Two-Step Vegan Halloumi Cheese – Oil Free

I tried dairy halloumi cheese only once or twice before I became vegan. I was fascinated by it’s ability to remain un-melted even with heating on a hot grill. I became curious about a vegan version and my search found many a version based on seasoned tofu, but no set cheeses.

This cheese is mild and creamy, it can be used as a halloumi or just as a mild cheese for grating or slicing. It’s actually better than the dairy version as it’s not rubbery.

It’s a great addition to a sandwich, especially to top a veggie burger and makes a truly special salad, served with a herby dressing.

To grill the cheese can be tricky so leave some time to experiment. The cheese will melt, the trick is to catch it before it fully melts but has browned and it will reset once removed from the heat very quickly. I used a griddle pan but any non-stick frying pan or cast iron will work. It needs to be truly non-stick and you need a very thin spatula to flip the cheese to ensure you bring the crisped up pieces with you instead of them sticking to the pan. Any left behind can be scraped up onto the hot cheese and will set to it. A dusting of flour can aid in the process. It’s important not to have the heat to high otherwise the cheese will melt before it’s had a chance to colour. In any case, you can slice it onto whatever you’d like to serve it on and grill it until golden, that way it doesn’t matter if it melts, it will still firm up with crisp golden flecks of deliciousness.

Ingredients:

• 1 ¾ cups / 400 ml unsweetened soya milk (or other unsweetened plant milk)
• 1 tsp coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp kappa carageenan powder
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
• 2 tbsp brown rice flour
• 1 tbsp potato or corn starch
• 1 tsp white miso
• 1/4 tsp vegan lactic acid powder (or vegan probiotic or vitamin C powder)

Method:

Blend all the ingredients together in a blender until completely smooth. Scrape into a saucepan and cook over a medium heat, scraping the bottom and stirring with a flexible spatula until you have a very thick, stringy mass, like a very thick cheese sauce. Pour into a loaf pan or other container and chill until set solid before using.

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