CHEESES OF PUGLIA
Our multi-voiced dairy tour of Italy Tasting cheese continues with Daniele Apruzzese, who tells us i cheeses from Puglia.
Journalist and trainer, Daniele has been dealing with food and wine for passion for over ten years. First the path in the Italian Sommelier Association, of which he is speaker today, then the approach to the world of cheeses thanks to the Onaf which led him to become Master Taster and teacher.
We asked him what his preferences are for cheeses, and here are his answers.
- What is the cheese in your area to which you are most attached for sentimental reasons and why?
«Emotionally speaking, the cheese of the heart is the cacioricotta. My maternal grandmother, when I was a child, Sunday when the whole family gathered for lunch, gave me the formetta and the grater. My job was clear, always reward the last bit, what you could no longer grate and I could eat ».
- Which cheese do you prefer to eat "absolute"? And which one do you prefer to use in gastronomic preparations?
«I am a lover of cheeses a 360 gradi, I love strong flavors very much, but the non plus ultra is the mozzarella: vaccinate, buffalo, goat does not matter, as long as it is traditional and artisanal (no direct acidification to be clear).
In preparations I really like to use the stracciatella: shreds of mozzarella mixed with fresh cream ... in short, the filling of the burrata. Morbida, velvety, basically sweet, it's a real comfort food ».
CHEESES OF PUGLIA
by Daniele Apruzzese
Puglia, heel of the boot, it is a long and narrow land. From Lesina from Santa Maria di Leuca, Moreover 400 kilometres, you come across a real kaleidoscope colored by the ground, from wheat, from olive trees, from the vineyards, from the woods and pastures. In this peninsula in the peninsula, to be tasted necessarily at forced stages, somewhat different smells and flavors are encountered.
From the dairy point of view, Puglia is known worldwide for Burrata. But alongside this delicacy there is a long series of productions that differ according to latitude and altitude.
The table is the home of Canestrato while in the heart of the region, in an area that is hilly (the Murgia) excellent mozzarella are born. But all this is only a small appetizer of what can be found through a careful and detailed research made of meetings with the cheesemakers who daily carry out their work..
To put some order, you can try to make a little journey of discovery, that from north to south goes to analyze how good this land makes available to us.
We set the starting point on the Gargano. We are in the province of Foggia, only Apulian area annexed to the production area of the Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP. In quest’area, the art of working spun pastas is very ancient and going up through narrow streets, full of curves and back you arrive on a promontory: the Gargano. This is a true natural terrace that projects onto the Adriatic, a land "colonized" by podolics, decidedly not very productive cows but whose milk boasts a unique sensorial profile.
Il Podolico Caciocavallo from Gargano (PAT) with a characteristic pear shape and a small, elongated head. Cheese with a thin and shiny crust, is best appreciated afterwards 8-10 mesi di stagionatura, when all the characteristics of a seasoned pasta filata all emerge. Grasso, medium sweet and slightly savory, over time it produces olfactory scents and decidedly complex aromas. Mildly spicy, it has a medium-high gustatory persistence.
Always in the same territory (but traditionally we find it also in Murgian territory and in Salento) born on cacioricotta (PAT). The traditional one of the Gargano is made from goat's milk, but the production in the rest of the region is varied and this cheese is also obtained from cow's milk only (more delicate flavors and aromas that best meet the taste of the general public) or mixed. Who created it, many centuries ago, he had no doubts in baptizing him with this name, considered that it carries the link between cheese and ricotta, which is the basis of its decidedly tantalizing flavor. Production, infatti, it starts from raw milk which was once left to boil for about ten minutes, today it is brought to approx 90 ° C for a short time. This step causes whey proteins to remain trapped in the clot, lactoglobulin in particular, which is typical of ricotta. After heating, the temperature reaches around 40 ° C and rennet is added. The paste extracted from the whey is positioned in the forms, the following salting takes place dry. It can be eaten fresh (White color, soft structure and tendency to be sweetish) or slightly seasoned (grater): in this case the color remains white, especially in goat cheeses, the driest and most friable structure.
Going down a few kilometers further south, the plains dominate as far as the eye can see. The Tavoliere is the land of wheat, which in the past has always welcomed the flocks of transhumant sheep from the surrounding mountains of Campania, Molise, Abruzzo and Basilicata. Which made it, oggi, land of the Canestrato from Puglia (DOP). This pecorino owes its name to the rush baskets in which it was originally put into shape. Special feature to note is the treatment with olive oil that the forms undergo during the ripening period. The paste can be characterized by ivory or pale straw yellow tones; it's hard, crumbly and has fine and regularly distributed eyes.
Continuing the journey, remaining on the wider plain of the region, you get to Andria, land of the Burrata (IGP), cheese now known and desired on all continents. The product, with numerous textures, it is nothing but a bag of pasta filata filled with cream and frayed pasta filata. The finer the external part, the more the cream frays will be mixed, the tastier the bite will be. Morbida, succulent, sweet tendency, it expresses itself in a fresh and delicate way at the same time.
Going inland, on the route leading to Basilicata, you get to Gravina, homeland of Ball (PAT e presidio Slow Food). Made with raw cow's milk, this is nothing more than a headless caciocavallo with a characteristic spherical shape. Seasoning, which takes place in tuff caves, it can be short, with products placed on the market within four months, or medium-long when it goes beyond four months. The rind is hard (straw yellow or gray for molds), the paste has a uniform consistency, it is slightly glanced and has a yellow color whose intensity increases with the passage of time.
The journey continues reaching the heart of Puglia, Gioia del Colle (and neighboring countries) especially a territory historically suited to the production of cow mozzarella. Tradition speaks of raw milk and whey starter: hence the sour and sour cream hints that find a balanced explosion of flavors in the mouth. La Mozzarella from Gioia del Colle it will be one of the next Apulian PDO cheeses. The process is currently blocked due to a European appeal filed by Germany.
Going even further south, moving on the slope that slopes towards the Ionian Sea, it is possible to meet numerous farms that process their own milk. In many of these, daily basis, and produces at Giuncata (PAT). Historically, the peasant families laid the hot curd and just extracted in baskets from which this fresh cheese which is produced in every corner of the region took its name. There is no salting, if not in a mild way when the milk is still in the boiler, which gives the cheese a delicate sweet tendency. In the end the structure is compact, with a strong lactic hint, of cream and fresh grass.
The virtual journey to the Apulian land ends in Salento where the link with a niche product is strong: the Strong ricotta (PAT). This is a creamy and not very compact dairy product, with a spreadable consistency, which is obtained from the ripening and fermentation of ricotta. This is left for approx 30 days in a cold and humid cell before being salted and left to mature for at least 3 months before being put on the market and consumed. It owes its name, strong (sharp, scant, squanta, sparks, scanned, sober, squant in the various dialectal connotations), to the powerful olfactory and gustatory strength. It is consumed alone, spread on slices of toasted bread or to enrich some dishes of the local gastronomic tradition.
Daniele Apruzzese
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The shots are by Daniele Apruzzese, unless otherwise indicated.