Motal vs Tulum
Motal
Facts
- Milk
- Mixed milk
- Texture
- Soft
- Type
- Brined
- Rind
- No rind
- Country
- Armenia
- Place
- Syunik and Artsakh
Motal is a traditional cheese from Armenia, above all from Syunik and Artsakh. Makers use sheep's milk, goat's milk, or a mixture of the two, and they often mix herbs into the curd. The paste is white, rich, and crumbly, with no rind to cut away. Salt and wild herbs shape the smell, and the cheese is eaten in small pieces rather than in neat thin slices. It is a cheese that is salted and then packed away to mature.
Tulum
Facts
- Texture
- Semi-hard
- Type
- Pressed
- Rind
- No rind
- Country
- Turkey
- Place
- Erzincan, İzmir, Tunceli, Aydın
Tulum is a traditional cheese from Turkey, made in Erzincan, İzmir, Tunceli, and Aydın. Makers pack the curd into a tulum, a cleaned animal skin, or into a tin that copies that old container. The cheese is salty, crumbly, and sharp after it rests. It is a pantry cheese in many Turkish kitchens, not a soft fresh cheese. Buyers usually find it as a white or cream-colored block with a dry break.