Handkäse
A small German sour-milk cheese, once shaped by hand, translucent and pungent, served with onions and vinegar.
Also: hand cheese, Handkäs, Mainzer
Handkäse, hand cheese, is a small round or oval cheese from Hesse and neighbouring regions of Germany, made from low-fat sour-milk curd, close to quark, with salt. It was once shaped by hand, which gave it its name. After a few days it may be left plain or grow a yellow-orange smear, and it ripens from the outside in, turning from white and crumbly to glossy and translucent. In Frankfurt it is served as Handkäs mit Musik: marinated in vinegar, oil and chopped onion, with caraway, and eaten with bread and apple wine. The music is said to be the digestive consequence of the onions. It is almost fat-free.