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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Croatia, island of Krk

Krčki sir

Krčki sir is a hard, full-fat cheese made on small family farms on the island of Krk from raw ewe milk that is not heat-treated. Studies of farm cheeses measured about 37 % fat, 63 % total solids, 2 % salt and a pH near 5.8; the whey goes on to make albumin cheese. Made in 6 steps over 30 days – 3.3 months. The longest step, salt, takes 3 h – 2.3 months. Salt is up to 2.3 %. Lactic acid bacteria of the raw milk, or of a commercial starter where one is used does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step3 h – 2.3 monthsReported[manchego-pliego][romano-onaf]Salt
Temperature28–40 °CReported[manchego-pliego][romano-onaf]Set the milk with rennet
Saltup to 2.3 %Set[manchego-pliego]Salt
AciditypH 4.8–5.8Set[manchego-pliego]Age
DocumentedCheese30 days – 3.3 monthsnone (protection proposed; not on the 2025 Croatian register)Family: Hard pressed ewe cheese family (Manchego and Pecorino Romano as templates)More hard sheep and goat cheesesMore from Croatia

What makes this one different

It is the island cheese of Krk, close in type to Paški sir from Pag, but it has no protected name and no written specification. Each family farm makes it from its own raw ewe milk, so composition and hygiene vary from farm to farm.

Milk
Raw ewe milk, not heat-treated; 7.81 % fat, 5.59 % protein, pH 6.66 on average
Acidity
Cheese pH 5.78; lactic acid 1.216 %
Salt
1.97 % salt in the cheese
Composition
Fat 37.38 %, protein 23.24 %, total solids 63.22 %, fat in dry matter 54.38 %

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo published recipe or batch size was found; the cheese is made on farms, and farm methods vary.
Raw ewe milk · Not heat-treated; milk measured 7.81 % fat and 5.59 % protein on average[prpic2003]
Commercial starter culture · Used by some makers; cheeses made with and without it differed in free amino acids after 90 days[radeljevic2013]
Starter: rennet; some makers add a commercial starter

Total time across the recorded steps: 30 days – 3.3 months

Start
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28–40 °CpH 6.5–7shapes, not to countLactic acid bacteria

What changes: Starter and rennet go into warm ewe milk and it sets to a firm gel

Step 1 of 6 · steps of Hard pressed ewe cheese family (Manchego and Pecorino Romano as templates)
Set the milk with rennet
Time
30 min – 1 h
Reported
Temperature
28–40 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
pH 6.5–7
Set
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Lactobacilli

Output: curd.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
firm gel; ewe milk is rich in protein
Colour
white

Microbes at work in this step

the starter begins souring the milk

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

Related ferments

Safety

Made from raw ewe milk. In a 2003 study only 55 % of farm samples met the microbial standards then in force, and the authors called for changes to milk and cheese production. ANSES advises pregnant women, people over 65, people with weak immunity and young children to avoid raw-milk cheeses.

Hazards the sources name: Microbial contamination; only 55 % of farm cheeses analysed were hygienically acceptable under the 1994 Croatian microbial standards.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

A 2003 study noted that Krčki sir had last been studied in the middle of the 20th century and set out to describe the farm method as preparation for a protected name.

  1. [prpic2003] Prpić Z., Kalit S., Lukač Havranek J., Štimac M. and Jerković S. 2003, Krčki cheese, Mljekarstvo 53(3):175-194 (abstract, via DOAJ)paper
  2. [antunac2008] Antunac N., Mikulec N., Bendelja D., Prpić Z. and Barać Z. 2008, Characterisation and research of the milk quality in Krk cheese manufacturing, Mljekarstvo 58(3):203-222 (abstract, via DOAJ)paper
  3. [radeljevic2013] Radeljević B. et al. 2013, Influence of starter culture on total free aminoacids concentration during ripening of Krk cheese, Mljekarstvo 63(1):15-21 (abstract, via DOAJ)paper
  4. [hapih2020] HAPIH, Katalog sireva 2020 (21st show of Croatian sheep and goat cheeses)web
  5. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov