Ingredients
Cheese
- 3 litreswhole goat’s or cow’s milk
- ¼ tspcalcium chloride in 2 tbsp water, if using shop milk
- ¼ tspliquid rennet in 50 ml cool water, or 4 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tspsalt
To serve
- khobz or msemen
- honey or argan oil
- olives and mint tea
Directions
- Warm the milk to 30°C (86°F) and stir in the calcium chloride if using pasteurised shop milk — goat’s milk sets weakly at the best of times and without it the curd may not hold at all.
- Stir in the diluted rennet with a few slow strokes, then stop the milk moving completely and leave it undisturbed for an hour.
- For the lemon version instead, heat the milk to 85°C (185°F) and stir in the lemon juice a tablespoon at a time until it separates cleanly, using no more acid than it takes.
- Test the rennet-set curd for a clean break, then cut it into 2 cm cubes and leave 10 minutes.
- Ladle the curd very gently into a muslin-lined basket or colander. Goat curd is fragile and rough handling shatters it into grains that will not knit.
- Salt lightly and let it drain under its own weight for four to six hours in a cool place. Do not press — jben is a soft fresh cheese and pressing makes it rubbery.
- Turn it out. It should be white, soft and mild, with the print of the basket on it if you used one.
- Eat within two or three days, with bread and honey, or with argan oil and olives.
Technique
- Do not press it. Draining under its own weight is the whole method.
- Handle the curd slowly. It is fragile, and that softness is the cheese rather than a fault.
- No rind, no ageing, no keeping. Two or three days is its life.
Substitutions
- Lemon juice or vinegar in place of rennet, which gives a crumblier cheese.
- Cow’s milk, which sets more firmly and needs no calcium chloride.
- Vegetarian microbial rennet.
Variations
- Drained in rush baskets, which leaves the woven pattern and is how it is sold at souks.
- Whipped with olive oil and herbs as a spread.
History
Drained in rush baskets or cloth by rural households and sold at weekly souks; it is eaten within days, as no rind or ageing is intended.
Frequently asked questions
What is Jben?
Jben is a cheese & dairy from Morocco: fresh soft goat or cow curd, lightly salted, eaten with bread and honey. Drained in rush baskets or cloth by rural households and sold at weekly souks; it is eaten within days, as no rind or ageing is intended.
How long does Jben take to make?
Jben takes 20 min plus 6 hours draining of preparation and 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes makes about 400 g. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Jben?
Yes, within limits. Lemon juice or vinegar in place of rennet, which gives a crumblier cheese. Cow’s milk, which sets more firmly and needs no calcium chloride. Vegetarian microbial rennet.
What is the most important thing to get right in Jben?
Salt lightly and let it drain under its own weight for four to six hours in a cool place. Do not press — jben is a soft fresh cheese and pressing makes it rubbery.
