Salted whey boiled down, strained, formed into small balls and dried in the shade into a hard, keeping cheese.
Kurt (Dried Whey Cheese)
Ingredients
Method
- Salt the whey well.
- Boil gently 1–1.5 hours until it reduces and the solids gather.
- Strain through gauze or a fine sieve.
- Form the strained curds into small walnut-sized balls by hand (makes about 12–15).
- Dry the balls in an airy, shaded spot, or by a hearth.
- For long keeping, pack the dried balls in grain, which holds the humidity steady.
- Eat like cheese, with hot paste, warm cornbread, or boiled potatoes.
This is the recipe from the Recipes section of the Circassian app, where you can also scale it and save it to your favourites.
Kitchen words in Circassian
The words for what is in this dish, in Kabardian (East Circassian) and Adyghe (West Circassian), with audio from the Circassian app’s lessons and audio course.
| English | Kabardian | Adyghe |
|---|---|---|
| cheese | кхъуейqkhwey | къуаеqwae |
| salt | шыгъуshyghu | щыгъуshchəghu |
| food | шхынshkhyn | шхыныshkhənə |
| delicious | IэфI'ef' | IэшIу'eshIu |
| This is delicious! | Мыр IэфIщ!Myr 'ef'shch! | Мыр IэшIу!Myr 'esh'u! |
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Kurt: questions
How long does it take to make Kurt?
About 90 minutes, according to the recipe in the Circassian app.
How many people does this Kurt recipe serve?
It serves 8. The servings control above the ingredients recalculates every quantity for 1 to 40 people.
What is Kurt made of?
The ingredients are: 2–3 litres whey (left from cheese-making); 2–3 tbsp salt (about 1 tbsp per litre).
Is Kurt an everyday or a festive dish?
The Circassian app files it as an everyday dish (Cheese & Dairy).
Where does this Kurt recipe come from?
From the Recipes section of the Circassian app. The app’s recipes draw on Amjad Jaimoukha’s book Circassian Cuisine and were cross-checked against Russian and Adyghe food sources.
Sources
- Circassian app, Recipes section, recipe “Kurt (Dried Whey Cheese)” (recipe data last changed July 2026). The app’s recipes draw on Amjad Jaimoukha’s book Circassian Cuisine and were cross-checked against Russian and Adyghe food sources.
- Circassian app: audio course, Kabardian and Adyghe (the kitchen words: cheese, meat, milk, bread, tea, water, food, delicious), and the lessons’ vocabulary (chicken, salt, butter, honey).
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