Pecorino

"Why doesn't anyone admit that even a little bit is usually too much?" David Tamarkin - Epicurious

"Given the choice, I’d pick pecorino over parmesan any day – it’s just so much more versatile" Yotam Ottolenghi

Last night after our film society film we spent some time over cheese and wine at our friends' house. Good cheese, good wine, good conversation. It's what we all should do every now and then. Amongst the cheeses on the cheese board was a Pecorino - a genuine Italian one I think because it had Pecorino written on the rind. Anyway we - my hostess and I - agreed that it was very salty - as salty as feta really. And in spite of most of the articles I found saying that it is crumbly - this was not - it was very hard, pale and smooth. So maybe it was a well matured one, because apparently they do harden. But it didn't have a really old looking rind.

As my two opening quotes show, though, it's obviously very divisive. Yotam Ottolenghi delights in its versatility, which comes from the fact that unlike Parmesan Pecorino can be found from very young to very old, which, of course makes them very varied.

"The longer the cheeses age, the more firm, crumbly and salty they become, making them ideal for grating." Simon Majumdar - Food Network

"When they are young or ‘fresco’ they have a softer texture and mild, creamy flavour. As they age and become ‘semi-stagionato’ the flavour and texture becomes denser until finally they are referred to as ‘stagionato’. These aged cheeses are hard and crumbly in texture with an acclaimed buttery, nutty flavour." Président Cheese

Which I must say I find somewhat confusing - how can something be hard and crumbly at the same time?

This is a Pecorino Stagianato - which to my mind looks almost mouldy and not very appetising. Indeed I think that Sardinian cheese with the maggots in it is a kind of Pecorino.

For Pecorino simply means sheep's cheese - pecora being the the Italian for sheep. Which means that most of the Australian 'Pecorino' is not Pecorino, and not just because it wasn't made in Italy and therefore doesn't have the official stamp of approval. No - it's made from cow's milk then really it can't be Pecorino. It is possible that there are some small artisan farms in Australia where they do make sheep's milk cheese but I don't know of any.

As to the official Pecorinos - those with the European equivalent of an appellation controlée - there are four.

The one we mostly know is Pecorino Romano, which originated in Rome of course. This, by the way is a very ancient cheese - well it seems to me that most cheeses are very ancient. Pliny the Elder is widely quoted as talking about Pecorino. So it used to be made around Rome in the province of Lazio, and some still is and also in Umbria, but the vast majority of Pecorino Romano is now made in Sardinia because in 1884 the laws about cheese-making in Lazion were changed in some way, that made it difficult to be made there. Sardinia has a lot of sheep, so production moved there. This particular cheese is the one that is used for the lovely pasta dish cacio e pepe.

"Easily recognisable by the imprint of a sheep's head on its rind, it weighs in at a hefty 25 to 35 kilos and is produced from raw ewe's milk coagulated with lamb rennet. Unlike its cousins, the rind is dry-salted, which adds a salty mineral tang to its flavour. Ready for grating after eight months, the intense flavours and moist, compact, granular texture of Pecorino Romano make it a wonderful alternative to Parmigiano-Reggiano. And, of course, it's essential for an authentic carbonara or Amatriciana sauce." Will Studd - Gourmet Traveller

Pecorino Romano is indeed very fashionable leading David Tarmarkin of Epicurious to dub it 'the new Parmesan'. He is not a fan.

"When most folks refer to Pecorino, they mean Pecorino Romano, the most common and, perversely, the most aggressive of the Italian sheep's milk cheeses." David Tamarkin - Epicurious

And I have to say the version we had last night was very salty. But most chefs and cheese experts rave about it.

"If you cut a sliver from a wheel of Pecorino and let it rest on your tongue for a few moments, you will get an initial nutty taste that many people find similar to the taste of walnuts. This is soon followed by the distinctive saltiness, achieved by hand rubbing of the cheeses with salt over a period of months. It’s a long and laborious process, but the end results definitely make it worth all the effort." Simon Majumdar - Food Network

Pecorino is no good for vegetarians as it is made from animal rennet and each kind of Pecorino seems to be made with a different kind of rennet, which according to Will Studd is what distinguishes them from each other. The making of Pecorino sounds fairly simple. The ewe's milk is rushed to the factory, coagulated with the rennet and turned into moulds. The rounds are then matured and salt is rubbed into it at various stages. And here's an interesting fact from Will Studd:

"Ewe's milk is rich in solids and a litre produces almost twice as much cheese as a litre of cow's milk." Will Studd - Gourmet Traveller

They also have just two seasons for producing milk - at least historically speaking. I don't know whether they have got over this problem somehow today.

There are three, no four other kinds of Pecorino.

Pecorino Sardo is from Sardinia - yes they make their own kind as well as the Pecorino Romano. As I said, there are a lot of sheep in Sardinia, although I don't think a lot of Pecorino Sardo is produced.

"Most exports are produced by industrial dairies, but it's still possible to find rich handmade cheeses that have been lightly smoked in shepherd's huts. Fiore Sardo can be coagulated using either kid's or lamb's rennet, but the locals suspect its name (meaning Sardinian flower) is linked to the use of thistle flowers in place of rennet" Will Studd - Gourmet Traveller

Then there is Pecorino Toscano - from Tuscany of course.

"they are now made almost entirely from pasteurised ewe's milk coagulated with calf rennet. This produces a cheese with a flakier, more moist texture and less aggressive taste than those in the south." Toscana

And Pecorino Siciliano from Sicily

"Typically made from raw ewe's milk coagulated with lamb's rennet, these cheeses have a firm, dry texture and become increasingly "sheepy" on the nose as they age. Their sharp "hot" flavours are traditionally enhanced with dried chilli or whole black peppercorns." Will Studd - Gourmet Traveller - Sicilian

Yes that Pecorino Pepato mostly comes from Sicily, although lots of makers these days have varieties with all sorts of additional flavours.

And finally there is the curious and little-known Pecorino di Farindola from one of my favourite parts of Italy - Abruzzo.

"It is still made the old-fashioned way, by women only, using raw ewe's milk, and is the only cheese in Europe to use pig's rennet, which adds a distinct yellow tinge and sweet nutty tang to the mature cheese." Will Studd - Gourmet Traveller

Made by women only! Alas he doesn't explain why.

So there you have it - Pecorino Romano from Sardinia not Rome. And for a taste of what to do with it turn to Yotam Ottolenghi who has recipes for pizza, pasta and bruschetta.