LASTYEARWEwereluckyenoughto
seethebirthoftwinsin thepicturesque
countrysideofNorthernItaly.Butthis
birthwasnotofthehumankind,this
involvedseeingtwo45-kilogram
ParmigianoReggianowheelsarising
froma deepcoppercauldronwiththe
helpofmasterfulcheesemakers.
Rightfullyknownasthe‘KingofItalian
Cheese’,ParmigianoReggianois
a fascinating,versatileandmouth-
wateringcheese,anda must-have
intherefrigeratoratalltimes!
Tobearthename‘Parmigiano
Reggiano’,thecheesemustmeetstrict
criteria.It canonlybemadeusinga
blendofrawfull-creammilkandskimmed
milksourcedfromparticularprovinces,
fromcowsthatarefeda dietofhayor
grass.Andit mustbeagedfora
minimumof 12 monthsin a specificarea
ofNorthernItaly.Eachwheelmustthen
undergo rigorous inspections, some of
QualityParmigianowillelevatemany
a dish,butwillalsostandonitsown
ona cheeseboard.Servebite-sized
chunkswitha dropofextra-aged
balsamic vinegar as an appetiser.
PARMIGIANOREGGIANOCRISPS
Scatterthesegoldencrispychipsontopof
risottos, soups or salads for a hit of flavour.
100gParmigianoReggiano(we used
Cravero),finelygrated
12 sage leaves
Preheattheovento160°C.Linea baking
traywithbakingpaperandscattergrated
Parmigianoin a thin,evenlayer.Arrange
sageleavesoverthetop,pressinggently
intothecheese.Bakefor12-15minutesor
untildeepgolden.Removefromtheoven
andallowtocoolcompletely.Breakinto
shardsthenscatterwithfreshlyground
black pepper. Store in an airtight container.
whichincludetappingeachcheese
witha hammertoidentifycracks,
andthenevaluatedbyaconsorzio,
orconsortium,forcolour,texture,aroma
andqualitybeforeit canbeofficially
labelled Parmigiano Reggiano.
SELECTINGANDSERVING
Despitepopularbelief,flavourandtexture
outweightheageoftheParmigiano,so
don’tbefooledbya two-orthree-year
agedcheesebeingsoldas‘premium’.
A goodParmigianohascomplex
flavours,includinga butterscotch
sweetnessanda succulent,nuttytexture.
Youmayevencrunchdownon
somesweetandsaltycrystals.
Werecommendgoingforthereal
dealParmigianoReggiano,asanything
labelled‘parmesan’meansit hasbeen
madein thestyleoftheauthentic
cheese.If possible,trybeforeyoubuy,
concentrating on flavour and texture. PHOTOGRAPHY
BRETT
STEVENS
STYLING
KIRSTEN JENKINS
MERCHANDISING
EMMALY STEWART
@thestuddsiblings
THE BIG
WHEEL
Theremaybeendlessvarietiesof
formaggio, writeEllieand Sam Studd,
this Northern Italian cheese rules all.
52 delicious.com.au