Quark (or qvark) is a type of fresh cheese of Central European origin. Dictionaries usually translate it as curd cheese. It is white and unaged, similar to cream cheese, pot cheese, or ricotta. Because quark is consumed without aging, in the United States the milk must first be pasteurized. Once the milk is ready, lactic acid bacteria is created by adding starting culture. Acidification continues until the PH reaches 4.6, which causes precipitation of the casein proteins. Then a small amount of rennet) is added to make the curd firmer. Some or most of the whey is removed to standardize the quark to the desired thickness. Traditionally, this is done by hanging the cheese in loosely woven cotton gauze called cheesecloth and letting the whey drip off, which gives quark its distinctive shape of a wedge with rounded edges. In industrial production, however, cheese is separated from whey in a centrifuge and later formed into blocks.
Quark is usually sold in plastic tubs with most or all of the whey. This type of quark has the texture of sour cream and is often sold flavored with herbs, spices, or fruit.
Quark consists of 60% to 80% water. Dry mass ranges from 10% to 40% fat; most of the rest is protein, 80% of which is casein, calcium, and phosphate.
The name comes from the German Quark, which in turn is derived from the Slavic tvarog, (Polish twaróg, Russian tvorog, and Czech and Slovak tvaroh, which means "curd"). In Austria the name Topfen ("pot cheese") is used instead of Quark, while in Estonian, it is known as kohupiim ("foamy milk"). The cheese is also known simply as "white cheese" (Polish: ser biały, Lithuanian: Baltas sūris, Southern Germany: Weißkäse or weißer Käs, Hebrew: Gvina Levana גבינה לבנה) as opposed to any rennet-set "yellow cheese."
The Polish and Lithuanian variety contains less whey and is therefore drier and more solid than varieties common in other countries. It is often used as an ingredient for sandwiches, salads, and cheesecakes.
In German, Quark may be used figuratively to mean "nonsense." This usage is believed to be an inspiration for the sentence Three quarks for Muster Mark in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake[citation needed], which itself inspired the name of quarks, elementary particles of which most of the material world is built.
In Israel, most cheesemakers label their quark cheese as "Bulgarian Cheese" (גבינה בולגרית) due to its origins.[citation needed] |
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