Name: Fresh Meskhetian Chechili-Inspired String Cheese
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Cuisine: Georgian
Ingredients: 3.8 L pasteurized, non-UHT skim cow’s milk, cold; ideally 0–0.5% milk fat; 10 g food-grade citric acid; 120 ml cool filtered water, for the citric acid; 2.5 ml liquid single-strength rennet; 60 ml cool filtered water, for the rennet; 4 g fine salt, for the drained curd; 2 L filtered water; 40 g fine salt

Fresh cheese threads tied into a loose plait beside bread and herbs on a wooden table.

Yieldabout 270 g cheese; 4 tasting portions

Preparation20 minutes

Cooking45 minutes

Passive time145 minutes

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The dish

About Fresh Meskhetian Chechili-Inspired String Cheese

მესხური ჩეჩილი · about 270 g · Moderate · 3 hours 30 minutes

Meskhuri Chechili is a Meskhetian cheese associated with Samtskhe-Javakheti. Its recognized form is a white, salty bundle of firm cheese threads, tied or plaited into a rope-like shape. The registered regional product is made with fat-free cow’s milk, and a smoked version also exists. This recipe borrows the lean milk, stringy texture and tied shape for a small home batch, but it is not the protected geographical indication and does not reproduce all regional controls or preservation methods.

The home method uses pasteurized, non-UHT skim milk, citric acid and liquid rennet to form a curd. The curd is cut and drained, then warmed in hot whey until it becomes pliable enough to pull into strands. A short soak in cold, lightly salted brine chills the finished bundle. The result is a fresh cheese inspired by Chechili, not the traditional dried or smoked version and not Meskhetian Tenili, which is cream-finished and matured.

Keep a thermometer close: the milk is warmed in two stages, and the whey used for stretching is much hotter. A slotted spoon and clean heat-safe utensils make the stretch safer to handle. Skim milk gives a lower and less predictable yield than whole milk, so the finished amount is an estimate. The two-litre brine needs time to chill before the curd is ready; start it first and keep both brine and finished cheese at or below 4 °C.

Cook the dish

Ingredients

მესხური ჩეჩილი · about 270 g · Moderate · 3 hours 30 minutes

Curds

3.8 Lpasteurized, non-UHT skim cow’s milk, cold; ideally 0–0.5% milk fat
10 gfood-grade citric acid
120 mlcool filtered water, for the citric acid
2.5 mlliquid single-strength rennet
60 mlcool filtered water, for the rennet
4 gfine salt, for the drained curd

Chilling brine

2 Lfiltered water
40 gfine salt

Method

Chill the brine and sanitize. Dissolve 40 g salt in 2 L filtered water and refrigerate for about 2 hours, until the brine is at or below 4 °C. Before handling milk, wash, rinse and sanitize the pot, thermometer, knife, spoon, colander, bowl, storage container and food-contact surfaces according to the sanitizer label. Keep the milk refrigerated until needed.
Acidify and warm the milk. Dissolve the citric acid in 120 ml cool water and dilute the rennet separately in 60 ml cool water. Stir the acid solution into the cold milk. Heat slowly, stirring gently every few minutes, until the milk reaches 31 °C.
Set the curd. At 31 °C, stir in the diluted rennet with a gentle up-and-down motion for 30 seconds. Continue heating slowly to 40.5 °C, then remove the pot from the heat. Cover and leave undisturbed for 15 minutes, until the curd makes a clean cut and the whey looks pale yellow-green.
Cut, drain and season. Cut the curd into roughly 2.5 cm cubes and rest for 3–5 minutes. Lift the curds into the sanitized colander over a bowl and drain for 5 minutes, gently folding once or twice. Mix in 4 g salt. Keep the curd warm by setting the colander over some of the warm whey while you prepare the stretching whey.
Stretch and shape. Heat enough drained whey in a clean pot to 77–79 °C. Stretch the curd in three batches: lower one batch into the hot whey with a slotted spoon, fold and press it with clean heat-safe utensils until pliable, then pull and fold until glossy and cohesive. If it tears, return it briefly to the hot whey; do not handle hot curd with bare hands. Pull the curd into compact strands and tie or plait them into a small bundle. Repeat with the remaining curd.
Chill and store. Place the finished bundles in the cold 2% brine for 10 minutes, keeping the container refrigerated. Drain and serve chilled or cool. Transfer leftovers promptly to a clean covered container and refrigerate at or below 4 °C; use within 3 days.

Excerpt

Make a small, fresh home version inspired by Meskhetian Chechili: lean cheese curds warmed, stretched into strands and tied into a compact bundle. This pasteurized-milk adaptation is not the registered regional cheese and is kept refrigerated rather than dried, smoked or aged.

Practical guidance

Use pasteurized skim milk that is not labelled UHT or ultra-high-temperature processed. The citric acid solution may cause slight curdling as soon as it is stirred into the cold milk; continue heating gently and add the diluted rennet only when the milk reaches 31 °C. Rennet strengths differ, so use single-strength liquid rennet and follow its label if its dilution instructions differ.

The curd should make a clean cut after the 15-minute rest. During stretching, it first looks lumpy, then becomes smooth and glossy as it softens. Work in small batches so the curd stays hot enough to pull. If it cools and tears, warm it briefly in the whey again. Stop stretching once the strands are smooth and cohesive; extensive kneading makes the cheese denser.

This is a fresh home adaptation, not a dried or smoked preservation method. Keep the two-hour brine-chilling period in the schedule before starting the curd. Its 2% salt concentration is based on 40 g salt in 2 L water. The cheese’s actual sodium and yield will vary with curd recovery and brine uptake.

Nutrition per serving

Serving size: about 67.5 g finished cheese, estimated (one quarter of the batch)
Energy: approximately 95 kcal
Carbohydrates: 2 g
Protein: 21 g
Fat: 0 g
Fibre: 1 g
Sodium: approximately 393 mg; actual sodium may be higher if more brine is absorbed

Allergens and food safety

Contains milk. Use pasteurized, non-UHT milk and sanitize food-contact equipment. Check the milk and hot whey with a thermometer; the stretching whey reaches 77–79 °C and can scald. Use a slotted spoon and clean heat-safe utensils, not bare hands, to move the curd. Keep the brine and finished cheese at or below 4 °C, refrigerate promptly and discard the cheese if it has been above 4 °C for more than 2 hours. Use within 3 days. Do not dry, smoke or mature this fresh version.

To serve

Serve the chilled strands as a small cheese course, or pair them with bread and fresh vegetables.
Keep leftovers covered and refrigerated at or below 4 °C; finish within 3 days.