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Shanklish Salad

Local name : سلطة شنكليش

Syrian thyme-aged cheese crushed with tomato, onion and olive oil, scooped up with bread at mezze time.

Gluten-free#cheese#tomato#thyme#mezze#raw
Shanklish Salad

Photo : El Mono Español · CC BY-SA 4.0

Prep
15 min
Cook
0 min
Total
15 min
Serves
4
Difficulty
Easy

Method

  1. Crumble the cheese roughly into a wide shallow dish.
  2. Dice the tomatoes small and discard the watery centres.
  3. Chop the onion very fine and rinse it under cold water to soften its bite.
  4. Crush the cheese and tomatoes together with a fork, stopping well short of smooth.
  5. Add the onion, chopped parsley and pepper.
  6. Pour the olive oil over in a thin stream and toss once more.
  7. Dust with za'atar and serve with warm flatbread.

Shanklish starts as soured milk, drained, rolled into balls and left to ripen under a coat of thyme for several weeks. The rind carries all the aroma, so never scrape it off.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly is shanklish?

It is a cheese made from soured milk, drained, rolled into balls and left to mature for several weeks under a coating of thyme. Its rind carries most of the aroma: never scrape it off, it is part of the cheese.

What can I use instead?

A matured feta rolled in zaatar, as the ingredient list allows, comes closest. The flavour will be milder and less fermented; add a little extra zaatar at serving to compensate.

Why mash the cheese and tomatoes together?

You want a coarse texture, where the cheese takes up the tomato juice while keeping recognisable pieces. A smooth purée would turn it into a uniform spread, whereas this dish is eaten with a fork or scooped up with bread.

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