Slow Food and Fast Cars…Parma (the Cheese)
Parma, the UNESCO Creative City for Gastronomy, just might be considered heaven for lovers of “Ham and Cheese”. But not just any ham and cheese- here in this food capital of the world, the “ham” is DPO Prosciutto di Parma and the cheese is DOP Parmigiana- Reggiano. DOP or DPO is short for Protected Designation of Origin and in Italy it is the guarantee that the food (cheese, proscuitto, olive oil, etc) is produced, processed and packaged in the specific designation area according to very strict rules.
Early Sunday morning, Sharon, Bruce and I boarded a ParmaLook tour van, along with 2 young couples, for a deep dive into just how that DOP label is earned. Mattias, a native of Parma, was our guide and driver. He came from a family of master cheesemakers and his intimate understanding and appreciation of the traditions of this community made him a perfect guide for the experience. Often throughout the day, he passionately emphasized the importance of distinguishing between authentic DOP products (Interestingly, Costco’s Kirkland brand is DOP Parmigiana- Reggiano) and imitators (like the stuff in the green Kraft container!).
We began with the cheese. From the first pungent whiff of the cow shed, where 140 cows munched on heaps of alfalfa and hay, I was enthralled. I am sure that brown and white beauty posed for her photo!
For DOP, everything from what the cows are fed (and where its grown!), to how many cows there are, to how much milk they produce and how much cheese is made from that milk, as well as the timing and steps of each process, is strictly regulated.
From the cow shed we moved to the “cooking room” where steam circulates between the pot’s copper and aluminum layers to maintain the “bath water” at a constant temperature. Here rennet is added to form the curds that became the cheese. Using the cheesecloth sling the master rotated the cheese back and forth under the bath until a large round ball formed. Then, at just the precise right moment, the cheese master and his assistant hoisted the wheel of just-formed cheese up in the cheesecloth and slung it up on the pole. Then they wheeled the cheese across the room to where it was placed into a plastic mold to compress it. The collar placed inside the form marked the cheese with the details of its production.
See the cheescloth swathed cheese balls hung from the metal pole. The cheesemaster explained the critical timing.
Our guide Mattias explained each notation on the cheese's collar. From here the wheels are placed in another bath, this one a saline bath, where the cheese absorbs the salt, the only other ingredient besides milk and rennet.
No food tour is complete withhout tasting! With the tantalizing aroma of hundreds of aging wheels of Parmigiana-Reggiano tickling our noses, we gathered around a table for the perfect conclusion of the tour. As the guide handed us each a paper boat that held two cheese samples - a “teenager” aged 12 months and one aged 36 months, with a tiny puddle of balsamic vinegar and a few tarallini (an addictive crunchy appertivo snack!) we toasted with a glass of the region’s dry, white sparking wine!
Each wheel bears every detail of its origin and is rigorously inpected before it can be sold as DOP. The inspector taps each wheel with a small silver hammer to check the drying several times throughout the aging process. Approved cheeses yield a clear, higher pitch. A dull thud means too much moisture or uneven drying and the casing is scrated to indicate it's rejected.
A rejected cheese! See the concentric circular lines scored under Mattias' thumbs.
Interesting note: DOP Parmigiana - Reggiano cheese is lactose free despite the 550 liters (about 145 gallons) of milk from which each wheel is made, thanks to the long aging process during which the natural bacteria convert the lactose to lactic acid.