🧀 Shanklish

Shanklish is a Levantine cheese made from strained fermented milk, shaped into balls, dried and rolled in spices. It is made in Syria and Lebanon, especially in mountain areas.

The base is soured milk or yoghurt from cow's or sheep's milk. It is heated and drained to a thick mass, salted, rolled into balls and dried. The balls are then coated in za'atar (a thyme and sesame mix) or red pepper and left to ripen for several weeks. It is grouped with Hard cheeses; in principle it is close to the dried balls of kurt.

The taste is pungent, salty and tangy with herbal notes; the texture is dense and crumbly.

Shanklish is crumbled and served as a meze with tomatoes, onion and olive oil, with flatbread.

There are fresh and aged forms. Fresh shanklish tastes milder and more lactic. With longer ripening the balls become harder and sharper, and mould may form on the surface; it is washed off before the balls are coated in spices.

It differs from labneh, which is fresh strained yoghurt that is neither dried nor aged. Keep shanklish in the fridge in a closed container or in a jar under olive oil so it does not dry out. Besides meze, it is crumbled into scrambled eggs and salads. It pairs with anise-flavoured arak or a dry white wine; see Wine and cheese.

Shanklish or labneh? Both start from strained soured milk or yoghurt, but labneh is fresh strained yoghurt that is neither dried nor aged. Shanklish is heated and drained to a thick mass, salted, rolled into balls, dried, coated in za’atar (a thyme and sesame mix) or red pepper and ripened for several weeks, which puts it among hard cheeses and close in principle to the dried balls of kurt. The taste is pungent, salty and tangy with herbal notes, the texture dense and crumbly. Aged balls grow harder and sharper than fresh, milder ones.

Look for the name “shanklish”: dense balls coated in red pepper or za’atar, red or green on the outside. That coating is spice, not mould. Fresh shanklish is milder and more lactic; aged balls are harder and sharper. Some are kept in a jar under olive oil. Expect it at a Levantine or Middle Eastern grocery, a delicatessen or a supermarket cheese counter; it is salty and sharp, so a small portion is enough.

Why it matters to you: shanklish shows how drying and spices help preserve milk in a warm climate; it is salty and sharp, so a small portion is enough.