Parmesan is undoubtedly one of the big names in cheese (and arguably in food as a whole!).

Aside from being a delightfully well-balanced cheese in taste and appearance when partially matured, the fully mature hard version lends itself to being grated and used as a seasoning that adds not only taste, but also nutrition, to a wealth of different dishes.

Something though that you might not be aware of is that Parmesan cheese is not necessarily true Parmesan.

Parmesan is actually a generic name that has come to be used to cover a wide range of cheeses and cheese pretenders. Authentic Parmesan, however, goes by a different name, Parmigiano Reggiano. This is the real Parmesan.

Born in Parma

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese begins life as milk harvested from cows in certain, well defined areas of Italy. These are in Modena, Reggio Emilia, and Parma, as well as in Bologna in areas to the left of the river Reno and to the right of the river Po in Mantua.

Such areas are known to be where Parmigiano Reggiano was originally made, and the name gives away which ones are particularly associated with the cheese.

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is a DOP cheese, which simply means that officially it can be produced only under strictly controlled conditions in one of the above-mentioned regions. Authentically made Parmigiano Reggiano cheeses have this DOP label, so make sure you look out for it when buying them, otherwise you could be purchasing a cheap imitation.

From Milk to Solid

The next stage in making a Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is turning the liquid milk into a solid which can then mature and develop into the cheese we know and love.

There are a number of technical and complicated details involved in this process, but the essence of it is that an enzyme needs to be added to the milk in the right conditions to encourage a process called coagulation.

Coagulation simply means that a reaction takes place whereby some of the proteins in the milk solution are caused to solidify and come out of solution forming what is known as a gel.

Gel in this case is not what you use to look great, but it is the scientific definition of a gel that is to say a liquid with a solid suspended in it. To get the solid out of the gel state it is mixed with what looks like a big fork. This is called a spino and breaks up the bonds between the liquid and the solid.

The solid, which sinks to the bottom of the container, is called curd.

From Solid to Cheese

This solid curd still needs some work to be done on it before it is ready to become a cheese.

It is cut up into small pieces while still in the container. This helps even more moisture drain out of it.

It is then cooked, again drying it and also influencing its bacterial content (important for the next stage).

Finally, the mass of solid that has been formed at the bottom of the copper vat, is raised out using a cloth and cut in half to form to massive cheeses (often in their final form around 30 kgs).

This solid needs to be placed in a mould in order to gain the right shape and have time to further drain. There are then two more steps to be undergone before we have our delightful Parmigiano Reggiano, or Parmesan, cheese.

This solid needs to be salted. Salt adds flavour to food but is also very important for preserving the food. Cheese is a product that has a high bacterial content and so without salt would go off quickly.

Parmigiano Reggiano is immersed in a salt solution for many days so that it can absorb salt and thus be ready for a long, cheesy life.

The last step is what is known as maturing or aging the cheese. This means to put it into storage under carefully controlled conditions for a long time, 12, 24 or even 36 months. During this time, the bacterial in the cheese do their stuff, eating away at the contents of the cheese and so converting it into its final form, taste and texture. This doesn’t sound so nice, but is actually the most important stage, giving Parmigiano Reggiano its specific characteristics.

From Cheese to Ingredient

Evidently, the aim of making cheese is not just to produce a work of art (although many would regard Parmigiano Reggiano as that!) but to be left with preserved milk that be stored, sold and then consumed in a variety of different ways.

Depending on the length of time that it has been matured for, the resulting cheese has different characteristics and so is suitable for different uses.

Cheese matured for shorter times are softer as they have retained more of the moisture content. These can be good to add to salads, sliced and placed on crackers (canapes if you will), in various pasta dishes to melt in during the cooking phase, or even just enjoyed as a snack on its own, or sweet with honey or fruit.

The longer matured versions are harder as more and more moisture has dried out and an increasing crystalline like structure has developed in the cheese. The flavour also becomes stronger as time goes by.

This makes the cheese less suitable for combining with other ingredients in large quantities and harder to slice and eat on its own. Thus, the classic Parmesan cheese that we all know, and love came to life, as the grated form of Parmigiano Reggiano, which can so widely and readily be used to sprinkle on a plethora of different dishes to add its unique flavour. (It could also be considered to be adding nutritional value as cheese comes from milk and so has a number of nutritional qualities, although the saltiness of it can mitigate the advantages of some of these qualities if used in too large a quantity).

From Parmesan to Parmigiano Reggiano

As we have seen, Parmesan is an important cheese. It embodies a fairly straightforward production method, which results in a versatile cheese, with many qualities and uses.

Someone once compared Parmesan to the double bass stringed instrument. That is to say that amongst cheeses, it is the one that sets the standard. High praise indeed.

However, this is why so many imitations have risen up, so when buying Parmesan, for whatever use, it is always best to look Parmigiano Reggiano DOP to make sure that you a getting a quality, authentic product, in other words Real Parmesan!