Peasant Cheese (Fermented Bulgur)

[Cosmic Frog]

Well I finished my next attempt at Po' Man's Cheese.
I started it on 8-25 and spiced it and packed it in oil today.
I used about three cups of Bob's Red Mill bulgur wheat it and the same amount of water. I added about a tablespoon of salt at the start.
I put it all in my big harsch crock at about 78 degrees Fahrenheit(Ambient household temp). I stirred it daily, by hand as it really started sticking to the spoon I was using.
It took a lot longer to develop the tartness that it had last time and the cheesy funk didn't show up until 4 days ago. The bulgur was more coarse than the other kind I used last time and had a better flavor, more nutty and roasted. It took longer to break down and get creamy. I noticed that the breakdown seemed to accompany the arrival of the funky smell. The smell is strong, but not foul this time( else, I'm just used to it!).
I made three different flavors and put them in jars and will check them in 3 weeks time. BTW, wetting your hands slightly while rolling the balls makes them a lot easier to handle. I'm really fired up about this process..just wheat and water! It seems really pure and simple and I want to really discover what's going on with it.

[Aliyanna]

This sounds interesting....do you think other grains would work. We are gluten and casein free here...also soy free.

Exactly how do you do this....is there a recipe for this???

Sorry to be such an inquisitive person...but am intrigued!! Wanna try this!!!

[Cosmic Frog]

It's discussed in "The Art of Fermentation" There's a ferment that close to this mentioned in AoF and Wild Fermentation called kishk. I have no idea if other grains would work. It's a pretty cheap experiment,though. It's just grain, water and time. Maybe you could use quinoua or lentils..not sure! Try it and let us know!

[Aliyanna]

I have been doing something similar to this for sometime...lol...just didn't realize it...but we make it into bread.

I soak lentils and split peas for 24 hrs... then make a slurry with a cup of teff flour for each 3 cups of the legume blend. We let it set for 4 days or so. Be careful..it is NOT housebroke...it can potty everywhere....we use fido jars. After the 4 days we add coconut milk and spices to make a sour dough bread...usually a bun.

To me, it isn't cheesey tasting....it tastes like sour dough...that is why I didn't think it was what you were doing.

[Cosmic Frog]

Wow, that sounds really cool. I like the idea of that. Do you bake it to make a bun?
My Stuff is a little sourdough tasting, but the texture of the grain is creamy and there's more than just a sour taste going on. I sampled one batch that I flavored with oregano,lemon zest and black pepper. I spread it on some bread and it was really good. I think it will be yummy to have those flavors in winter. I do need to think of some applications for them. The "cheese" balls are a little to big to eat as an appetizer...
Overall I think it was a worthy experiment, I'll have to see if I'll try it again. The line between fermented and foul was crossed quickly. On my second try I got better results but used salt in the making of it. That may have controlled which bacteria were active and kept it from getting too nasty. I would like to try to let some go for a long time and see what happened, but the daily stirring is a bit too labor intensive for me at this time.

[wally jasper]

I'm about to start my keckek el fouqara and have a couple of questions. First, I'm guessing the bulgar is not supposed to be cooked. Is this correct? Also, the previous poster on this forum suggested to the person whose keckek developed mold that they change the starter. But I see no mention of any starter. Just bulgar, salt and water. Am I missing something? Many thanks!