If you dabble into Arabic cheeses from the region, you'll often hear about two popular white cheeses: Akkawi cheese (from Akre) and Nabulsi cheese (from Nablus). But what is the difference?
Akkawi cheese is made from pasteurized milk from sheep, goats, or cows, and it is not boiled. It is a semi hard cheese with a smooth exterior, slightly elastic, and has a creamy texture. It offers a mild salty flavor that pairs well with both sweet and savoury dishes.
People living in Tel Aviv might recognize this cheese being used in Joz ve Loz, even though it is presented as Nabulsi cheese. But I don’t blame them, as the two cheeses are very similar and can easily be confused for one another.
Nabulsi cheese has two variations, one that is boiled, and one cooked with mistka.
The mistka cheese is made by pressing curds and is left to ripen for a longer period. It is then brined for longer, which gives it its distinctive salty flavor and harder crumbly texture, with a grainy consistency. The boiled cheese on the other hand, is done through boiling the curds and is firmer, with a chewy and elastic texture. It is still very salty but it is milder compared to the mistka cheese.
Nabulsi cheese is traditionally made from sheep's milk, but it can also be made with cow's or goat's milk. Despite its saltiness, Nabulsi cheese is still used in both savory and sweet dishes, the most notable being kunafeh.
Both cheeses are not easily melted; however, Akkawi cheese comes closer to a melting texture compared to Nabulsi. Both cheeses are also often used to make fataier or mouajanat jebneh bi za'atar (cheese and oregano pastries), and the choice comes down to the flavor and texture you prefer. I usually go for a mixture of both, but if I had to choose one, I’d go with Akkawi. My parents, however, only use Nabulsi, so it really depends on your preference!
It is common to see both Nabulsi and Akkawi cheeses (to a lesser extent) mixed with Qizha (Nigella seeds) in some stores.
In Nablus, a special version of Nabulsi cheese called Mashmoleh is often used in making kunafeh. This cheese blends goat, sheep, and cow milks to create a unique blend specifically for Kunafeh.
Akkawi Versus Nabulsi Cheese
