🧀 Tulum cheese

Tulum cheese (tulum peyniri) is a Turkish cheese named after the skin bag, the tulum, in which it was traditionally ripened. Salted, crumbled curd is packed tightly inside and left to mature. It is a family rather than one recipe: each region has its own version, and the taste runs from creamy to sharply tangy. ¹³⁴

Why a skin. Sheep, goat or calf skins are allowed in Türkiye if they are clean, dry and free of infection, because whatever is on the skin can pass into the cheese. Young lamb and goat skins are preferred since they let moisture and oxygen through better. Plastic barrels are now common because they are easier to handle, so the package can tell you which kind of tulum you are buying. ¹³

How it is made. In a 2026 study of Erzincan tulum, raw Akkaraman sheep's milk was set with calf rennet at 32–33 °C. The curd rested for a week, was cut into small cubes, drained and mixed with 2.5 % coarse salt. Each round of draining takes out more whey, which is why the finished cheese is dry enough to crumble. It then ripened for 3 days at 22 °C, was shredded again and spent 150 days at 3–6 °C, ending with about 41–44 % moisture. ³

Erzincan, the protected one. Only Erzincan Tulum Peyniri has an EU protected name, registered in 2025. At least 95 % of its milk must be raw Akkaraman sheep's milk, produced from April to September, and it ripens at least 4 months in a skin or plastic drum. The rules tie taste to place: the sheep graze at least 6 months on pastures rich in local plants, whose aromatic compounds pass into the cheese, and only Kemah spring salt is used. That is why it is known for a flavour that bites the tongue. ²⁴

Other regions, other microbes. Izmir brined tulum from the Aegean is a semi-hard cheese with its own acid-producing bacteria. Kargı tulum turns very acidic, reaching pH 3–3.7 during ripening, and yeasts play a large part in its flavour and texture. In goatskin cheeses from Anamur, Enterococcus bacteria dominate. So the same name covers different cheeses, because the local microbes differ. ⁵⁶⁷

What ripening does. Over 180 days, enzymes break milk proteins down into ever more small fragments, and a study of skin-bag tulum identified 203 of them. Some of these peptides show activity in laboratory tests, but that does not prove a health effect from eating the cheese. The practical point is simpler: the cheese keeps changing for months, so ripening time matters as much as the recipe. ⁸

Tulum cheese or feta? Searchers often compare the two because both can be crumbly and salty, but tulum is defined by how it matures: salted, crumbled curd is packed tightly into a skin bag or plastic barrel and left for months. In one Erzincan study the curd was mixed with 2.5 % coarse salt and ripened 150 days at 3–6 °C. It is also a family rather than one recipe: Izmir tulum is brined, and the taste runs from creamy to sharply tangy depending on region, milk and microbes.

Look for “tulum peyniri” or “tulum cheese” and a region such as Erzincan, because “tulum” alone does not tell you the region, the milk or the ripening. The EU PDO symbol, the protected designation of origin, appears only on Erzincan Tulum Peyniri. The package can tell you whether it was ripened in a skin or in a plastic barrel. You will usually find it at a Turkish grocery, a delicatessen or a cheese counter. Try a small piece first, since the flavour can be sharp.

Why it matters to you. “Tulum” alone does not tell you the region, the milk or the ripening, so read the label for all three, and look for the PDO logo if you want Erzincan. Traditional tulum may be made from raw milk: if you avoid raw-milk cheese, check before buying. Since the flavour can be sharp, try a small piece first. ¹²⁴