i might be a bit tired but i dont get it pls help haha
Saving this one thank you! Explains my mixed outcomes when cooking with feta and “feta”
Mevgal is a greek company, very popular here in Greece, so you know you're getting the real deal 👌🇬🇷😊
Absolutely love the video, I was just thinking of buying a ton of feta cheese to make salads for the next few weeks as part of my diet and this was incredibly helpful. I had no idea what the differences were at all and this saved me a ton of time on research
Keep up the amazing work!
Don't expect your diet to work if you are eating a lot of feta :)
Epiros and Dodoni are 2 of the best only ones I eat unless I'm in Greece
Keep playing with food, Ethan. Your videos are filled with gems of knowledge.
as a greek person feta cheese is the most crucial thing to have in our country, just because it is so important to be made a specific way and the pride is definitely a huge part because it is a european protected name cheese and the judging from local people if the feta is 100% legit is extremely harsh even in our own country😅
olive oil
Sure, why not. Every other country prides with what they have, like France with Champagne, Spain with Jamon Iberico, etc.
@@pehash Europe sure does have weird obsessions with demanding their food be to extremely specific requirements to have the name that definitely referred to a far wider range of resulting end products traditionally.
not bad, i never stopped to think about many of the things you talked about. i always bought pre gratted feta, today I bought for the first time feta in brine.
Ingredient report:
Pickled onions were seen at 0:15 - 0:20, 2:11 - 2:15 and 3:46 - 3:55.
Mayo was not seen in this video.
200 sub special coming July 30th! I'm sorry about the delay, but I'm pretty busy with summer school right now. I swear you won't be disappointed!
As always, this has been your ingredient report.
Was going to comment saying the lack of pickled onions was disturbing.. but I failed to notice them in the background. Thanks for your service, what would we do without you!
@@stone5against1 glad I could help!
@@ethanspantryreport948 Still disappointed he didn't suggest a recipe that incorporated both feta cheese and pickled onions.. since apparently he eats lots of both in a week
where have you been bro 😔
what happened to ethan's pantry report
The cows milk feta is also great for hot dishes where you want it to stay firmer, for example crumbles mixed into a turkey burger (with cumin, which I highly recommend).
I’d recommend the book, Real Food/Fake Food by Larry Olmsted to anyone who wants to know more about the rampant mislabeling and counterfeit foods that goes on in our grocery stores.
I am watching this as a Turkish viewer and a lower of Feta style cheeses. We have this cheese that can be translated as "White Cheese" which is basically the same style of cheese making. Having a cows milk cheese is much more common here in Turkey. A lot of sheep/goats variations have some percentage of cow to keep the price reasonable. To prevent the over salty taste we rinse the outside of the block and pat it dry before serving. Also having a percentage of fat is common. Full fat/high fats are common for eating i.e. breakfast or salads while lower-fat ones are for baked goods like börek, or pastries.
When I'm out of the country and crave this familiar taste I go for Feta, or if I cant find greek variations I go for te Bulgarian cheses. As alongside this region a lot of countries have their take on this style of cheese making. Try them! Could be very useful when you cant find your fave in the market.
You should look into the Turkish variation called "Beyaz Peynir". These come in all sorts of milk and most brands offer different types with different fat contents. It might look strange that this cheese even comes in 1kg steel cans, but as it's easy to store and delicious i went through a couple of cans of cheese already. Quite a few chefs I know use Beyaz Peynir in dishes to replace feta as it's cheaper and easier to buy bulk. While the taste is not 100% the same as feta, a bit creamier in my opinion, Beyaz Peynir is 100% delicious as well. TL:DR the Turks do this type of cheese very well!
nice comment that was wat i try to say but my english is to bad:D
idk why they love feta i aktually prefer cow milk the others have a to storng flavor.
i eat heaps of feta and didnt know a fair bit of this stuff, great vid! when buying feta id focus more on finding a type/brand which tastes the best rather than trying to find the perfect texture. i would much rather have a great tasting one which doesnt melt much or isnt that soft, compared to one which might be soft and melty but tastes like ass
My wifes Yia Yia makes pita and this chicken dish that's pretty insane. She never lets me see her making the chicken dish, but the potatoes in it are.... welll..... LOL YA!!!
Very informative. Never would have thought about using the brine for brining meat. Great idea
It really annoys me when companies or countries ignore the food inventions and traditions of others. Feta is from Greece and made from Ewe or Goat milk. Simple. Anything else should have a completely different name, even if the product is similar. And not cheat by using "Greek-style" or something idiotic.
We need more respect and more support for great food from around the world, and not live off rip-off products created by companies who don't give a damn.
Yea
I actually like crumbles for salad. The drier, more compact nature of it just works when you throw salad dressing (especially a ranch type) on it. For everything else, it's the best block I can find.
The Feta I buy is imported from Greece and carries the protected origin stamp. Thats how I know that it is Greek Feta. Feta style cheeses exist but are typically called salad cheese because they are not Greek Feta.
I get mine in dry blocks from a discount club but I bring it home, mix up my own brine and store it in that in an air tight container and it does really well.
That's what most of the greeks do. We don't buy prepacked and processed. Producing---->Consuming
You should try Bulgarian white cheese, Ethan!!! Feta is nice, but Bulgarian white cheese is the real deal, especially if made from sheep's milk. Great video though!
100%!
Omg Bulgarian cheese is my fave!
I’m Mexican and even put it on Mexican dishes, it goes so well. That sheep flavor is to die for. ♥️💕
@@rgdssd You are a man of culture, comrade!
Thats the funniest thing i heard in a long time!!!
I never really understood why people focus on the greek one. All the neighbouring countries (bulgaria, turkey etc.) have something very similar, wish we got a little bit more recognition!
Yea. Though each of said countries does have a slightly different flavor to thier cheese, they are pretty similar to the Greek stuff. Its just that it happened that Greece was better at marketing it i suppose
Personally I really dislike the taste of goat/sheep milk and cheese so I love cows milk feta (which in the netherlands is often called ‘white cheese’ or ‘salad cheese’), not even feta
geef stukje
Right on! Based on the info I looked at for this video I think in the EU if it's made with cow milk its not allowed to be called feta, but in the US it's a naming free for all lol.
@@antoniemitartristanvandrim6898 zweer?
@@boyd9281 waar heb jij het nou over man
@@EthanChlebowski we take food names very seriously in europe. I cringe everytime someone calls weird american cheese "swiss", as though there werent hundreds of distinct types of cheese from switzerland
Very good information here. I am a home cheesemaker and routinely make feta and kefalotyri with cows milk. Just recently I discovered a source for goats milk and am looking forward to making these cheeses with it. They are really easy cheeses to make, and for a retiree on a tight budget, very economical. I can turn 10 ltrs of whole milk into almost 3 pounds of delicious feta cheese for an average cost of about $9.30 at todays prices.
Hello ,to consider as 'Feta'' you need 70%sheeps milk and 30% goats milk otherwise it is ''fetastyle'' cheese ..Greetings from Thessaloniki
Tried Bulgarian feta from sheep’s milk. It is now my strong preference.
There is not Bulgarian Feta. The only Feta is the one produced in Greece!
There is a dish called μπουγιουρντί (i am sorry can't write in English) it's almost the same thing aw the pasta from tic toc but you use a clay container you put feta,a yellow cheese like kefalotyri(it's optional), tomato, salt, oregano, sliced pepper and put it in the oven. Then use the same clay container to serve it (no pasta) it's a traditional appetizer great for a Christmas or easter family table ore even a barbecue with friends (instead of the clay container wrap everything on aluminium foil and put above the charcoal for a few minutes )
I have taste French, Danish and Bulgarian style Feta nothing is better than the Greek feta. So I disagree with you when you saying being Greek it doesn't mean is better. In Greece we have hundreds of Feta producers. Most of them very local producers that you can only find them in specific regions of Greece. These producers makes Amazing Feta that can't compare with the famous export firms that you taste In America. If you want to try quality and tasty feta then you need to taste it here, in Greece not in America or anywhere else.
I frequently do tofu salads with minced green onion, century egg and sesame oil (pretty standard Northern Chinese salad). I added some crumbs of feta and it was genuinely amazing.
Yall know that you must wash the feta before you eat it, right?
Noone eats the brine.
Hey, so now this is right up my alley.
My extended family contains a few of the known and old makers/traders of feta of northern Greece, but I am not in the trade. I do dabble amateurishly in making cheese from time to time, but my input here is going to be outtakes from stories of the older family members, as best I can remember it. Plus some personal/family opinions.
First of all: The "cow feta" term will make everyone laugh really hard. There never was any appreciable amount of cows in Greece. It's all goats and sheep over here, so as one would expect everything related to local cheesemaking always was just sheep/goat. But it is a much cheaper milk, so people around the globe tried to inject that term through marketing. And since Greece dropped the ball on the feta term/PDO really hard during the 80's/90's, it did catch on. And that's why it's prevalent in the US, but something that's in the same isle as santa in Greek markets. Same thing goes for the crumbles, first time I saw these is in your video.
Some backstory on the sheep/goat contents: There's a saying here: Drinking milk from cows, yogurt from sheep and cheese from goats. So traditionally, goat was considered the superior of milks for cheese. The problem was that goat milk was (for sure), and still is (mayyybe?), the most expensive one. So cheese-makers started cutting the usual white goat cheese with sheep's' milk.
Enter the creation of feta. Now the percentages of goat to sheeps milk varied from area to area, and given that my family herded goats, we like (and probably at some point made) 75% goat. But then (80's? 90's? not sure) there was a standardization of feta in Greece. And that's how the 75% sheep was established (is it actually 70? I'm not sure). Apparently the southerners had more political pull, and since they have less mountains, had more sheep. And that's how that went, according to the oldest of my uncles.
There's a funky counter-productive (in my opinion) thing going on with the feta making: Since sheep's milk is so fat, part of the process is to skim the mixture or otherwise the feta is a no go. Which sounds super daft and lends credence to the "just put more goat milk in there".
Also, there never was anything other than rennet in goat cheese/feta. Somewhere around the 90's the "dodoni" brand became quite popular and I think they started using cultures. The entire family was up in arms (they were trading that brand after all) for the insolence. It created a very mushy/creamy product that tended to ooze coagulated brine. It did catch on though and now is one of the most well known brands. But they spoiled our precious, and we hatses them for it :P
Brine: I wouldn't store any piece of feta/goat-cheese is anything other than brine. It just dries out, flakes and goes yellow really fast. The brineless small packets you have can get away with this because they are such very small portions that they don't stick around long enough to go bad. We usually have 30kg metal tins with the feta in it full of brine. Which is actually where it usually matures (nope, never saw any wooden barrels in my life). As long as the cheese stays under the surface of the brine (there's usually a piece of paper that helps keeping the top wet), keeping the cheese around for months (not sure about a year). Also, you can actually re-use the brine. Just make sure it's the same type of cheese. It might start getting some odor or color after a few uses. In that case you can just boil it, strain it, and back in the fridge it goes.
Opinions: So we're all goat cheese in the family. The flavor it packs is much more, and the texture is much firmer. It has a bite. So if there's a slice of cheese on the table (topped with some oil and oregano), it's going to be straight goat.
In other applications where you might not want to have that much taste and texture, feta is acceptable. Let's say pies. Cooking is a maybe here.
Oh, and goat cheese these days is often cheaper than feta, so it we went full derp on that end.
As far as brands go, I can recognize the mevgal there. It's one of the biggest producers and apparently exporters. It's an ok product.
I'm a fan of the drier goat cheese. Not a family produce, but trikki does make a mean "petroto" goat cheese. You can spot the kind through the shape (spherical) and the mesh markings on the outer edge of the cheese. That's because it's hanged in a mesh. But I think it's highly unlikely you would find something like this in the US.
On the other hand, it's not rocket science. These cheeses are as simple as they can get, so I wouldn't be surprised if you can get good cheese from a local maker. There's some pretty crazy small cheesemakers in this world.
Ethan can u make a video explaining how to clean stuff. I'm scared I'm slowly destroying my granite countertop and pans
This is something on the idea list, not sure how I want to tackle it yet!
@Brent Smith okay, thanks alot, I've just been finding conflicting information on the granite(which is my main concern). Very helpful🙏
@@EthanChlebowski look forward to seeing it
Smart idea. Butcher block maintenance is probably a whole episode alone too.
@@jeff-ramos True, I barely work with meat, I know nothing about that😅
I am greek and I thank you for this video
In my opinion sheep's milk is milder and sweeter than goat's milk. Goat's milk is the most aggressive tasting.
Thank you for this explanation. I've always wondered why some feta was creamy-ish and some was drier. :)
ive never clicked so fast on a video
Same
Is feta used on mac and cheese ?
Why?
@@DaMorg3 It's not easy, being cheesy
Excellent video. Thanks for being thorough with the comparison
If it has cow milk it's not feta
You need to make more of these tests! I adore them, and you
1:40 why the cheese shaped like that 😂
...why you have to make me see that.
I can't unsee it now...
My egyptian grandmother has been buying authentic arabic feta for years, its delicious. It tastes like greek feta but is much more creamy rather than crumbly. Try a culture specific supermarket to get authentic stuff made in other countries.
So it's not a feta cheese, it's a feta like cheese. You cant make any cheese that looks like feta and name it that way if it's not a real feta cheese recipe
@@stefanostanatzis8067 Sorry, oh cheese god, he who is in charge of all cheese. It's feta. the cheese my grandmother buys is made to be feta cheese because its feta cheese. How are you going to comment on the validity of what I'm saying if you don't have the box of cheese my grandmother buys in front of you. The world is getting dumber and dumber.
@@IxXMadPenguinXxI you said it yourself smartass that it tastes LIKE greek feta and it doesn't have the same texture. Plus the feta is only greek so you can't call that cheese Arabic feta. There's no such thing like an Arabic feta
@@stefanostanatzis8067 You are one stubborn idiot. It TASTES EXACTLY LIKE GREEK FETA AND IS CREAMY IN TEXTURE. is that more exact for you? And the text written on it is in ARABIC, and it's made in a country that clearly speaks that language.
@@stefanostanatzis8067 thgere are no sutch thing as greek feta its just a Coyright chesse.
all other balkan contry have the same chesse greek is not even special.
In EU Feta is a protected food and we don't have this problem :p
I don't remember asking
Yep, our choice is between actual Feta cheese, or 'Greek style salad cheese'. Good idea I think.
@@nowdefunctchannel6874 cope
@@exsanguinatedd OP is the one coping, thinking that their country's regulations makes them superior. I only see Europeans (by that i mean people from EU countries) and Americans care about things like this, it's really stupid and bizarre
Greek here, you did a great coverage on this. Also, 5:01 this one is mouthwatering.
Bulgarian feta cries in corner
In the Eastern Mediterranean there is a lot of "White Cheese in Brine" made from Cow, Sheep and Goat milk. The Greek call it Feta. Just as widespread as in Greece is the white brine cheese in Bulgaria, Turkey, Macedonia, Serbia and the other Balkan and easter Mediterranean countries. In Turkey this cheese is called beyaz peynir 'white cheese', in Macedonia сирење sirenje, in Serbia сир sir, in Bulgaria сирене sirene, in Romania brânză and in Russia брынза Brynsa. In Israel, a well-known brand of brine cheese is called בולגרית bulgarit, which literally means 'Bulgarian, Bulgarian'. In France, Valbreso brand brine cheese is very close in taste to Bulgarian brine cheese. In Georgia, brine cheese is called sulguni, in Albania djathë.
Feta is not the original, its just one of the many "White Cheese in Brine"
Interesting! Especially if u take into account that even Homer talked about feta in his poems...
@@lepil00 White cheese is mentioned but it wasn’t called feta as the word feta in modern Greek comes from The Greek word feta (φέτα) comes from the Italian fetta 'slice', which in turn is derived from the Latin offa 'morsel, piece
n the EU the cow milk cheese is actually not allowed to be called feta.
There is a lot of this in Europe, because the EU has protected terms regarding food and wine. You can Google "eAmbrosia" and find the official database. There is 1557 foods, 1622 wines, and 251 spirits that have protected names. Most known are probably Feta, Champagne, Prosciutto de Parma (Parma ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, Camembert, Cognac etc.
There are both regional protections etc. Champagne must come from the Champagne region, and ingredient protections such as Feta must be made a certain way
@@Akinto710 tHeRe iS a lOt oF tHiS iN eUrOpE
I might be wrong (if so, correct me) but in EU we have something called Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) that ensures that if something is called feta cheese in EU, it's in fact, feta cheese. That's why at the supermarket you can find that salty, crumbly cheese that resembles feta but is called salad cheese instead.
I prefer the "still lets me pay my rent"-variation of feta
How much is it in the US? In Denmark, cows "Salad style cheese" is about $3,8 pr lbs. Where real feta is $7,1. Real cheddar is about 25% more expensive, and parmesan almost twice as expensive as real feta.
@@Akinto710 I live in germany, and I think the parmesan part is rather similar. However, it takes me so much longer to use up a piece of pamesan that I just grate over pasta, compared to feta I e.g. cook in the oven as a whole. I think the "salad style cheese" is about 1.something per block (200-300g), whereas authentic greek feta is about 2-3 € for the same amount of cheese
There is a simple traditional Greek food called Dakos that involves feta. Very easy to make with no cooking involved. Just some rock hard rusks that you have to wet to render edible. Olive oil, Feta, good tomatoes. Oregano and I don't remember what else. But it's a great dish and you can make it in minutes if you have the ingredients.
Edit: I call it a dish I guess it's considered more of an appetizer or snack.
Ayo, that's cool and all, but when we getting a workout video... it's hard to ignore those gains dude 🤩
My Romanian family loves Feta cheese. I grew up believing that my mother always bought the Romanian variety, in brine of course. But since moving out and buying my own groceries, I have realized that my favourite Feta, the one that reminds me the most of the flavour and texture of my childhood, is Bulgarian Feta. I absolutely love it!
BTW feta in Greek means slice!
Thanks for the feta lesson ! I've often wondered why I get different results with certain hot and cold dishes with different brands and textures and what with goats and sheep's and cow's milk and this and that ! I genuinely thought it was more or less the same tbh.. I feel like the feta King now with this knowledge.. 😀 👍
The US need some regulation for these kind of cheese, this is basically scam to call some random cow milk cheese feta honestly. You can't do that here in France.
That infographic you have at 0:55 is helpful.