| Servings | 
             
        10-12 balls     
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    Ingredients
    
                - 500 grams full-fat plain yogurt
 - 1/2 tsp salt
 
        Toppings:    
                - Sumac
 - Dried red chilli flakes
 - Dried mint
 - extra virgin olive oil
 
        Equipment:    
                - Muslin or cheesecloth
 - Colander
 - A heavy object to weigh down the yogurt (I use a mortar, but even a can of beans should suffice)
 
            
 
        
    Ingredients
     
                
 
        Toppings:     
                
 
        Equipment:     
                
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    Instructions
    
                - Line a colander with muslin or cheesecloth. Set the colander over a bowl, one deep enough to not let the strained whey water touch the bottom of the colander.
 - Stir salt into the yogurt and pour into the muslin. Hold the ends of the cloth together and weigh it down with a mortar or any heavy object of your choice. Leave in the fridge for 12-24 hours depending on how thick you want the labneh to be. I usually leave it for 24 hours to get the consistency of cream cheese.
 - Once thick enough, remove the strained labneh from the muslin and roll them into balls. I like to do them about the size of ping pong balls, but it doesn’t really matter what size they are; just do them as you like.
 - Mix together equal quantities of sumac, chilli flakes, and dried mint on a plate and roll the balls gently in the spice mix. Transfer to a bowl and drizzle with a generous amount of extra virgin olive oil. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
 
        
    Recipe Notes
    
                - Move the weight around every 6 hours or so, so as to get the maximum whey water out of the yogurt.
- If you want to use the labneh as a spread, 12 hours of straining is ideal.
- These labneh balls stay good refrigerated for up to 3-4 days. It’s common to find them submerged in olive oil and stored for up to 15 days or more.
- My 500 grams of yogurt made about 250 grams of labneh, but those quantities might vary slightly based on the yogurt used.