isithalal.food · Recipes

Knafeh, cheese checked

Buttery kataifi knafeh with a stretchy cheese filling chosen for its rennet, soaked in rose or orange-blossom syrup and topped with pistachios.

Levantine · Dessert · Moderate · one 23 cm knafeh, 8 slices · 85 min

Each method follows published technique for the dish, and every Halal substitution is checked against the ingredient pages we cite. Photographs come from our ingredient library rather than the finished dish.

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Why Halal checks matter here

Knafeh's Nabulsi, Akkawi and mozzarella cheeses are all set with rennet, which may be animal rennet from non-Halal slaughter; the pastry, syrup and nuts are not the issue.

Halal-critical ingredients

• Cheese: Nabulsi, Akkawi and mozzarella are set with rennet; animal rennet from a non-Halal-slaughtered calf is where scholars differ. A pack naming microbial or vegetable rennet, or a Halal mark. See Cheese and Rennet.
• Ricotta: Most ricotta is set with acid and heat, but some is made with rennet. Read the label; if it lists rennet, apply the same check.
• Butter or ghee: Butter and pure ghee are Halal; some catering 'ghee' blends add animal fats. Butter, or ghee that lists only milk fat. See Ghee.

Ingredients

Syrup

• 125 g (½ cup + 2 tbsp) sugar
• 240 ml (1 cup) water
• 5 ml (1 tsp) lemon juice
• 2.5 ml (½ tsp) rose water or orange-blossom water

Pastry and filling

• 340 g (12 oz) kataifi (shredded filo), thawed if frozen
• 155 g (⅔ cup) unsalted butter or ghee, melted
• 140 g (5 oz) low-moisture mozzarella made with microbial or vegetable rennet (or Halal-certified), grated
• 140 g (5 oz) ricotta (check the label for rennet; many are acid-set)
• 35 g (¼ cup) roasted pistachios, chopped

Method

1. Syrup first. Boil the sugar and water, then simmer for 5–6 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and rose or orange-blossom water and leave to cool completely. Cold syrup on hot pastry keeps the knafeh crisp.
2. Butter the kataifi. Heat the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan). Pull the kataifi strands apart, cut them shorter with scissors, and work the melted butter or ghee through with your fingers until every strand is coated.
3. Layer. Press half the kataifi firmly into a 23 cm round tin. Mix the grated mozzarella and ricotta and spread it evenly, leaving a 1 cm border. Cover with the rest of the kataifi and press down.
4. Bake. Bake for 25–30 minutes until deep golden underneath and on top. (Stovetop alternative: cook in a 23 cm non-stick frying pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes a side, flipping with a plate.)
5. Syrup and serve. Turn out onto a plate, pour the cold syrup evenly over the hot knafeh, scatter with pistachios and serve warm while the cheese still stretches.

Allergens

gluten, milk, nuts (pistachio)

How this recipe was researched

Method specified editorially from The Cooking Foodie's kunafa (kataifi, butter, mozzarella and ricotta, sugar syrup with rose or orange-blossom water), with the cheese specified by rennet, plus this site's Knafeh, Cheese, Rennet and Ghee pages. Timings follow published technique rather than a kitchen test.

Photograph from our ingredient library, not the finished dish.