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Caciocavallo ragusano (Cosacavaddu rausanu in Sicilian dialect)
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Identity Card
Name: Caciocavallo ragusano
Product category: Kneaded-paste cheese
Milk used: Cow's
Area of production: South-East Sicily: the entire province of Ragusa and several towns near the town of Syracuse
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"Caciocavallo" is a rather odd sort of name that has been inspired by the practice of tying the cheeses (in Italian, cacio) two-by-two and hanging them so that they straddle (in Italian, "a cavallo") a wooden beam to age. It is one of the most traditional Sicilian cheese products and it has been documented as far back as the 1300's.
It may be eaten fresh, semi-matured (after 6 months of aging) or fully-matured (in some cases aged for more than two years). Made in the traditional manner, this kneaded-paste (spun- or pulled-curd) cheese is obtained by curdling the milk inside a so-called "tina", a wooden container, and then cooking the curds later, kneading or pulling them by hand. This operation is performed in a sort of barrel, from which the caciocavallo emerges in the form of a large ball of cheese. It is then placed in a kind of cheese-trough, known as a "mastredda", where it assumes its characteristic parallelepiped shape.
Its flavor is quite mellow during the first several months, taking on a sharper tang during the aging process. If left to age for long enough, it becomes an excellent grating cheese capable of adding flavor to any first-course dish. When fresh, it can be cut into slices about 1 centimeter thick and fried quickly in a pan or, even better, grilled over hot coals, allowing the outside to form a crisp, very flavorful crust. The seasoned variety is used in a great many traditional Sicilian recipes, beginning with pasta and beans, a dish in which caciocavallo ragusano plays an absolutely essential role. It can also be used for stuffing meat roulades or for preparing au gratin mollusks in the oven. Once this great cheese has been aged for at least 24-26 months, it can be slowly savored alone, as a so-called meditation cheese, accompanied by a fine red wine, like a Rapitalą d'annata.
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