Nieheimer Käse

This cheese from Nieheim in Ostwestfalen-Lippe is made from low-fat sour cow's milk quark using a traditional recipe. After ripening for a few days, the cheese is rubbed with a mixture of salt, cumin, and water. Nieheim cheese tends to become stronger and harder over time, which makes it perfect for grating.

Its flavor is slightly sour, pungent, and spicy with a hint of caraway. Despite its low fat content (less than 1%), it develops an exceptionally rich flavor. The production and sale of this hand cheese is strictly controlled. The 1927 guidelines for making this cheese, which are on display the Museum of the Nieheim cheese, are still partly enforced.

Every two years, a cheese fair known as the German Cheese Market is held in the town of Nieheim on the first weekend in September, and it attracts up to 60,000 visitors to the city.