Brânză de burduf

What it is

Brânză de burduf is a dense yet spreadable sheep cheese: salty, sharp, with an aroma that is unmistakable. 'Burduf' refers to a bag made from sheep skin or stomach, into which the cheese is packed and sewn shut.

An even more famous version is made in fir bark. The bark is stripped from the tree, sewn into a cylinder, and filled with cheese; it absorbs a resinous coniferous scent. This type of cheese is called brânză de coșuleț — 'cheese in a basket.'

The cheese is eaten with mămăligă, placed in bulz, or spread on bread with onions. It is made in the mountain pastures throughout the entire grazing season and stored until late autumn when the flocks descend from the mountains.

History and name

This is a way to preserve summer milk without a cellar or refrigerator: sour mashed cheese with salt, tightly packed into the skin without air, can last for months. The same logic applies to Hutsul bryndza, Podhale and Slovak bryndza — a legacy of Carpathian shepherding.

Ingredients and allergens

Variant: in a bag (burduf)

Caș (fresh cheese)matured sheep mashFresh unsalted rennet cheese from sheep — it is used to make burduf and telemea.Contains allergens: milk

Rennet (klyag)lamb rennet, in the mashNatural rennet from the stomach of a milk lamb or calf, which causes milk to curdle into cheese.

Also: salt

Contains allergens: milk
Diet: gluten-free · no cooking

Variant: in fir bark

caș (fresh cheese), rennet (klyag), salt

Contains allergens: milk
Diet: gluten-free · no cooking

Ingredients of the traditional recipe; every cook and every place may do it differently — please ask when ordering. We cannot guarantee the absence of allergens or traces.

How it is made

First, a mash is made: milk from two or three ewes is strained into a fir barrel, heated, and mixed with lamb rennet. The curd is separated from the whey and well pressed — otherwise, the cheese will have an unpleasant acidity. This results in a round shape 50–60 cm in diameter.

The rounds of mash are placed in wooden chests with air holes and left to sour for 7–14 days, depending on the warmth. The matured mash is cut, crumbled, or ground, salted, and thoroughly mixed in large wooden troughs.

The finished mass is tightly packed into the burduf and sewn shut. One bag, sewn from several skins, holds 15–20 kg of cheese.

Where it is eaten

The area is approximate and based on the sources below. The dish is cooked outside it too, and ethnographic borders are blurred.

The mountainous counties of Romania along the Carpathian arc — from Maramureș and Bukovina to the Southern Carpathians. The counties are shown on the map in their entirety, along with their lowland parts, so the area is approximate.

When it is eaten

Occasions: Polonyna (May — September) · Everyday food

Safety

Traditionally, the cheese is made from raw, unpasteurized milk. Pregnant women, small children, and people with weakened immune systems should choose cheese made from pasteurized milk or consume it in hot dishes.

FAQ