Glossary: Parmesan

This hard, dry cheese is made from skimmed or partially skimmed cow's milk. It has a hard, pale-golden rind and a straw-colored interior with a rich, sharp flavor. There are Parmesan cheeses made in Argentina, Australia and the United States, but none compares with Italy's preeminent Parmigiano-Reggiano, with its granular texture that melts in the mouth. Whereas most U.S. renditions are typically aged a minimum of 10 months, Parmigiano-Reggianos are more often aged at least 2 years. Those labeled stravecchio have been aged 3 years, while stravecchiones are 4 or more years old. Their complex flavor and extremely granular texture are a result of the long aging. The words Parmigiano-Reggiano stenciled on the rind mean that the cheese was produced in the areas of Bologna, Mantua, Modena or Parma (from which the name of this cheese originated). The name Parmigiano is used in parts of Italy for grana cheeses that don't meet protected designation of origin requirements for Parmigiano-Reggiano, such as specific areas of production, what the cattle eat, lengthy aging and so on. Parmesan cheeses in other countries have comparatively lax regulations. Parmesans are primarily used for grating and in Italy are termed grana, meaning 'grain'

From THE NEW FOOD LOVERS COMPANION, Fourth edition by Sharon Tyler Herbst and Ron Herbst. Copyright © 2007, 2001, 1995, 1990 by Barron's Educational Series, Inc.