|
|
 |
Ricotta
|
Identity Card
Name: Ricotta
Product type: Mixed milk cheese, obtained from rennet
Raw material: Milk heated to 90° to allow the serum proteins (milk proteins) to coagulate and rise to the surface. It is obtained from all types of milk
Maturing: It is usually eaten fresh, can be ripened
Production area: Throughout Italy |
|
|
|
|
Once the cheese has been removed from the dairy cauldrons only the whey remains, containing a proteic element (made up of the so-called serum proteins, which are the proteins contained in milk). To recover and use them as food, man has learnt to heat the milk again, hence the term ricotta ("recooked") by heating it to almost 90°C. At this temperature the serum proteins coagulate and rise to the surface in the form of soft flakes which are collected by the cheese-maker using a slotted spoon and placed inside special wicker moulds, called fiscelle, until all the residual serum has drained away.
Ricotta has been produced in this way for centuries; the only slight technological innovation over the years is the addition of a acidifying substance which boosts the milk's ricotta production. It is made from all types of milk, but with different results in terms of taste and texture. While cow ricotta is regarded as the standard product, then sheep ricotta is superior in many ways. Buffalo ricotta is hard to come by, as is the goat's milk variety, which has a particularly distinctive aroma.
Those who have had the chance to taste ricotta while it is still warm, fresh from the cauldron, will not easily forget the soft creamy consistency of its flakes, whose flavour literally explodes with a smattering of cinnamon. Dairy experiences apart, ricotta generally hits the stores only hours later. To store it for longer the cheese moulds are salted on the surface and then left to ripen for a few days, and are perhaps smoked, a procedure which gives ripened ricotta cheeses a truly unique flavour.
Ricotta is used in many recipes: it is an ingredient in pasta fillings (like Tortelloni) and various sauces and is the irreplaceable base in traditional Southern Italy desserts, such as cassata siciliana. It is wonderful in Fusilli with ricotta and spinach, a simple dish which can be given an exotic touch with a mere sprinkling of cinnamon. Ricotta is also excellent for rustling up a quick pasta dish like Gnocchetti Sardi with cherry tomatoes, olives and mature sheep's milk ricotta.
|
|
|
|
|
