Today a dish I’ve wanted to make for a long time but it wasn’t easy to find the main ingredient, that is halloumi, a Cypriot cheese that’s compact and doesn’t melt when cooked. But when I leafed through the ALDI supermarket flyer (in Bologna they are on Via Larga near the Leclerc Conad Pianeta hypermarket) I decided I absolutely had to run and buy it to make the recipe for grilled halloumi with gratinated tomatoes, a quick and flavorful one-dish meal with this rather hard-to-find ingredient!

Now I’ll tell you…
The name halloumi comes from the Arabic halloum due to the Arab invasion of Cyprus in the seventh century because they taught the Greeks and Cypriots how to process cheese.
It is called “the vegetarian steak”; it’s made from a mix of goat’s and sheep’s milk and it’s a cheese that doesn’t melt in a pan or on the grill but softens slightly while remaining like a very flavorful steak.
About 25 grams of halloumi give our body 5 grams of protein, about 74 calories and 6 grams of fat. It is generally rennet-free so it’s suitable for those following a vegetarian diet but read the label carefully!!!!!
It is rather salty so you should be careful consuming it if you want a low-sodium diet and since it is a dairy product it is not suitable for those following a vegan diet.
I read during my web research that halloumi can be substituted with feta… but that is not true at all and I assure you that those who write such nonsense have never tasted either one because they are very different starting with the texture, which has nothing to do with Greek feta!
Bold as I am, since I hadn’t tasted it yet I bought 4 packs of Cypriot halloumi cheese and I already know I’ll eat it with cherry tomatoes sautéed in a pan, with a nice aromatic chop of rosemary and sage on the griddle, cut into 1 cm cubes with crunchy iceberg lettuce and yellow datterini tomatoes and…
halloumi is a semi-hard cheese, preserved in brine and unaged with a slightly spongy texture; it is sold in 250-gram blocks (at least that’s how I bought it) and for this recipe I divided it in two because with salad, gratinated tomatoes or other vegetables it’s already for me a good second course.
Just to give you correct information I show the photo of the package that costs less than 3 euros (2.99 to be precise)
and in my opinion it deserves a lot of praise but as always everyone has their own personal taste!
I forgot to say: at ALDI supermarkets you can find halloumi cheese also flavored with basil, chili and natural!
Halloumi can be cooked like a burger on the griddle and on the grill but also fried and it can be stored in the freezer for about 3 months.
Cypriots love to enjoy it with watermelon!!!!!!
P.S. No one paid me to write this article praising halloumi bought at ALDI but as those who follow me know, I go by feeling and if something grabs me, I promote it and I do it from the heart!
If you want to try gratinated tomatoes here is the recipe, but I’m sure you also have a special family version!


GRILLED HALLOUMI WITH GRATINATED TOMATOES
The kitchen of ASI