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Cheese from Ethiopia, Amhara region

Metata ayib

Ayib, the Ethiopian cottage cheese, is salted and mixed with ground mustard seed and coriander, drained for three more days, then mixed with about a dozen spices such as garlic, ginger, korerima, rue and black cumin. Packed in a closed container it ferments for 15–20 days while lactic acid bacteria drop the pH from about 6.4 to 4.

Fully documentedCheese18 days – 23 daysFamily: Acid-heat set cheese family (FERMENTATION BOUNDARY)

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceA laboratory recipe for 500 g of ayib, built from earlier studies and from makers in west Gojjam and Gondar. Household recipes vary.
Ayib (Ethiopian cottage cheese)500 g[adugna2023]
Salt (NaCl)2–9 g[adugna2023]
Ground black mustard seed (Brassica nigra) or Ethiopian mustard seed (Brassica carinata)2 g[adugna2023]
Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)2 g[adugna2023]
Ginger, korerima (Aframomum corrorima), garlic, basil, thyme (Thymus serrulatus), rue, bishop's weed, black cumin (Nigella sativa), shallot, fenugreek, and turmeric or red pepper2 g eachGondar makers use red pepper in place of turmeric[adugna2023]

Total time across the recorded steps: 18 days – 23 days

Start
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What changes: Salt, ground mustard seed and coriander are mixed into the fresh ayib

Step 1 of 5
Salt and add mustard and coriander
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

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

At a glance

Ayib, the Ethiopian cottage cheese, is salted and mixed with ground mustard seed and coriander, drained for three more days, then mixed with about a dozen spices such as garlic, ginger, korerima, rue and black cumin. Packed in a closed container it ferments for 15–20 days while lactic acid bacteria drop the pH from about 6.4 to 4. Made in 5 steps over 18 days – 23 days. The longest step, ferment in a closed container, takes 15–20 days (Adugna M 2023). Lactic acid bacteria, the main microbial group at every sampling day does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step15–20 daysReported[adugna2023]Ferment in a closed container
AciditypH 6.4 → 4Measured[andualem2013]Ferment in a closed container

What makes this one different

Fresh ayib is mixed with salt and a dozen or more spices and fermented closed for two to three weeks, so it sours and keeps far longer than plain ayib.

Base
Ayib (fresh Ethiopian cottage cheese) with salt and about 13 spices
Fermentation
15–20 days in a closed container

Related ferments

Safety

Fresh ayib carried coliforms and S. aureus, but none were found after 20 days of fermentation; the authors credit the sharp pH drop, lactic acid bacteria and the spices, and still advise hygienic handling. In lab tests garlic extract was the spice most active against the pathogens tested.

Hazards the sources name: Coliforms and Staphylococcus aureus, present in fresh ayib (2.5×10⁵ and 2.6×10⁴ CFU/g) but not detected in metata ayib by day 20; Escherichia coli and S. aureus added to pasteurised metata ayib in a challenge test; S. aureus was gone from 12 hours.

History and sources

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

History
The sources we found do not record its history.
Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
  1. [adugna2023] Adugna M, Andualem B 2023, Microbial dynamics, risk assessment and sensory evaluation of metata ayib (traditional spiced fermented cottage cheese), F1000Research 12:94 (version 1)paper
  2. [andualem2013] Andualem BT, Kebede A, Geremew T 2013, Microbial profile and dynamics of metata ayib, Research & Reviews, A Journal of Microbiology & Virology 3(3):15-21 (abstract)paper
  3. [geremew2015] Geremew T, Kebede A, Andualem B 2015, The role of spices and lactic acid bacteria as antimicrobial agent to extend the shelf life of metata ayib, Journal of Food Science and Technology 52(9):5661-5670 (abstract)paper