Tvorog is a fresh curd cheese — dry, fine-grained and pressed.
The reason it needs explaining at all is that it looks like cottage cheese on a shelf and
behaves nothing like it in a pan.
Tvorog against what you can buy
| Tvorog | Cottage cheese | Ricotta | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made from | Curdled milk | Curdled milk | Whey |
| Sold | Pressed, dry | Sitting in liquid | Wet, smooth |
| Texture | Fine crumb | Large curds in dressing | Soft paste |
| Taste | Clean, lightly sour | Mild, salty | Sweetish |
| Holds shape when cooked | Yes | Poorly | Poorly |
The critical column is the second row. Tvorog is pressed; cottage cheese is sold in its
own liquid. That liquid is exactly what turns
syrnyky into a batter
that will not hold.
Making cottage cheese behave like tvorog
Line a sieve with cheesecloth, tip the tub in, leave it in the fridge for two to three
hours, then press gently. That is the whole conversion, and it costs nothing but time.
Farmer cheese needs no conversion — it is often literally the same product under a
different name, and it is the closest thing on a Western shelf.
Ricotta is a different animal
It is made from whey rather than curds, which makes it sweeter and wetter. Drained, it
works in baked dishes; in savoury ones the sweetness shows.
The number on the pack matters
Ukrainian recipes usually name a percentage — 5%, 9%, or “fat” tvorog at 18%.
Higher fat gives a softer bake; low-fat tvorog is drier and needs less flour in syrnyky.
Where no number is given, assume around 9%.
What it is for
Syrnyky, zapikanka, sweet varenyky fillings, Easter paska — and simply eaten with sour
cream and sugar, which is how most of it is consumed.
See also:
What is smetana ·
Can you freeze cottage cheese ·
Currant Cheese Tart ·
What is ryazhanka