Cheese family: the most famous hard cheeses

The king of parmesan cheeses is prepared only by hand from century to century. Italian cheese makers do not recognize any automation of production. Moreover, the dimensions of the cheese must also meet strict standards: diameter 35-45 cm, height 18-25 cm, weight 24-44 kg, crust thickness 6 mm. Everything that goes beyond the norm is marriage. Parmesan cheese is an unusual and legendary cheese, you can talk about it for a long time, and taste it all your life.

The history of parmesan

The homeland of hard parmesan cheese is the Italian provinces of Parmigiano-Reggiano and Parma, hence its name — parmigiano-reggiano or parmesan. No one knows exactly when this cheese appeared, but its history goes back centuries. He is mentioned in Boccaccio’s Decameron. Remember, the author describes people living on a mountain of parmesan, eating only ravioli and spaghetti? At all times, parmesan has been synonymous with prosperity and a sweet life…

It is believed that the Benedictine monks were the first to prepare this cheese, because parmesan is ideal for pilgrimage trips, because it does not spoil for a long time on the road.

Real parmesan is a rarity, since the cheese from Parma has a special certificate of authenticity of the EPA. All other types of parmesan cheese cannot bear this name, but this does not prevent producers from other countries from violating the rule. What are the differences between the products of Parmigiano-Reggiano and Parma from the analogues of parmesan cheese?

Production of parmesan cheese

So, what kind of cheese is called parmesan? This product is prepared from the freshest milk and sourdough. Usually, the top layer of the settled milk of the evening milking is added to the morning fresh milk and only then fermented. Next, the liquid is heated, rennet enzyme is added and allowed to infuse. In the curdled milk, a cheese clot is formed, which must be crushed with a knife into small pieces the size of rice grains. Cheese crumbs are collected in a dense cloth and placed in a round shape, and pigs are fed with whey, from which Parma ham is then produced. Usually the molds are designed for a cheese head weighing 45 kg, after lying under the press, the weight of the “head” is reduced to 38 kg.

But the cooking process does not end there. After pressing, the cheese is aged for up to 25 days in a saline solution, then it lies on the shelves for a whole year in a room where a constant temperature and humidity are maintained. Every week, the cheese heads are rubbed and turned over.

Experienced experts knock on the cheese with a silver hammer, determining the presence of internal cracks and voids. This cheese is labeled in a special way in Italy and is sold cheaper than high-quality parmesan.

Varieties of Italian Reggiano cheese

The cheese produced at this stage is considered young and is called Parmigiano Reggiano fresco. It is served for dessert or an aperitif with wine and fruit. The remaining cheese matures for another 18-24 months and falls into the category of mature cheeses Parmigiano Reggiano vecchio. It is worth it to lie down for another year, as it already becomes an aged cheese, which is not cut into pieces, but rubbed on a grater. Ten years later, parmigiano-reggiano turns into an exquisite delicacy, the price of which is inaccessible to ordinary mortals. They say this is the best parmesan cheese, and if you ever have the opportunity to try it, do not miss it!

Hard parmesan cheese is made from spring to autumn, its taste depends on the quality of the cows ‘ nutrition. Summer milk makes the most delicious, fragrant and rich cheese, because green grass is better than hay.

Which cheese tastes better — parmesan or grana padano?

Italian grana Padano cheese is another popular cheese that successfully competes with parmesan and is its closest “relative”. What are the differences between granai cheese and reggiano cheese?Parmigiano-reggiano is strictly tied to geography and is produced in the Emilia-Romagna region, more precisely, in the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and Bologna. Granot cheese is also made only in specific areas — in Lombardy, Piedmont, Trentino, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto.

In the production of parmigiano, the nutrition of cows is very important — they should graze only on high-quality pastures in the cheese-making regions of Italy, this is not so important for obtaining granola.

Another difference between grana padano and parmesan is that padano cheese is produced twice a day only from fresh milk without the addition of yesterday’s milk yield and its fat content is slightly higher. Milk is fermented with vegetable rennet or bacterial starter culture, so padano is suitable for vegetarians, unlike parmesan, because animal rennet is used for it.

In addition, preservative additives are not added to parmesan, while lysozyme, obtained from animal tissues, is present in padano.

As for the taste, parmesan is sharper and richer, because it takes longer to ripen, while padano is softer, more refined and more tender. However, if you are not a connoisseur of cheese, it is unlikely that you will be able to distinguish between these varieties.

The benefits of parmesan

For 1 kg of parmesan, 16 liters of milk are required. Imagine how many vitamins, minerals, trace elements, proteins and other useful substances are contained in cheese in a concentrated form! That is why it is so useful. It is no accident that parmesan is included in the diet of astronauts, and Italian mothers give babies crusts of cheese when teething. That’s probably why Italians have such beautiful teeth. During the maturation of parmesan, probiotics are formed in it, which are useful for the formation of microflora in the intestines. Parmesan is also rich in protein, calcium, phosphorus and glutamate, an amino acid responsible for learning and memorization.

The only drawback of cheese is a high concentration of salt and cholesterol, so it is better to use it in small quantities. The calorie content of parmesan cheese is almost 400 calories, which is quite a bit for cheese, so it is quite possible to include it in a weight loss diet.

Parmesan: a symphony of taste

Parmesan has a sharp-salty taste with hints of fruits and nuts. In the East, it is called “umami” – this is the taste of high-protein products, which is also available in walnuts, soy sauce, green tea, mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, broccoli, celery, meat, fish and seafood. This taste is created due to the presence of glutamic acid, which is useful for the nervous system and the brain.

Parmesan is a very hard cheese, so it can be grated with thin, almost transparent chips, which looks beautiful in salads and snacks. Parmesan melts evenly and is covered with a beautiful golden crust, because it is used for cooking pizza, pasta, risotto and soups. It is indispensable in the dough and filling for pies, because it makes it more satisfying, thick and appetizing. Adding a small amount of parmesan to any dishes turns them into real delicacies!

Parmesan in Italy can also be seen on a cheese plate next to ham, tomatoes, fennel, figs, pears, herbs and nuts.

Dutch classics: “Gouda” and “Old Amsterdam”

Dutch hard cheese “Gouda” with a soft creamy taste has been known since the XII century. They say that Julius Caesar loved him very much, and Dutch sailors paid port taxes with gouda.

This cheese is made from unpasteurized milk — it is heated, sourdough is added, and the resulting cottage cheese is well washed with water to remove lactic acid. That is why gouda has such a delicate taste and pleasant aroma. Next, the cheese mass is placed in molds and put under the press for several hours. After that, the cheese head is washed with a saline solution and allowed to dry. Young cheese is usually aged for 2-5 months, and mature cheese with a brighter and richer taste is prepared for 1.5 years. With age, the creamy taste of gouda becomes more dense, and its color turns from yellow to orange or light brown.

There are different varieties of gouda, but the most elite is Old Amsterdam cheese, which was first created by a descendant of the Dutch cheese dynasty Lambert Westland. He wanted to make a cheese that would be loved by both aristocrats and ordinary people — not gourmets. And he succeeded, it was not by chance that “Old Amsterdam” became the country’s business card.

It belongs to mature cheeses, and in the process of maturation, white crystals and holes are formed in it, and the color becomes caramel. The uniqueness of this variety of gouda lies in the fact that even the finished cheese, which is characterized by a high density, retains its tenderness and oiliness. At the same time, it combines a piquant-salty taste and a sweet-nutty aroma.

In Holland, Old Amsterdam is served with unsweetened pears and apples, tart red grapes, pistachios and almonds. A plate with fresh bread, crackers, orange jam or fruit mustard is also placed on the table. The best wine for “Old Amsterdam” is young Bordeaux, merlot and Cabernet.

French Beaufort for true connoisseurs of good cheese

The classic French hard cheese Beaufort, it turns out, was made in ancient Rome. The peculiarities of its preparation are that the milk that has curdled after fermentation and heating is wrapped in a linen cloth and pressed. After that, the beaufort is placed in a saline solution and kept in a cellar made of spruce boards. At the last stage, the cheese is stored for 5 months at a temperature of no more than +10 °C. It is difficult to say what is the secret of making this cheese, but its spicy-fruity taste, salty aftertaste, elastic smooth texture and ivory color are admired by gourmets all over the world. Another feature of the beaufort is the concave crust, which is formed as a result of squeezing the cheese head with a wooden hoop during maturation.

This cheese cannot be grated, so it is cut into thin slices and served with fruits and fresh vegetables. Beaufort melts easily, so it is often used for making fondue, pizza and hot sandwiches.

Elite hard cheeses with a worldwide reputation

Fine hard cheese is made in Switzerland, for example, gruyere. It has a creamy yellow hue and a dense consistency without holes. Gruyere has a creamy sweet taste with nutty tones, but mature varieties become more salty, sharp and acquire an earthy hue.

One of Gruyere’s” brothers ” is the French conte cheese, which is made in the Franche — Conte region. It is also famous for its delicate nutty taste, and the color of this cheese is pale yellow. Conte is made from fresh milk of Montbeliard cows, which graze on spacious pastures — at least, at least 1 hectare is allocated for each cow. Cows eat only fresh grass without adding artificial additives to the diet.

Swiss cheese “Vachren Fribourgeois” is another delicacy that is produced from the milk of cows grazing in the foothills of the Alps. This cheese has a sweet resinous taste with a herbal bitterness, the aroma of milk and small holes all over the surface. Fribourgeois is fermented only with rennet and aged for 4 months.

Truffle is a hard cheese with a brown crust covered with fried wheat flour. Under the crust there is a dense pulp of beige-straw color and a pleasant milky aroma. For the production of cheese, the milk of cows that graze high in the mountains, at an altitude of more than 600 meters above sea level, is used. The cheese shows black inclusions of noble truffle-from small crumbs to larger pieces, which give the truffle an aristocratic taste.

And completing the top five most interesting hard cheeses is the alpine French saler-an uncooked pressed cheese with a 2000-year history. It is produced from the milk of Saler cows and only in the period from April 15 to November 15, when they graze on mountain pastures. The cheese is made by a farmer, not by an industrial method, while the milk is not boiled, but simply added to it with a starter culture and it is formed naturally. In the process of maturation, a cheese mite is planted on the crust, so it turns out to be cracked. Saler has a deep rich taste, in which you can catch notes of mountain plants and flowers.

Parmigiano in Italian

This dish is perfectly prepared in the Parmigiano restaurant in Samara. Actually, it is called exactly the same — “parmigiano”. This is an Italian food made of eggplant and cheese, incredibly tasty and healthy!

Cut 3 eggplants into medium-thick circles, sprinkle with salt, leave for 15 minutes, then remove the excess salt with a napkin. Fry the eggplant in olive oil and spread the finished pieces on a paper towel to remove excess fat. Place the eggplant on a plate.

Cut 150 g of mozzarella and 200 g of tomatoes into thin slices, grate 100 g of parmesan, chop a bunch of basil and 2 cloves of garlic, turn the oven on 220 °C. Put the eggplant slices in the mold, top with mozzarella, then tomatoes, sprinkle with basil, garlic and parmesan, add a little salt and pepper. If you cook in a small form, you can make more layers. Bake the parmigiano for 10 minutes, and serve, generously sprinkled with parmesan and drizzled with olive oil.

Pear salad with parmesan

Parmesan gives piquancy to any salad, even if you use the simplest ingredients. Well, if the products are already initially unusual, the dish can be served on a festive table.

Peel 2 pears, remove the core, cut it into thin slices or cubes. cut 70 g of parmesan into thin plates with a vegetable peeler.

After that, put 100 g of well — washed arugula, pieces of pear and 50 g of any nuts-walnuts, pecans, cashews, almonds or hazelnuts on a dish. Nuts can be crushed a little.

Prepare a sauce of 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1.5 tablespoons of wine vinegar, 0.5 tsp each of honey and Dijon mustard, add a little salt and black pepper.

Pour the sauce over the salad and sprinkle with 30 g of grated Parmesan. However, you can add more cheese. There is a belief among Italian chefs that you can’t spoil a dish with parmesan!

Pumpkin soup with parmesan

Pumpkin is wonderfully combined with Parma cheese. Prepare pumpkin soup in Italian, and you will understand what haute cuisine is.

You will need a pumpkin weighing about 1.4 kg, which must first be cleaned of seeds and peel. Cut the pumpkin into thin slices. Melt 100 g of butter in a saucepan until it begins to foam, put the pumpkin there, add a little salt and simmer over low heat, stirring, for 15 minutes.

Pour 1.3 liters of chicken broth into the pumpkin, increase the heat and bring to a boil. Pour 100 g of grated parmesan into a saucepan, reduce the heat to low and cook the soup for 15 minutes, stirring constantly.

Whisk the soup in a blender and pour it into a new bowl. Add 3 tablespoons of cream and bring to a boil. Pour the soup on serving plates, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with elegant curls of parmesan. Fresh basil or oregano will make the dish even more fragrant and bright.

Do you know what is the most original appetizer for champagne? Pieces of hard cheese that are dipped in melted bitter chocolate and allowed to dry. Try cheeses with a history and rich taste, because they are great!