Labneh, Labaneh or Labni is the famous Middle Eastern yogurt cheese which is made by straining salted Yogurt; a healthier alternative to cream cheese, Labneh creamy tangy and is delicious with lots of different flavor combinations.
Labneh is hands down the number one breakfast food in every Middle Eastern household. Your breakfast menu is not complete without it. It is traditionally served with extra virgin olive oil and pita bread for dipping. It also pairs very well with Zaatar. You can also use it as a spread in place of cream cheese on your toast or bagel.
How to Make Labneh at Home – Middle Eastern Yogurt Cheese
Labneh, or as we also call it, Labaneh is a quintessential food in the Levant region of the Middle East, which includes Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Jordan. It is creamy and a little tangy, and can be served in many different ways.
You can buy it at the store, but it is very easy to make at home, and for a fraction of the price.
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Ingredients to Make Labneh
The ingredients needed to make homemade Labaneh are two very simple ingredients.
- Yogurt: (or milk)
To get that traditional tangy flavor, start with plain whole milk yogurt, not Greek yogurt. Alternatively, you can make your own homemade yogurt from milk without any special equipment. Follow this recipe to make Labaneh from milk. - Salt:
Labneh is salted. Adjust the amount of salt to taste. Adding the salt to the yogurt also helps with straining the whey.
How to Make Labneh
Making Labaneh requires very minimal hands on time. It does all the work on it’s own.
Start by preparing cheesecloth (I use this one). It is used to separate the Labneh from the whey. Wash the cheesecloth with hot water, or boil it in a saucepan filled with water for 10 minutes. Do not use any detergents when you clean it, because it will affect the flavor of the end product. Squeeze the water out of the cleaned cheesecloth, and allow it to dry before using.
Place a colander on top of a bowl. Line it with the cheesecloth. The bowl will hold the whey that drains from the yogurt.
Stir the salt into the yogurt, then pour the mixture into the cheesecloth. You will notice that it will start draining out the whey immediately. Tie it with an elastic, and hang it above the bowl.
If you don’t have space to hang it, or if it’s too hot, you can also keep it in the colander, optionally place some weight on it (a plate and some canned food) to help with draining the liquid, and put it in the fridge.
You need to remove the whey from the bowl a few times as it collects. You don’t want your yogurt cheese to be sitting in the whey. That defies the purpose.
Strain the Labneh for 8 hours to 5 or 7 days, or until it reaches the desired consistency. For thicker consistency, allow it to strain for at least 3 days.
Serving Labneh
You can serve it with extra virgin olive oil, and some pita bread. It is commonly served like this for breakfast, along with foods like hummus, baba ganoush, Zaatar, and falafel to name a few.
You can shape it into little balls. This works best if it have a thick consistency.
Use Labneh as a lighter cream cheese spread for your toast or bagel. It pairs very well with strawberry jam too.
How to Store Labneh
It can be stored in the fridge. I find it keeps well for about a month. Cover it with olive oil for better preservation.
It can be frozen. You can double this Labneh recipe to make a big batch, and portion it into Ziplock bags to store in the freezer. When you want to use it, put it in the fridge the day before to thaw.
Shape it into balls, and place it in a jar with olive oil. This works best when there is very little moisture left. It can be stored at room temperature if it’s not too hot, or store it in the fridge.
More Recipes:
- Baba Ganoush Mediterranean eggplant dip
- Cheese stuffed oregano bread rolls (Khobz be Zaatar)
- How to make yogurt from milk without special equipment
- Semolina cake recipe
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Homemade Labaneh Recipe (Yogurt Cheese)
Equipment
- Cheesecloth
- Colander or Sieve
Ingredients
- 32 oz plain whole milk yogurt, 1kg
- 2 tsp Salt or to taste
Instructions
- Place a colander in a bowl, and line it with a big square of cheesecloth.
- Add the salt to the yogurt and stir, then spoon or pour the yogurt into the cheesecloth.
- Gather the cheesecloth around the yogurt, and tie it up with a clean elastic.
- Hang the yogurt to strain on top of the bowl for a few hours if it's not too hot, then put it back in the colander and in the fridge to strain overnight. Remove the whey as it collects in the bowl.
- Once the whey has drained out and the Labneh has reached the desired consistency, remove it from the cheesecloth, and serve with olive oil. Store in the fridge or freezer.
Notes
- Yield: This recipe makes about 11 to 16 oz of Labneh, or 330-450 grams.
- Salt: Adjust the amount of salt in the recipe to your desired amount. A lot of the salt will drain with the whey. You can add more salt after the Labneh has formed.
- Yogurt: Use any fat content yogurt. The higher fat content the easier to get a thicker Labaneh consistency. You can use store-bought yogurt; plain whole milk yogurt achieves the closest authentic Labneh flavor. You can also make your own homemade yogurt, which is easy to make and gives great results.
- Straining: Traditionally the cheesecloth with the yogurt would hang on the sink overnight. Get creative with how to hang the yogurt bag to strain. Or place it in a colander, and place a weight on it to help it strain faster. Place a plate with a can on top of it to create a heavy weight on top of your Labaneh.
- Time: The longer you leave it to strain, the thicker Labneh you will get. Strain it anywhere between 8 hours to a week. For thick Labneh to form balls, I leave it to strain for 5-7 days weighted. I shift the weight throughout that period.
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