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Eleni's Cypriot Sour Trahana Soup

A tangy, creamy soup of trahana and shredded chicken with salty, squeaky halloumi bites!

Course: dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: Greek
Keyword: chickpeasoup, halloumi, trahana
Ingredients
For the sour trahana you will need...
  • 1 kg goat’s milk yoghurt
  • 1 kg sheep’s milk yoghurt
  • 800 g kibbled wheat, course grind (see video visual)
  • ⅔ cup lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp salt
For the sour trahana soup you will need...
  • 3 l water
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 500 g chicken thigh cutlets, bones in
  • 6 trahana balls
  • 225 g halloumi, cut into small cubes
Instructions
Preparing the sour trahana

  1. Leave the yoghurt in its sealed containers at room temperature for 9 days

  2. Sort through the kibbled wheat to remove any pebbles or chaff

  3. Wash the kibbled wheat to release some of the starch – wash until the water runs clear

  4. Add and mix through the salt and the washed kibbled wheat

  5. Add the lemon juice while continually stirring the trahana-porridge

  6. Stir the trahana-porridge regularly, but not continuously

  7. Continue to cook until the trahana-porridge thickens

  8. Leave to cool for 3-4 hours

  9. Add the yoghurt to a large pot and heat on medium-heat until it comes to a gentle

    boil – stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon

  10. Raise the heat to medium-high until the trahana-porridge returns to the boil and

    then reduce to medium heat again

  11. You can test the readiness of the trahana-porridge by placing a wooden spoon

    upright in the pot (handle upwards) – if the wooden spoon stays upright it is ready; if

    it easily tips over it’s not ready

  12. Take the pot off the heat, place a clean tea towel over the pot and place the lid on

    top too

  13. Leave to cool for 3-4 hours

Preparing the sour trahana balls

  1. Using a large spoon scoop out 100g of the cooled trahana-porridge and shape into oval balls with your hands – approximately 12cm long, 6 cm wide and 1.5cm thick –then set aside

  2. Continue doing this till all the trahana-porridge has been formed into oval balls

  3. If the trahana-porridge has dried out too much during the cooling phase, and is difficult to shape, wet your hands with water or milk to soften the trahana-porridgeas you form it into the oval balls

  4. Place in an airtight container, layered with baking paper and place in your freezer for later use in the Cypriot Sour Trahana Soup!

Preparing the sour trahana soup

  1. Add the salt and water to a medium pot and bring to the boil

  2. Add the chicken pieces and gently boil for 40-45 minutes

  3. Remove the chicken pieces, set them aside to cool before shredding them

  4. Add the trahana balls and gently boil for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally –the trahana balls will break down and the broth will become thick and creamy

  5. Remove the pot from heat

Serving the sour trahana soup

  1. Ladle the trahana soup into bowls, add shredded chicken, halloumi cubes and squeeze in some lemon juice

    Kali Orexi!

Recipe Video

Key Points
  • Traditionally the trahana balls are placed out on a table in the hot sun for 4-5 days to dry out completely. They are then broken into chunks and dried out further. These bone-dry fragments are then stored in an airtight container for later use in the Cypriot Sour Trahana Soup. Melbourne weather does not provide us with enough consecutively hot days to follow this traditional process, so Eleni has cleverly decided to freeze the trahana balls instead. This means that Eleni can make her trahana balls all year round too!
  • If you prefer your soup thicker, use less water to begin with