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Imereti-Style Fresh Brined Cheese

Make a fresh Georgian cheese at home with pasteurized milk, mesophilic culture, rennet and a brief chilled brine

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A young white Georgian cheese wheel on a board with a few wedges and plain bread.
Yieldabout 450–600 g, depending on milk solids and whey drainage; 8 small portions of about 55–75 g.
Active preparationabout 25 minutes
Cookingand curd work: about 75 minutes, including warming and stirring
Passive timeabout 29 hours 30 minutes, including culture rest, setting, moulding and a 24-hour brine
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The dish

About Imereti-Style Fresh Brined Cheese

### იმერული ყველი

This home-scale Georgian cheese is fresh, gently tangy and moderately salty, with a close, soft-elastic curd. The milk is cultured and renneted, the curd is cut and warmed gently, then drained in a shallow mould and briefly brined. It is eaten young and is also a useful table cheese.

The registered geographical indication IMERULI KVELI applies to cheese made with milk obtained and processed in Imereti. This recipe describes an Imereti-style home cheese; a batch made elsewhere is not a GI-certified Imeruli Kveli.

Cheese-making rewards clean tools, a steady thermometer and patience at each set. Use pasteurized, non-ultra-pasteurized milk, a food-grade mesophilic culture, and rennet measured for its stated strength. The brining and timing here are a small-batch home adaptation; actual yield and salt uptake vary with the milk and drainage.

Cook the dish

Ingredients

Imereti-Style Fresh Brined Cheese

Milk and culture

  • 4 Lpasteurized whole cow’s milk, not ultra-pasteurized; non-homogenized milk is helpful but not essential
  • 1/8tsp freeze-dried mesophilic cheese starter, or the manufacturer’s dose for 4 L
  • 1.25 mlfood-grade calcium chloride solution at 30–33% concentration, diluted in 30 ml cool non-chlorinated water; use only with pasteurized milk and follow the product label

Setting the curd

  • 1.1 mlsingle-strength liquid rennet, diluted in 30 ml cool non-chlorinated water immediately before use. If the package strength differs, use its 4 L dose instead

Brine

  • 360 gnon-iodized cheese salt
  • 1,640 gwater, boiled and cooled. Together with the salt this makes 2,000 g of 18% brine by total solution weight
Method

Method

  1. Clean and prepare. Wash hands and clean the pot, spoon, thermometer, knife, mould, cloth and brine container. Sanitize food-contact equipment with a food-safe sanitizer and let it drain. Prepare the brine by dissolving the salt in the boiled water; cover and refrigerate it until cold. Keep the brine covered and do not reuse it after this batch.

  2. Warm and culture the milk. Heat the milk slowly to 33°C, stirring gently so it warms evenly. Sprinkle the mesophilic culture over the surface and let it hydrate for 2 minutes; stir it in. Add the diluted calcium chloride and mix. Cover and hold at about 33°C for 45 minutes.

  3. Set and cut the curd. Add the diluted rennet and stir gently for 30 seconds, then stop the milk from moving. Cover and leave undisturbed for about 40 minutes, until a clean break forms; if it is still soft, wait in 5-minute intervals, up to about 60 minutes total. Cut the curd into roughly 12 mm cubes. Rest 5 minutes, then stir gently for 20–25 minutes.

  4. Warm and mould. Remove about 30% of the whey. Slowly warm the curds and remaining whey to 39°C over 10–15 minutes, stirring gently; hold there and stir another 10–15 minutes. Transfer the curds to the clean mould. Let them self-press and drain for about 4 hours, turning carefully every 30–60 minutes. The wheel should hold together and release whey without being compressed hard.

  5. Brine and chill. Remove the formed cheese from the mould and submerge it fully in the cold brine. Cover and refrigerate at 4°C or colder for 24 hours. Lift out the cheese, let excess brine drain in the refrigerator, then serve or wrap in a clean covered container.

Practical guidance

Tips for success

  • Do not use ultra-pasteurized or UHT milk; it may not form a reliable curd. Follow the rennet maker’s dose if its single-strength instructions differ from this scaled amount.
  • Keep the milk close to 33°C during culturing and setting. Heat gently in a water bath if the stove warms it unevenly.
  • Drain the curd in a clean perforated mould and turn it carefully. Avoid pressing hard; the cheese should retain moisture and a soft, elastic texture.
Practical guidance

Practical guidance

  • If the curd does not give a clean break after 40 minutes, leave it undisturbed and check every 5 minutes. Do not cut a weak gel; the final cheese will lose too much moisture.
  • The brine concentration follows Georgian technical references, while the cold holding temperature is a home food-safety adaptation. This is not a shelf-stable preserving process.
  • Keep the finished cheese at 4°C or colder. Use within 3–4 days; discard it if it develops an off smell, slime or visible mould. Do not taste it to decide whether questionable cheese is safe.
Nutrition per serving

Estimated nutrition per serving

Provisional estimate for 1 of 8 small portions: approximately 190 kcal; carbohydrates 2 g; protein 13 g; fat 14 g; fibre 0 g; sodium 570 mg. This uses generic whole-milk fresh-cheese composition with salt uptake modelled at about 2.2% of the finished cheese by weight. Actual yield, milk labels and salt absorbed during brining can shift the numbers substantially; no laboratory analysis has been performed.

Allergens and food safety

Allergens and food safety

Contains milk. Use pasteurized milk and clean, sanitized equipment; raw milk is not a safe default for this moist fresh cheese. Refrigerate the cheese and brine at 4°C or colder. Do not leave dairy at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 32°C. Keep refrigerated and use within 3–4 days.

Serving and finish

Serving and finish

  • A young wheel should be pale, close-textured and lightly elastic, with a clean cultured-milk aroma and moderate saltiness.
  • Serve cool in thin wedges with bread, or crumble it into a Georgian meal. This recipe makes fresh table cheese, not stretchy sulguni.
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