Bundz owczy
Bundz is a traditional cheese, made from sheep’s milk in Podhale region. It has been produced in Podhale region for at least 300 years. It is a kind of cottage cheese with a mild, gentle and slightly sweet flavor. It is considered that the best cheese is the one made from the milk collected during the spring grazing period. The production of bundz in its first stages is similar to the production process of oscypek, another very typical cheese from this region, also onboard the Ark of Taste. The milk is poured into the traditional container called ‘’puciera’’ and is set aside for coagulation. The obtained mixture is heated and separated from the whey with the aid of special wooden spatula. The strained whey is known as tyca (żentyca). Then the cheese is kneaded by hand and hung on the walls to dry inside the highlander’s hut. It is set aside for up to two weeks in order to mature. With time, under the influence of lactic acid bacteria it becomes slightly sour and assumes a specific aroma and the characteristic holes also appear. The cheese is shaped like a round loaf of bread, it is white or white with a shade of aquamarine. It has a thin clean crust with delicate coating. The tastiest one is fresh, so called ‘’sweet’’ bundz because it is mild and gentle however it can also be consumed seasoned with salt.
Traditional processing method of bundz is strongly linked to region and local shepherds. The production area is limited to the Tatra Mountains, where the community of Polish shepherds only rarely has an opportunity to pass its knowledge to the younger generation which shows little interest, and this seriously endangers the future of the traditional cheese making in the region.
