How to: make labneh
If you have labneh, toppings and plenty of flatbread at home, you don’t need anything else as far as I’m concerned. The very best labneh? You simply make it yourself—it’s incredibly easy.
Labneh is essentially nothing more than strained yogurt. It’s made in the same way as hangop, but with labneh, a little salt is added to the yogurt. So it’s truly savory, whereas hangop is also often eaten in desserts. All you need is a clean cheesecloth or tea towel, a sieve and a large bowl, and before you know it you’ll be enjoying your homemade labneh.
Straining
Because you strain the yogurt, it becomes much firmer. The liquid that drains out is called whey, and it’s packed with protein. You can even make ice cream with it, or use it for other things. In principle, you can use any type of yogurt, as long as it is full-fat. Greek yogurt is naturally a little thicker and therefore produces a thicker labneh than regular yogurt. Ottolenghi sometimes also uses a mixture of regular yogurt and goat’s yogurt.
Place the sieve over a large bowl, wet the cheesecloth or tea towel and cover the sieve with it. Season the yogurt with salt (approx. 1/2 tsp per liter of yogurt) and pour it into the cloth. Take two opposite corners of the cloth and tie them together; repeat with the other two corners. Let the yogurt strain in the refrigerator for 24–48 hours, until it reaches the desired consistency.
Toppings
Your labneh is ready, but what do you eat with it? Or rather: on it? In principle, a good labneh doesn’t need much more: some good-quality olive oil and a ready-made spice blend (za’atar or dukkah, for example), and you have an amazing snack. Or make a chunky sauce with olives, pine nuts, oregano, parsley and lemon, like flavor king Ottolenghi does here. Add roasted cauliflower on top and suddenly you have a complete meal. Score!
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