Labneh ma Za'atar (لبنة مع زعتر)

Labneh is Lebanon's most elemental food: yoghurt strained overnight until it becomes a thick, tangy, spreadable cheese. Served every morning from Beirut to the Bekaa Valley, it is eaten with a generous drizzle of olive oil, a dusting of za'atar, and bread for scooping — five ingredients, no cooking, endless satisfaction.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 500g (2 cups) full-fat plain yoghurt
• ½ tsp (2g) fine salt
• 3 tbsp (45ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp (10g) za'atar spice blend
• Warm flatbread or pita to serve

Instructions

1. Stir the salt into the yoghurt. Line a colander or sieve with two layers of cheesecloth or a clean cotton cloth. Pour in the yoghurt and gather the corners.
2. Suspend over a bowl in the refrigerator for 12–24 hours. The longer it strains, the firmer and more intensely flavoured the labneh. After 12 hours it will be cream-cheese consistency; after 24 hours, spreadable but firm.
3. Unmould onto a wide shallow plate or bowl. Use the back of a spoon to create swirls and a shallow well in the surface.
4. Drizzle generously with olive oil — it should pool in the hollows. Dust evenly with za'atar.
5. Serve immediately with warm flatbread.

Cook's Notes: Za'atar blends vary widely — seek out Lebanese za'atar containing wild thyme, sumac, sesame, and salt rather than generic blends. For a party, roll balls of labneh in dried herbs or chilli flakes and store in jars of olive oil — they keep refrigerated for up to two weeks. Sheep's milk yoghurt gives the most authentic flavour.