Is akawi cheese allowed in the Tayyibat system? Halloumi, kashkaval and fresh cheese

Short answer

Yes, akawi is kept in the Tayyibat system. The system's list keeps the aged cheeses: akawi, halloumi (aged), kashkaval, cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan. It sets aside white or fresh cheese eaten raw, which only passes cooked, as well as milk and yogurt. Whole cream (qeshta) is kept, with a condition. In the system's vocabulary, the word khabith means what is set aside.

Every dairy product on the list, one by one

The dairy category of the list holds eleven products, not counting eggs: they are filed there and set aside, but that is another subject. The table gathers all of them, with their status and the condition when the list gives one.

Only one cheese is set aside: white or fresh cheese, and only while it is raw.

Aged kept, fresh set aside

The dividing line is not the milk the cheese starts from, it is ageing: the site's texts keep aged cheeses and set aside fresh dairy. Fresh milk and yogurt therefore drop out, while an akawi, a kashkaval or a parmesan stay. A journal article compares yogurt and aged dairy. White or fresh cheese eaten raw is the separate case. The entry for white or fresh cheese is clear: a fresh cheese only passes cooked. Qareesh, ricotta, white cheese: all of them are fresh cheeses. The site does not spell out exactly what this "cooked" covers, and we will not decide in its place. Cream is the second case: kept, but as its entry describes it, whole and fresh, not soured or fermented, in small amounts, classically with honey and dates.

Day to day: breakfast and toasts

In the site's texts, cheese is eaten mostly at breakfast. The site lists the cheese and honey toast and cream with dates among the breakfasts. The site publishes a cheese and jam toast, described with aged cheddar on warm whole bread, along with a Levantine platter: aged akawi or cheddar, olives, zaatar in olive oil, whole sourdough bread and dates. One rule frames the plate: the system forbids two proteins in the same meal, and cheese counts. The texts put it this way: never beef with cheese, never fish with akawi. Cheese therefore goes with bread, olives or dates, not with meat or fish. The plate rules cover the rest.

Telling an aged cheese from a fresh one in the shop

The sources give no laboratory test, only simple markers. The name first: akawi, halloumi, kashkaval, cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan are the ones on the list. Qareesh, ricotta, white cheese and labneh (made from yogurt) are fresh dairy. For halloumi, the list writes "aged": choose it aged. Then the ageing: akawi is a salty cheese kept in brine for weeks or months. The site's rule fits in one sentence: if the cheese smells of cheese rather than milk, it is on the kept side. Mozzarella calls for a closer look: according to the journal article, the fresh supermarket ball counts as fresh cheese, so the aged version is the one to prefer. Finally, akawi and aged halloumi are easier to find in an oriental grocery. To see how these cheeses fit into a whole week, you can receive the free sample of the guide by leaving your email address.

Frequently asked questions

Is akawi allowed? Yes, it is among the aged cheeses the system's list keeps, with aged halloumi, kashkaval, cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan. Is halloumi allowed? Yes, as long as it is aged: the list writes "halloumi (aged)". That is the version the system keeps. Is white cheese allowed? Not raw: the list sets it aside, and specifies that a fresh cheese only passes cooked.