The Best Italian Grated Cheeses (Except Parmesan)
Rubbing cheese on food is one of life’s greatest pleasures. Shaving curls of salty milky snow onto greens, soups and pasta is encoded in the food DNA of many cultures. I hate to be an anthropomorphic commentary on Italian food , but when it comes to Italian cheeses, there is nothing better than real cheeses, especially if you grate them on Italian pasta dishes.
In our ridiculous times, a 25% tariff has been set on many European products, but especially on DOP-labeled Italian cheeses, which are regional agricultural products that are protected by the Italian and European governments. It may seem that it is easier to simply “buy in American style”, but precisely because of this tariff, it is more important than ever to understand what exactly makes these cheeses so tasty and how they differ from each other. Hard Italian cheeses such as Parmesan, Parmesan Reggiano, and Pecorino Romano may sound uninitiated, but their unique qualities can take dishes to the next level if you choose from a place of knowledge.
With over 15 million Italian Americans, our wedges are considered an important culinary product for mass production domestically, but with different methods and results than the originals at home. Domestic parmesan cheese, while not the same as imported Parmigiano Reggiano, is not defective, says Sal Di Palo, co-owner of Di Palo Fine Foods and a cheesemaker in Manhattan’s ever-shrinking Little Italy neighborhood. Homemade facsimiles just lack the nuance and complexity of regional Italian cheeses, and you’ll notice once you understand their unique talents, which Di Palo kindly explained.
Parmigiano Reggiano and other cheeses made from cow’s milk
Cheese made from cow’s milk and containing crystals of amino acids with a high umami content make up the granu – or “grain-like” – cheese umbrella. Under it are Parmesan, Parmesan Reggiano, Grana Padano and other large graters. Di Palo explains that it is the diet of the cows that makes the cheese so individual: “I’m sure there are probably some smaller domestic cheese makers grazing their cows, but as far as the larger producers are concerned, they probably control the feed. in a constant state. “
Parmesan tastes similar to Reggiano’s Parmesan, but the latter has a much more subtle flavor. These rare notes are not always present in homogenized homemade products like Parmesan because grazing often occurs in feedlots, Di Palo says. “Cows don’t have different pastures, mountains and valleys,” he explains . The nuances of Parmigiano Reggiano depend on the season, which determines the vegetation that the herds will have access to. Although the cows in the Parma region have a lot of grass in the spring, their habit of wildflowers gives the cheese a floral quality that works best. in béchamel or insalat, not as a filling for red sauce and meatballs.
Grana Padano – another great grater option – is made using only evening cow’s milk, which reduces the fat content of the last wheel, while Parmigiano uses both morning and evening dairy warehouses. Di Palo notes that while they also have a similar production style: “They cut the curd very finely so that it retains less moisture and crystallizes, but Grana is produced in a different area, above the Po River.” Grana Padano is a stronger, more fruity dish that still makes the pasta as thin as Parmigiano.
As a nutty young drink from the northern part of the country, Di Palo offers another versatile cheese made from cow’s milk: “Piave, aged for one year, can be used as grated cheese or cut into salad.”
Cow’s milk cheeses such as Parmigiano, Grana Padano and Piave go well with creamy sauces, bitter herbs, vibrant fruit jams and other classic Italian prosecco.
Sheep’s milk cheeses
One of the other best-known pasta cheeses is my personal favorite, Pecorino Romano. I grew up rubbing as much of anything as possible, but now that I am an adult, I love adding a bowl of strawberries and honey to it, which brings out the more unusual elements of the sheep’s milk from which it is derived.
Romano, most often sprinkled near Rome, is pitted against the bold, vibrant tomato sauces and vegetable favorites of Mezzogiorno, another name for southern Italy. Di Palo explains what makes this cheese well known: “Pecorino tends to be slightly spicier in flavor, slightly spicier, saltier, which is typical of this type of cheese.”
“ Pechoro is a sheep in Italian, and Romano is from Rome,” he continues. “The real Romano pecorino comes from Lazio , but there are many other pecorino, for example from Sardinia.” It is also the southern staple of choice for the trellis from Lazio to Sicily.
Pecorino is the best cheese for Roman Cacio e Pepe pasta, which as I grew up thought it was just nonsense my mom made me when there was no time, not a legal delicacy that many believe today. More common than Kraft singles, Locatelli’s iconic pecorino cheese was a staple in my fridge as a kid, and it brought a spicy, funky salinity to everything, even American foods, that we ate. When my mom married a non-Italian, I tried green jar cheese for the first time and found it tasted like air.
Another sheep (but sometimes cow) milk cheese that can improve your grill play is Caciocavalllo. My aunt still visits Cinisi — our original home base in Sicily — and when she does, the tasting pumpkin-shaped Caciocavallo returns home in his luggage. You can eat this smooth, provolone-like treat in thin slices, but once you get close to the waxy crust, rub generously with tomato sauce or chickpea dishes. If you don’t have a traveling aunt, there are several ages of Caciocavallo in import stores, and older varieties are even better suited.
Di Palo supports this choice by celebrating the traditional use of Caciocavallo in the classic Sicilian pasta Pasta alla Norma, in which eggplant and pasta are mixed with milk cheese. “More people use it as a cheese than grated cheese, but old-timers still know that. … “Di Palo adds:” The food evokes memories and they buy it because it was on their mother’s table. “
Sheep’s milk cheeses work well for meat stews, pesto with summer vegetables, or simple cheese dishes like Cacio e Pepe and brodo with cheese zest.
Even if it’s a little over pound for pound, knowing how to make the most of these select cheeses means your money pays off every time.
Whether you’re swapping out Parmesan for Grana Padano, or leaving a green jar in the fridge for a real Pecorino Romano, consider using a cheese that’s right for the dish you want to create. In addition to the suggestions above, you can pair the cheese with the wine you plan on drinking, or even match the region of origin of your dish to the region where the cheese is produced. Even if it’s not a perfect match, it will be delicious and you will learn to think outside the Parmesan wheel.