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Sirdeleh Workshop & Goat Cheese Training in Shouf

During the group session, participants discussed the challenges and opportunities of producing Sirdeleh

On July 16, 17 and 23, the Food Heritage Foundation (FHF) delivered three training sessions and workshops on Sirdeleh and soft goat cheese making in Deir al Qamar. These sessions were commissioned by the Secours Islamique France (SIF) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Chouf Biosphere Reserve. FHF supports the SIF objectives in enhancing the preservation of authentic food in the Chouf region.

Doing so, Eng. Nadim Rawda began the first session with a general introduction workshop in dairy products and white cheese making. Local farmers, cooperatives and cheese makers where taught the extensive knowledge of Baladi Cheese making with a focus on the production of goat soft cheeses flavored with sun-dried ingredients such as herbs and tomatoes.

Preparing white goat cheese

On the second day, a participatory workshop facilitated by Eng. Mabelle Chedid and Mrs. Marwa Soubra gathered Sirdeleh producers from the Chouf area and aimed at identifying the Sirdeleh production method while pointing out the challenges that the producers face at different levels of the production process. The participants were motivated to share their experience and talk about challenges which they are facing mainly related to the lack of good quality clay jars and lack of marketing. The negative aspects of using plastic jars were addressed in the Food Safety session that was followed by a presentation on Occupational Health.

Everybody wanted to participate!

In an attempt to promote and preserve the traditional method of Sirdeleh making, SIF will distribute to the participants, later this summer, clay jars produced by a local potter.

All participants agreed that hygiene is a key success for the production of quality products

Finally on the third day of training, the basic training on Sirdeleh making was delivered: participants learned how to prepare the clay jar prior to use and how to safely fill in the jar with goat milk. At the end of the training they all tasted freshly made Sirdeleh cheese prepared by a local farmer from Baaqlin.

While pouring milk inside the jar, one should be careful not to splash milk on the sides to avoid molds

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Sirdaleh is a climate-smart product which makes use of the seasonal goat milk production and is preserved for use during winter when goat milk is not available. Similarly to Ambarees, Sirdeleh is made exclusively with raw goat milk. During the production process, Sirdeleh cheese is removed from the vessel and used to make kishk, but the bulk of the production is left to ferment in the jar to gain its acidic taste and conserved in glass jars covered with olive oil.

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The preservation and documentation of the Sirdeleh cheese by passing on traditional production methods and expertise is a major concern to FHF who has previously teamed up with the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Zahle and the Bekaa (CCIAZ ) to survey producers of Ambarees, another iconic dairy product prepared with raw goat milk, and which is facing similar threats such as lack of good clay jars and absence of marketing. The collaboration between FHF and CCIAZ also included a workshop and distribution of jars.

Preparing the jar prior to use can also be fun!
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Eat Local

Ambarees an icon of the Lebanese Food Heritage

Labneh (strained yogurt) is a daily food item in the Lebanese diet, cherished by everyone and consumed mainly in sandwiches for breakfast. Labneh comes in various tastes and flavors depending on the method of processing and the source of milk; it can be sweet or sour.

Ambarees, also known as Serdalli ( also pronounced Sirdeleh) or Labnet al Jarra, is a traditional dairy product of the Bekaa Valley and the Chouf area where baladi (local) goats are the main grazing animals. Ambarees consists of fermented raw goat milk in earthenware jars; It develops into a Labneh with a creamy texture and an acidic flavor. The word “Sirdeleh” actually refers to the earthenware jar in which the dairy product is prepared.

aambariss
Old Ambarees jars dating around 100 years, in Saghbine – West Bekaa

This dairy delicacy is made from raw goat milk, and to a lesser extent from cow or sheep milk, which is poured at room temperature in earthenware containers with a coarse salt, closed, and left for a week to ferment. At this stage, a curd and a liquid forms, the latter being drained from a small hole at the bottom of the jar. The process of adding raw milk, coarse salt, fermenting and draining is repeated until the jar is full. It is then sealed and left to ferment until it reaches the right acidity.

ambarees
Ambarees labneh almost ready to be consumed

Ambarees is a result of an old and wise traditional knowledge of food and food-ways, a preservation technique that has proven successful over the centuries. The  high acidity and salt concentration of this food product, along with a proper handling by food producers, makes it totally safe to eat.

aambariss

Ambarees is produced from late March until end of September, when goat milk is abundant, and the water content of the pastures becomes low. Ambarees is highly dense in milk solids, can be preserved for a whole year, and makes for a perfect meal in winter days, often spread on a piece of Saj or Markouk bread, and heated over a wooden stove.

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News

Launching of the project “Preservation and Promotion of Ambarees, a Traditional Caprine Dairy Product in the Bekaa Valley”

Under the Lactimed project, the Food Heritage Foundation (FHF) and the Chamber of Commerce, Industry & Agriculture of Zahle & the Bekaa (CCIAZ) initiated their collaboration on preserving a typical dairy product of the region called “Ambarees“. The idea of this cluster pilot project is to identify, through a survey, Ambarees producers in the Bekaa and gather information on the production process of this traditional dairy product and try to standardize it to enhance its marketing potentials and preserve its production.

Eng. Mabelle Chedid (on the right) and Ms. Marwa Soubra welcoming the participants and stressing on the reasons why Ambarees production should be preserved
Eng. Mabelle Chedid describing the main phases of Ambarees making

The documentation of Ambarees making was collected through a workshop that was hosted by CCIAZ in its offices in Zahle on December 19, 2015 and was organized by FHF. Twelve Ambarees producers from various parts of the Bekaa attended the workshop and participated in the working sessions that were organized; they shared their know-how with each others and described their process of Ambarees production then identified the main challenges that they are facing.

The participants were divided in working groups, according to their region and the type of milk they used in Ambarees production
The participants were divided in working groups, according to their region and the type of milk they used in Ambarees production

The participatory session was then followed by a brief session on food safety practices in Ambarees production focusing on how to abide by food safety standards while preserving the traditional aspect of this product.

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Ms. Marwa Soubra and Ms. Dominique Anid giving the food safety session

The next phase of this project is to identify Ambarees earthenware producers and provide the dairy producers with tested earthenware jars to in order to increase their production. A brochure aiming at promoting this traditional product will also be prepared and distributed in relevant events.

 

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Hosts and local guides

Abla Majed, Niha Al Shouf

We like to nickname her the “Sirdele” lady. A sirdele producer for more than 20 years, Abla never thought that one day she would become a dairy producer! Her husband’s family had been raising and herding goats for generations and once part of the family, she got down to business and excelled in it.

Sirdele

Sirdele in Shouf, a type of labne produced in clay jars, is the result of the fermentation of goat milk with coarse salt over a period of few months. It is also called Ambarees in the Bekaa Valley.

In 2006, Abla went to Torino to take part in the 2nd Terra Madre event by Slowfood International and was hailed for her traditional labne product.

With Abla, you will learn how Sirdele is produced after coming back from a hike with her husband and his goats!

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Eat Local

Goat Labneh Balls

labneh

A vital part of Lebanese culinary heritage, labneh is basically the by-product of yogurt straining, where yogurt is placed overnight in a cheese cloth bag, and left to drain its “water”, to form a kind of dense, spreadable cream, which is often adorned with extra virgin olive oil, accompanied by a mix of vegetables mainly tomatoes, cucumbers, mint and olives and  eaten with pita bread. Labneh can be made of cow, sheep or goat yogurt.

labneh

Goat labneh is mostly consumed in rural areas. With a stronger and sour taste, goat labne is highly appreciated by villagers and lebanese who have a strong link to rural areas.  Its dense consistency makes it easier for goat labne producers to mold it into small balls and conserve it for the winter season, when goat milk is scarce.

 

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Hosts and local guides

Joseph Masrouaa: natural ice-cream artisan, Saghbine

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Naturally flavoured iced-cream
Naturally flavoured iced-cream

The village of Saghbine hides a hidden treasure, the small scale Ice Cream maker, Joseph Masrouaa’s Saghbine Natural Ice Cream. He inherited the tradition of Ice Cream making from his father . The small Ice Cream shop located in the main street of the village is low key with the simple sign Saghbine’s Natural Ice Cream, Lemonade.

saghbine natural ice cream

 

To prepare his Ice Cream, Masrouaa uses fresh goat’s milk from local farmers, as well as fresh fruits for his different flavours. His Ice Cream is characterized by its elasticity. Masrouaa explains that “the quality of the salep used is key in achieving the desirable consistency, salep from Istanbul being the best”.saghbine natural ice cream

Masrouaa prepares his basic ice cream mixture by boiling milk with salep, mastic gum, orange blossom water and sugar. Then he flavours the different batches with fresh fruits and nuts. The flavours of ice cream change with every fruit season. At his place, you can enjoy  the following ice cream types: almond, milk, chocolate, strawberry, pistachio, honeydew melon, watermelon, lemon and mulberry. His fresh lemonade is as famous as his ice cream.

saghbine natural ice cream