Halloumi salad: the cheese you can grill without it melting
Halloumi is one of the few cheeses you can put on a hot pan without fear. It does not melt, because the milk is set with rennet and no acidifying cultures, and the finished cheese is poached in hot whey — its low-acid, tight protein network survives temperatures at which most cheeses would spread across the pan. It has two drawbacks to watch for: it is very salty and rubbery once cold. Which is why the salad gets no salt at all, and the cheese goes onto the plate straight from the pan.
Your own work in that: 30 min.
- Vegetables 14 min
- Halloumi 13 min
- Serving 3 min
Step by step
0 / 5 doneCut the vegetables and set the platter
Cut the cucumber into thick half-moons, quarter the tomatoes and slice the onion thinly. Arrange them on a platter with the rocket, olives and mint. Everything must be ready before the cheese hits the pan — halloumi waits a minute at most.
Ingredients: 1 pcs cucumber · 400 g tomatoes · ½ pcs red onion · 80 g rocket · 20 pcs fresh mint · 80 g black olives
Everything ready before the cheese goes onMix the dressing without salt
Whisk the oil with the lemon juice, honey, crushed oregano and pepper. Add no salt — halloumi is stored in brine, and with 450 grams of it for four portions the salad will be salty enough regardless.
Ingredients: 4 tbsp olive oil · 1 pcs lemon, juice · 1 tsp honey · 1 tsp dried oregano · ½ tsp freshly ground pepper
No salt: the halloumi does that jobSlice and dry the cheese
Cut the halloumi into 1 cm slices and pat them thoroughly dry. The cheese is kept in salty brine, and a wet surface first has to boil that water off, so it steams instead of browning and never forms a crust.
Ingredients: 450 g halloumi · 1 tbsp olive oil
TipWant it less salty? Soak the slices in cold water for <b>15 minutes</b> and dry them. They lose some of their salt and none of their texture.
1 cm slices, patted completely dryGriddle two minutes a side
Heat a griddle pan hard and wipe it with oil. Lay the slices on and cook 2 minutes a side without moving them, until clear dark bars appear. If the slices don't all fit at once, cook them in two batches — about 8 minutes in total. The cheese should brown outside and stay soft within.
TipOvercooked halloumi toughens and turns rubbery as it cools. Two minutes a side in a very hot pan is enough to brown it while the centre stays soft.
Two minutes, clear bars, untouchedServe immediately
Dress the vegetables with half the dressing and toss. Lay the hot cheese on top straight from the pan and spoon over the rest. Serve at once: halloumi is at its best straight off the pan and turns dense and rubbery as it cools.
Ingredients: 1 pcs cucumber · 400 g tomatoes · ½ pcs red onion · 80 g rocket · 20 pcs fresh mint · 80 g black olives
Pan to plate, with no waiting
Before you start
With watermelon
In summer replace half the tomatoes with cubes of watermelon. Sweet cold watermelon with hot salty cheese is a classic Cypriot summer pairing — the contrast works instantly.
On the grill
Halloumi takes a barbecue beautifully: 90 seconds a side over high heat. Cut the slices thicker, 1.5 cm, so they don't fall through the bars.
Reheating
Impossible. Halloumi is rubbery once cold and tougher still reheated. Cook exactly as much as will be eaten at once.
Substitutes
Greek frying cheeses such as kefalograviera (the one used for saganaki) and Polish oscypek behave similarly in a pan. Feta and mozzarella won't work: feta falls apart and mozzarella melts.
