Labneh
Yoghurt strained until thick enough to spread or roll into balls, the soft cheese of the Levant.
Also: لبنة, labne, lebni, strained yoghurt cheese
Labneh is made by salting yoghurt and hanging it in cloth for a day or more, so the whey drips out and a thick, tangy white cream remains. Spread on a plate, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with za'atar or mint, it is eaten with bread for breakfast across Lebanon, Syria, Palestine and Jordan. Strained further and dried, it can be rolled into balls, labneh makbous, and kept for months in jars of olive oil. Because it is set by the bacteria of yoghurt and drained, it sits between yoghurt and fresh cheese, and is usually counted as a cheese. Indian hung curd, used for shrikhand, is made the same way.