Category talk:Italian cheeses

Is it possible to list all cheeses (and Italian regions) in one single page? --PaoloCastagna 09:30, 28 December 2011 (GMT)

Not that I'm aware of - the 200 limit is an internal Wiki constraint, probably to be kind to the server which would be put under a huge load producing huge listings.

I did increase it a while back but it impacted upon the system performance.

--Chef 09:37, 28 December 2011 (GMT)

When to eat

A question emailed to me by Mary:

This is a good site. I enjoy trying unusual cheeses but I forget to ask my local Italian supplier whether a cheese is principally a good cooking variety of one to eat more immediately. Is the sell by date a good way to guess. My current two cheeses are:Cacio Cavallo Pugliese and Caciotta Rustega. Am guessing they are grating/cooking cheeses. Happy new Year. Mary

any takers for this question? --Chef 14:49, 7 January 2012 (GMT)

No, the "sell by date" in not a good way to guess whether an Italian cheese (or, indeed, any other cheese) is better used for cooking or it is a table cheese. Caciocavallo (one word) is a stretched curd cheese. It is good as table cheese, if aged many months it can be grated over pasta. It can be used for grilling or melting. Caciotta "rustega" ("rustega" means rustic) is a semi-soft cheese. Typically, semi-soft cheese are used as table cheese, with sandwiches or salads. --PaoloCastagna 18:27, 8 January 2012 (GMT)

I agree Paolo and would add that any stretched cheese (not just Caciocavallo) are excellent cheeses for melting on pizzas, tostadas or in calzone, stromboli etc. Sell by dates are a waste of time in the UK, which is why the EU has brought in new regulations. See my blog http://juliabalbilla.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-food-labelling-regulation-published.html I buy unpasteurised Camembert just before its 'Sell by' date and do not consume it until at least 3 weeks after that. It is still just as good for baking or eating with fruit and biscuits :-) I would be a little more cautious if a 'Use by' date was given, but not over cautious! --JuliaBalbilla 21:49, 8 January 2012 (GMT)

Thanks Julia. Being Italian I have my strict rules on the type of cheese you can put on a pizza (i.e. mozzarella only!), but caciocavallo or scamorza are certainly possible alternatives. Another useful comment in relation to 'Sell by', 'Use by', etc. is here: "A Quick Guide to 'Best Before' Dates" by Pong Cheese. --PaoloCastagna 09:40, 9 January 2012 (GMT)

I always use mozzarella for its texture but add some other cheese as well as I like strong flavours. Usually this is Parmesan, but yesterday I added Elgar Mature (Worcestershire) as I had some that needed using up. Not very Italian, I know :-) I often visit Pong's website but hadn't seen that article. How right they are though! My student daughter (who is on a budget) ought to read that as she wastes so much food by binning it when not necessary. --JuliaBalbilla 18:04, 9 January 2012 (GMT)