Today we’re talking about capers from Pantelleria, tiny but very rich in flavour. But there’s more, we’ll also discover caper berries, caper leaves and the caper production farm that brings Pantelleria’s tradition to the world. Ready to go?
- Meat & Seafood add remove
-
Cured meats & Cheeses
add remove
- Pasta & Pizza add remove
-
Preserves & Condiments
add remove
- Truffles, legumes & mushrooms add remove
- Desserts & snacks add remove
- Organic
- Tasting Selections
- Christmas
- Regali aziendali
- Brands
- Meat & Seafood add remove
-
Cured meats & Cheeses
add remove
- Pasta & Pizza add remove
-
Preserves & Condiments
add remove
- Truffles, legumes & mushrooms add remove
- Desserts & snacks add remove
- Organic
- Tasting Selections
- Christmas
- Regali aziendali
- Brands
Search in blog
Latest posts
-
Capers, what a taste!Read more
-
Ferragosto’s picnicPosted in: The foodie's journal2822 viewsRead more
Ferragosto is approaching, whip out the picnic baskets! What are we taking? All quick preparations to make and practical to carry and eat - dishes and cutlery are hardly needed! The secret? The best Italian cured meats.
-
Precious grains from the Vercelli plainPosted in: The foodie's journal3075 viewsRead more
Have you ever thought about how much work goes behind a packet of rice? How important the territory, the processing techniques and the packaging method are? To think all of this doesn’t affect the taste is a huge mistake. And while...
-
Who says there’s only tuna in oil?Posted in: The foodie's journal3748 viewsRead more
From Marzamemi’s tuna fish factories…The greater amberjack! Tradition and environmental sustainability: fishing is exclusively by angling in the Mediterranean, the processing entirely made by hand, in short it’s a delight to always keep...
-
When whole is better than slicedPosted in: The foodie's journal3719 viewsRead more
We already know that dry-cured ham is one of the best and most symbolic products of our territory. But do you also know what the differences are, in terms of taste, between a sliced one and a whole one? Read our article and make room in...
Popular posts
-
ITALIAN PASTA TYPES AND SHAPES REGION BY REGIONPosted in: The foodie's journal156498 viewsHow many pasta shapes exist in Italy? Around three hundred! Any pasta shapes that you can think of has been created over the years and combined with a specific sauce. First of all, Italian pasta shapes are divided into two main...Read more
-
ITALIAN RICE CULTIVARSPosted in: The foodie's journal46752 viewsIn Italy rice is rarely seen as a side dish; it is an actual ingredient used in both traditional and more innovative dishes. Timbales, risotto, supplì stuffed rice balls, rice meatballs, rice salads…The Italian regional culinary...Read more
-
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GRANA PADANO AND PARMIGIANO REGGIANOPosted in: The foodie's journal38454 viewsParmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano cheeses have a similar shape, colour and paste, but they follow completely different product specifications as requested by their respective protection consortia. Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano...Read more
-
DISCOVERING ITALIAN RAW MILK CHEESESPosted in: The foodie's journal33201 viewsRaw milk means milk which does not undergo any heat treatment prior to becoming cheese. According to Slow Food, cheeses made from this type of milk, i.e. raw milk Italian cheeses, are the only ones that preserve an invisible bacterial...Read more
-
‘NDUJA FROM CALABRIA: FOOD PAIRING AND RECIPESPosted in: The foodie's journal30142 views‘Nduja from Calabria is definitely addictive; I am sure of it. One taste and you’re in love, because ‘Nduja salami spread is spicy but aromatic, it is creamy, it can enhance the flavour of many dishes and it takes you all the way to...Read more
Blog tags
Tuscany VS Sardinia: the ultimate Pecorino cheese battle
The Italian cheese landscape is packed with flavour, story and tradition. Handmade processing carried out by expert cheese makers is combined with prime raw materials, resulting in simply exceptional products.
Cheeses made from ewe’s milk, in particular, are pillars of the Italian cheese-making tradition. As a matter of fact, Pecorino cheese has been gaining renown thanks to its unique and unmistakable flavour.
Italy is the fifth largest Pecorino cheese producer in the world, after Greece, Spain, Portugal and France. More than 7 million heads of sheep are reared, accounting for almost 80 thousand tons of cheese.
Exports are also constantly increasing: a staggering + 23% since 2015. Which country loves Italian Pecorino cheese the most? The USA which alone account for 70% of exports.
Where did Pecorino cheese originate?
The Pecorino cheese production area in Italy is well defined. From the Po plain up, we mainly find cow’s cheese, as well as from the region Lazio down, where the curd stretching technique has resulted in the production of actual works of art (such as Caciocavallo and Provola cheese). What about in the middle? Between Tuscany and Lazio, we can find the “land of Pecorino cheese”, stretching also beyond the Tyrrhenian Sea and enclosing the whole region of Sardinia.
What’s so special about this area? And why are the best Pecorino cheeses made here? Compared to Northern Italy with its large grazing grounds and pastures, this area has less pastures, less cows, but many more heads of sheep.
This is the land of transhumance. Flocks of sheep move between the hills and coastlines along the drovers’ roads. Sheep, unlike cows, live outside most of the time, on natural pastures and also on steep lands with poor production capacity.
Besides, these are marginal lands, where hardly any other activity can be carried out. Sicily’s inland is the perfect example of this: dry and rugged land for both humans and cultivations, but not for sheep. Sheep rearing has become a tradition in these territories and in some cases, it has also prevented depopulation.
A comparison of Sardinia and Tuscany
Sardinia is the Italian region with the highest number of sheep, with almost 3 million head of sheep living on the island. Tuscany actually ranks only fourth, after Sicily and Lazio, with more than 500,000 heads of sheep. One point for Sardinia.
As far as the number of Traditional Agrofood Product (PAT) and PDO labels goes, Tuscany beats Sardinia. Without taking into account the PDO Pecorino Romano which is actually made in both regions, we have to mention, among all Tuscan delicacies, the PAT Pecorino di Pienza, the PDO Pecorino Toscano and the PDO Pecorino delle Balze Volterrane. In Sardinia, PDO Pecorino Sardo and PDO Fiore Sardo stand out.
Concerning the history of Pecorino cheese, both regions have an over thousand-year-old tradition. Tuscan Pecorino was actually “invented” by Etruscans who also developed a cheese-making technique involving the use of vegetable rennets. In Sardinia, however, the Nuragic civilisation already practised sheep farming.
And what about flavour? It is impossible, and also useless, to compare them. They are two delicacies among all Italian cheeses that are equally valid and refined. It would be fool to pick sides; why not enjoying them both? If we want to define the flavour of these cheeses, we can only say that both the Tuscan Pecorino cheese and the Sardinian Pecorino cheese have a unique, intense, long-lasting and unforgettable flavour.
Let’s not forget about the fundamental role that aging plays: the longer a cheese ages, the more intense and long lasting the flavour is. The consistency changes, too, of course. Fresh Pecorino cheeses are soft, almost buttery. They have a bright colour, an elastic paste and a delicate aroma. On the contrary, an aged Pecorino cheese is almost crumbly with a straw yellow hard paste.
Depending on the aging and on the flavour of each cheese slice, we can have fun finding the perfect flavour combination. In the spring time in Tuscany, broad beans and Pecorino cheese are a must; in Sardinia, the ancient Seadas dessert with a filling of Pecorino cheese is the perfect mid-afternoon snack. Pecorino sardo pairs the best with Culurgiones filled pasta; to enhance the flavour of Tuscan pecorino, we suggest pairing it with a selection of honey.
Pecorino is a symbol of our food culture, as well as one of Italy’s oldest cheeses. Tuscany and Sardinia treasure and protect these cheeses with an exceptional flavour. Why only choosing once, when you can have both?
Related products
-
Young Pecorino Cheese - 300/600/1200g
Price: €9.90 -
Semi-cured Red Rind Pecorino Cheese- 350/700/1400g
Price: €11.90 -
Aged Black Rind Pecorino Cheese - 350/700/1400g
Price: €12.90 -
Aged Golden Rind Pecorino Cheese - 350/700/1400g
Price: €14.90 -
“Croccolo” Pecorino Cheese - 500/1000/2000 g
Price: €19.90 -
"Mascalzone" (Rascal) Pecorino Reserve - 500/1000/2000 g
Price: €21.90 -
"L'Aromatico" Pecorino Cheese - 325/650/1300 g
Price: €16.90 -
Drunken Pecorino Cheese - 325/650/1300 g
Price: €15.90 -
Truffle pecorino cheese "Tuberino" - 400 g
Price: €16.90 -
"Piccantino" Pecorino Cheese with Chilli Pepper - 400 g
Price: €13.90 -
Organic mature Pecorino Sardo cheese PDO - 200g
Old price: €7.90 Price: €5.53 Discount: 30% Save up: -€2.37 -
Pecorino cheese and jams
Price: €35.90
Related posts
-
PRODOTTI TIPICI ITALIANI IN GERMANIA E OLTREOCEANO: QUANTI INGANNI!
Posted in: The foodie's journal11/02/20206515 viewsL’etichetta che indica la provenienza di un prodotto è sinonimo di garanzia. Ad ogni paese viene associata una...Read more
-
STRACHITUNT DOP: STORIA E TRADIZIONI
Posted in: The foodie's journal21/02/20205018 viewsLo Strachitunt DOP è un formaggio a pasta molle unico al mondo, tipico delle valli circostanti Bergamo, in particolar...Read more
-
PRODOTTI TIPICI PUGLIESI: QUELLI CHE PIÙ AMIAMO RISPLENDONO COME L’ORO
Posted in: The foodie's journal21/02/20205475 viewsLa Puglia, caratterizzata da distese di olivi e campi di grano che attraversano la regione fino ad affacciarsi sulle...Read more
-
IL CIBO DI QUALITÀ ITALIANO: PRODOTTI TIPICI DOP
Posted in: The foodie's journal21/02/20205606 viewsL’Italia è un paese dalla tradizione culinaria estremamente ricca e ogni regione offre prodotti tipici frutto di...Read more
-
COSA È OGGI IL CIBO GOURMET?
Posted in: The foodie's journal21/02/20205211 viewsGourmet è una parola molto alla moda al giorno d’oggi, ne spesso usata per descrivere una pietanza di grande classe,...Read more