Barley Kishk in Matruh

This type of kishk is unique to the North Coast/Western Desert bedouins, particulary of Marsa Matruh and has been produced therefor manygenerations. Like the traditional upper Egyptian kishk, it has a sour funky smell and a sourtaste. the use of sheep's milk is evident in the taste as is the use of barley which makes it sweeter. The barley also means that its color is a darker grey than the common beige appearance. This product is unique in Egypt because it 1) uses sheep's milk instead of cow or buffalo milk used elsewhere; and 2) uses barley instead of wheat. The Kishk Barley is mainly home produced. The production is often done in [arge batches by groups of women, and its know-how is transmitted from motherto daughter. However, there are no cultural events orfestivals that are held to promote forthe production of Kishk Barley.

To make kishk Barley, milk is left to fermentovernight (in the summer) or for a couple ofdays (in the winter) in a special vessel that retains the live culture. The fermented milk is then churned vigorously in a jerry can. Traditionally, milk was fermented and churned in a container called an irbah (قرية), made from the salted and cleaned skin of a male goat. Once all the butter has been removed, the remaining buttermilk is strained through cheesecloth until it stops releabsing any more liquid. The strained buttermilk, called gemeed is stored for later use. When enough gemeed is ready, crushed barley (disheesha) is steamed. The gemeed is added so that the whole product is pre-cooked for the future. The combined crushed barley and gemeed are rolled into balls and placed in containersto dry and are covered with gauze or cheesecloth to keep out pests. This usually takes about 5 days in the summer and up to 2 weeks in the winter.