Brining
Salting a cheese by floating it in a bath of strong salt water, or keeping it in brine until it is eaten.
Also: brine salting, salamoia, pekel
Brining means placing cheese in salt water. It is done for two different reasons. Many pressed cheeses, including Gouda, Emmental and Parmigiano Reggiano, are floated in a strong brine for hours or weeks after moulding so that salt soaks slowly inwards and a firm rind begins to form. Other cheeses live in brine for their whole lives: feta, sirene, domiati, akkawi, nabulsi and sulguni are all brined cheeses, and the liquid keeps them moist and safe in hot countries without refrigeration. Brine strength, temperature and time are carefully controlled, since they decide how salty the final cheese is. Brined cheeses are often soaked in fresh water or milk before eating to soften the salt.