What Is Kasseri cheese and How Can I Use It?
Kasseri cheese rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 10 recipes to cook with it.
Key Points
- Firm Greek and Turkish stretched-curd cheese, mostly sheep's milk, between provolone and white cheddar.
- It melts into smooth strands and browns well, which makes it the classic saganaki frying cheese.
- For saganaki, get the pan properly hot so the surface crisps before the cheese slumps.
- Also a good all-purpose melter for pizza, baked pasta, and Greek pastries.
- Kefalotyri or young provolone are the closest frying swaps; do not fry soft fresh cheese.
What is kasseri cheese?
Kasseri is a firm, pale-yellow cheese from Greece and Turkey, made mostly from sheep's milk, sometimes with a little goat's milk mixed in.
It is a stretched-curd cheese, so it sits somewhere between a young provolone and a salty white cheddar: mild and milky when young, sharper and tangier with age.
The texture is what defines it. Kasseri is springy and a little chewy, and it melts cleanly into long, smooth strands, which is exactly why it is the classic cheese for frying.
In Greece it carries a protected name, made to a set standard from local milk.
How to use it
Kasseri's headline act is saganaki, the Greek dish where a slab of cheese is dredged in flour and fried until the outside crisps and the inside goes molten, then finished with lemon. The flour crust and the high melting point let it brown without collapsing into a puddle.
This is the cheese behind a tableside Flaming Greek Cheese, where it is fried and then flambeed.
Beyond the pan it is a fine all-purpose melting and table cheese. Grate or slice it onto pizzas and toasted sandwiches, melt it into baked pasta like Orzo Baked with Greek Cheeses, or fold it into savory pastries such as Kasseri, Tomato & Basil Cresents.
It is also good simply eaten with bread and olives under a drizzle of oil.
Pairing and mistakes
Kasseri suits the Mediterranean table: tomatoes, olives, oregano, lemon, and grilled lamb or vegetables. Its sheep's-milk tang stands up to bold, herby cooking without overpowering it.
The classic saganaki mistake is a pan that is not hot enough. The cheese needs to hit a properly heated, oiled pan so the surface seizes and browns fast; a cool pan lets it slump and stick before a crust forms.
The other is reaching for the wrong cheese and calling it kasseri. Soft, fresh cheeses melt into a greasy mess when fried, so stick with a firm stretched-curd cheese for saganaki.
Substitutes
For frying, the closest swaps are kefalotyri or kefalograviera, the other firm Greek cheeses traditionally used for saganaki, both a touch saltier. A young provolone or a firm halloumi also fries well, though halloumi barely melts and holds its shape instead.
For melting and the table, provolone or a mild white cheddar covers most of what kasseri does, with a slightly different flavor. Match a firm, low-moisture cheese to the job and you will be close.
Buying and storing
Find kasseri in the deli or specialty cheese case, sold as a wedge or a block, often near feta and other Greek cheeses. Choose a piece that looks moist and even, not dried or cracked at the edges.
Wrap it in cheese paper or parchment, then loosely in foil. Keep it in the warmest part of the fridge. As a firm, fairly low-moisture cheese it keeps two to three weeks.
It freezes for cooking, melting a little softer after thawing, so freeze what you plan to fry or bake and keep the rest for eating fresh.
Quick facts
Where to find kasseri cheese: Kasseri cheese is usually found in the cheeses section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.
- In Chinese
- kasseri奶酪
- British (UK) term
- Kasseri cheese
- en français
- fromage kasseri
- en español
- kasseri
Recipes using kasseri cheese
There are 10 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Kasseri, Tomato & Basil Crescents (Kasseropites)
Kasseropites: Greek kasseri cheese, tomato, and basil hand-rolled into crescent pastries, baked golden. A vegetarian Greek appetizer made from scratch with a red wine vinegar dough.
Kasseri, Tomato & Basil Cresents (Kasseropi)
Kasseropi are Greek cheese crescents filled with kasseri cheese, fresh tomatoes, and basil in handmade olive oil dough. A golden, flaky vegetarian appetizer baked until bubbly.
Asparagus Tip Pasta
Asparagus tip pasta with fusilli, black olives, stone-ground mustard, and lemon butter sauce. Topped with kasseri or parmesan, this bright springtime pasta comes together in 30 minutes.
Kasseri Tomato & Basil Cresents (Kasseropites)
Kasseropites are Greek cheese-filled crescents with kasseri, fresh tomatoes, and basil wrapped in homemade olive oil pastry. A golden, hand-shaped vegetarian appetizer dusted with paprika.
Bird's Nests with Cheese
Greek phyllo pastry nests filled with Parmesan, ricotta, and mint, baked golden, then topped with bubbly Kasseri cheese and a Kalamata olive. An elegant appetizer that stuns at any table.
Spaghetti Mizithra (Greek-Style Spaghetti)
Greek-style spaghetti mizithra: a five-ingredient pasta tossed with Kasseri and Romano cheeses, drowned in browned butter, and finished with fresh parsley. The Old Spaghetti Factory classic.
Arni Exohiko ("Surprise" Lamb, Country Style )
Lamb chops wrapped in phyllo with peas, potato balls, tomatoes, and kasseri cheese bake into golden Greek parcels that surprise with every bite.
Orzo Baked with Greek Cheeses
Baked orzo with crumbled feta, kasseri cheese, fresh dill, heavy cream, and olive oil. A rich Greek-style pasta side dish that can be assembled a day ahead and baked before serving.
Lamb Chops Bandit Style - Arni Palikari
Arni Palikari, Greek bandit-style lamb chops wrapped in foil with potatoes, tomatoes, oregano, and kasseri cheese. Baked low and slow until fork-tender and melty.
Flaming Greek Cheese
Saganaki: Greek flaming kasseri cheese pan-fried in butter, deglazed with lemon juice and cognac, and lit at the table for an "Opa!" tableside appetizer.
