Parmigiano Reggiano is an Italian excellence that has a history of over a thousand years. Like many other Italian cheeses it is widely used in the preparation of incredible dishes. Great to bite freely or sipping a red wine, seasoning and enters once grated in all Italian pasta sauce, both simple, stuffed or layered.
Still today it is produced following rules of the past and also its production must follow a strict disciplinary that is closely linked to its area of origin. It is precisely those territories of the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena. Mantua and Bologna.Discover its long history and some interesting facts about this extraordinary cheese.
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What is Parmigiano Reggiano?
Parmigiano Reggiano is a PDO cheese made according to precise rules and that must be produced in certain territories where all stages of production must take place. This involves milking milk, processing into cheese, maturing and finally packaging. These operations must be carried out in these 5 provinces:
- Bologna
- Mantova
- Modena
- Reggio Emilia
- Parma.
The Parmigiano Reggiano PDO Consortium supervises compliance with the rules. One of the aspects that affect the production of this cheese and that makes it unrepeatable in any part of the world is the feeding of the cows that produce milk. These feed on fodder and hay of the territory that are characterized by the presence of particular microbial organisms that are transferred into the milk. The activity of these bacteria in the production process does not undergo external interventions.
Parmigiano Reggiano has a minimum aging time of 12 months after which it is subjected to strict controls by the Consortium to determine whether it has the structural and sensory characteristics necessary to be considered Parmigiano Reggiano PDO. From this coin the cheese form can be put on the market or can continue its maturing that can be 18, 22 or 30 months.
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Parmigiano Reggiano the history
Parmigiano Reggiano has a thousand-year history and still today it takes place in the same places with the same ingredients and the same passion. Its birth dates back to 1200, the Late Middle Ages by the Cistercian and Benedictine monks of Modena who were the first producers.
They were looking for a cheese that could last a long time and created the Parmesan the ancestor of Parmesan that we know today. In the Renaissance period there is an increase in production and economic of this cheese. The shapes increase in size up to a weight of 18 kilograms each. In the seventeenth century the Duke of Parma through an act made official the denomination of origin.
This important document defines the places from which the cheese that could be called from Parma must have come. Over time the production methods of Parmigiano Reggiano have remained completely unchanged.
The production of cheese today still occurs as in the Middle Ages in a natural way without the use of additives. However, important innovations such as the use of serum grafting and steam heating were introduced during the 1900s.
After the Second World War the production of Parmigiano Reggiano was stimulated. In 1954 the Italian law on the designation of origin was enacted. In 1992, Parmigiano Reggiano was recognized as a European PDO following the approval of EEC Regulation 2081/1992 on Protected Designations of Origin.
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Parmigiano Reggiano: curiosities
There are many curiosities about this excellent Italian cheese. Among these is the fact that one of the oldest literary testimonies of the existence of Parmigiano Reggiano is found in the Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio, dated 1344.
Another curious aspect is the fact that it is one of the few cheeses suitable also for lactose and galactose intolerant as it does not contain them. To testify the originality of the product, a plastic band with embossed letters is used.
In the production process one of the key roles is that of the batter. This is the person who, equipped with the necessary tools, is able to evaluate the internal structure of the cheese and identifies any defects simply by drumming on the shape of Grana and listening to its sound.
Copertina: parmigianoreggiano