{"id":30777,"date":"2016-12-06T13:50:31","date_gmt":"2016-12-06T18:50:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/?p=30777"},"modified":"2021-12-10T16:20:27","modified_gmt":"2021-12-10T21:20:27","slug":"stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella\/","title":{"rendered":"Stretched to Perfection: A Guide to Mozzarella"},"content":{"rendered":"

Luca Mignogna has been in his Massachusetts creamery for almost 12 hours, but the most important part of his day is yet to begin. At 3 a.m., the Italian native and owner of Wolf Meadow Farm<\/a> added cultures to a vat of fresh cow\u2019s milk, waited for it to slowly acidify, and then tipped in rennet to help it coagulate. After cutting the curd into small pieces and allowing them to form together into a flat slab, he sliced that slab into small strips\u2014firm, chewy masses with a bit of a rubbery squeak\u2014as his apprentice heated a pot of water. Now, as Mignogna slowly pours boiling water on those strips, they melt and fuse together.<\/p>\n

With a long wooden spoon in one hand and a wooden bowl in the other, he gathers the mass of curd together into a ball and turns it over. It becomes slick and shiny\u2014ribbony like chewing gum, yet slow-flowing like lava. Grabbing the spoon with two hands, he slips it under the mass and pulls it up, a veil of curds stretching out and becoming thinner and more elastic with each tug. Again and again he pulls the spoon up as high as possible, the curd stretched out and attached, to prove that it won\u2019t break.<\/p>\n

\u201cSee this? I could stretch this from here,\u201d he says, pointing to the front door, \u201cto there,\u201d gesturing to the back door.<\/p>\n

Stretching Science<\/h1>\n
\n
\"Calabro

Calabro Cheese Corp. Ovoline<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

During this phase of mozzarella-making at Wolf Meadow Farm, a room that\u2019s usually bustling with boisterous Italian chitchat falls silent with concentration. If the stretching goes well, Mignogna\u2019s cheese will be supple and moist. But a slight misstep\u2014one degree too hot or a second too long\u2014can cause irreversible damage: The curd\u2019s fat might leach out, or its proteins might become brittle, resulting in a cork-like final texture. These are the most important few moments in the process.<\/p>\n

Before they are stretched, mozzarella curds are similar in structure to curds that produce other styles of cheese: chunks of coagulated milk containing networks of protein strands\u2014kind of like fishnets\u2014with fat globules and whey inside. But when mozzarella curds are placed in hot water, something interesting happens. If they have the right chemistry\u2014a specific pH and mineral content\u2014their fat droplets liquefy and the casein protein network collapses. As Mignogna pulls, strands that once formed that protein network coalesce, forming thicker bundles oriented in the direction of the pulling, while fat and whey that were once distributed in small crevices now accumulate in long, open columns.<\/p>\n

Post-stretching, Mignogna tears off fist-sized balls from that giant kneaded mass and places them in cool water to firm up. Later they\u2019ll be packaged in brine for sale. The unique curd structure of these cooled orbs is easy to observe when you pull off a piece, explains University of Vermont food scientist Paul Kindstedt, who has studied the stretching process closely.<\/p>\n

\u201cPull down at a right angle, and it just peels,\u201d he says. The new columns of fat and moisture created during stretching become weak points where unfurling happens. When heated again during cooking, those columns become supple and flexible once more, and pulling results in endlessly spooling strands: the curd attached to Mignogna\u2019s spoon or stubborn threads that extend when you pull a pizza slice away from the pie. \u201cThat\u2019s the trick of mozzarella,\u201d Kindstedt adds.<\/p>\n

Transcontinental Tradition<\/h1>\n
\n
\"Maplebrook

Maplebrook Farm Bocconcini<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Stretching isn\u2019t unique to mozzarella; it\u2019s a technique that characterizes an entire genre of cheeses. These pasta filata<\/em> (\u201cspun paste\u201d) styles are native to the northern Mediterranean\u2014Italy, Greece, and Eastern Europe, including the Balkans and Turkey. Many are firm and aged: Italian caciocavallo, Greek kasseri, Balkan kashkaval.<\/p>\n

Mozzarella is a regional take on that pasta filata style\u2014a uniquely \u201cfresh, juicy type,\u201d Kindstedt says, which originated in southern Italy near Campania. As early as the 12th century, pilgrims to the San Lorenzo monastery in Capua described monks dispensing a fresh cheese made from the milk of water buffalo<\/a> that lived in the region\u2019s hot, swampy marshlands.<\/p>\n

These monks likely knew what Kindstedt explains now: The protein-, calcium-, and fat-rich milk from water buffalo, particularly its ratio of fat to casein protein, lends curds an exceptional ability to trap moisture. \u201cBuffalo\u2019s milk is beautifully designed . . . to produce a very high-moisture, succulent pasta filata cheese,\u201d he says. Time-honored techniques\u2014such as pulling with a wooden spoon in hot water and packaging the finished cheese in water or brine\u2014help the stretched curd maintain as much moisture as possible.<\/p>\n

Buffalo\u2019s milk is not the only suitable base for mozzarella. Makers in southern Italy perfected a bovine version over time called fior di latte<\/em>. Southern Italians may have left buffalos behind when they immigrated in droves to the United States in the 19th century, but they did bring their culture\u2019s cheese devotion. Finding plenty of cow\u2019s milk available, these new Americans churned out fresh, hand-stretched balls of fior di latte daily, just as they had back home\u2014and they called it mozzarella. As families passed on traditions through generations, fresh mozzarella remained a staple in Italian communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cMozzarella was something that you bought from the corner latticini<\/em>, a little store in an Italian neighborhood, not at the supermarket,\u201d says Johann Englert, co-founder of Maplebrook Farm<\/a> in Bennington, Vt.<\/p>\n

The proliferation of fast food following World War II resulted in the exploding popularity of pizza, prompting industrial producers to develop a lower-moisture, part-skim version of mozzarella that had a firmer texture for easier shredding and a longer shelf life. By the 1980s more than three-quarters of all so-called \u201cmozzarella\u201d produced in the US was used on pizza, allowing it to surpass cheddar as America\u2019s most-consumed cheese by 2001.<\/p>\n

Despite mozzarella\u2019s ubiquity as \u201cpizza cheese,\u201d it was rare to find fresh, Italian-style versions outside of specialty shops. That\u2019s why Englert teamed up with third-generation cheesemaker Mike Scheps to establish Maplebrook Farm in 2003. Since then she\u2019s watched the market evolve, from a surge in demand for fresh mozzarella a decade ago to the growing variety of shapes, sizes, and flavors on grocery shelves. Now, Englert believes, \u201cit\u2019s the most popular cheese you can find.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forging Forward<\/h1>\n

Meanwhile in Glenmore, Wis., two arms dig into a mass of hot curd and knead it in and out, in and out, over and over again. Unlike Mignogna\u2019s limbs guiding a wooden spoon, these are silver rods of a buzzing machine, one crafted in Italy to mimic the pulling, rolling-over, and stretching done by a master mozzarella maker. Without its help, churning out thousands of fresh mozzarella balls each day would be close to impossible for BelGioioso Cheese<\/a>. \u201cWe would require an army,\u201d says Gianni Toffolon, the award-winning company\u2019s first Master Cheesemaker.<\/p>\n

\"BelGioioso

BelGioioso Cheese Inc. Pearls<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

The Italian native is quick to note that the machine does not work alone. \u201cOur people\u2014they are the artisans who decide if the curd has the right temperature, the right pH, the right moisture,\u201d he says. Producers such as BelGioioso represent a more recent development in the mozzarella industry: Larger companies are embracing technology that makes production safer and more efficient, while still turning out fresh, high-quality cheese.<\/p>\n

As Americans have tuned in to the wonders of fresh mozzarella, inevitably they\u2019ve also discovered the original: Italian Mozzarella di Bufala Campana, now protected with a DOP. \u201cEveryone seems to be importing it from Italy,\u201d says Elliot Angeloni, a third-generation cheesemaker at Calabro Cheese Corp.<\/a> in Connecticut. Angeloni is one producer on this side of the globe getting into the buffalo\u2019s milk game; he\u2019s been experimenting with his own version for a year now. Perhaps the biggest obstacle is sourcing raw ingredients: Unable to find a reliable domestic source, Angeloni imports tanks of buffalo\u2019s milk from Italy.<\/p>\n

South of the border, though, is a country with an abundance of that coveted milk. About eight years ago, a group of farmers raising male buffalo as draft animals in Colombia anticipated growing demand stateside. After traveling to Italy to see how buffalo mozzarella was made, Alejandro Gomez Torres and his team at BUF Creamery<\/a> began milking females back home. Not only are Colombian buffalo a different breed than their Italian counterparts (a genetic melting pot of strains from Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil, and India) but the warm, humid Colombian climate yields different flora, resulting in different fat and protein levels in the milk and necessitating serious experimentation\u2014what Torres describes as the \u201ctropicalizing\u201d of the traditional Italian recipe.<\/p>\n

Back at Wolf Meadow, Mignogna doesn\u2019t expect that his mozzarella will grace the shelves of supermarkets across America. Instead he\u2019s decided to model his business after those in his home region of Italy\u2014Molise\u2014where more than 50 small fior di latte\u2013making dairies are found in a 25-mile radius. When she visited Molise, Wolf Meadow\u2019s director of operations Christina Barbieri was struck by customers\u2019 loyalty. \u201cLittle old ladies\u2014they would say, ‘I go here for the mozzarella, there for the ricotta, and there for the caciocavallo,’\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n

Few Americans have a daily mozzarella shopping habit, but as more and more locals frequent the dairy and its Boston Public Market<\/a> stand to taste what Mignogna and Barbieri are offering, Wolf Meadow is developing a regular following.<\/p>\n

And perhaps that\u2019s how it should be. Mozzarella is not like other artisan cheeses enjoyed only on special occasions or on cheese plates. It has myriad partners beyond summer tomatoes or pizza. Fresh, milky, and mild, it\u2019s both an indulgence and daily sustenance, with an uncanny ability to elevate almost every meal. Perhaps that\u2019s why, as Mignogna explains, Italians don\u2019t really describe mozzarella as a cheese. \u201cMozzarella is not formaggio,\u201d he says. \u201cMozzarella is mozzarella.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

How to Taste Mozzarella<\/h1>\n

Many of the tastes and aromas we find in cheese are caused by the breakdown of fats and proteins during aging. Mozzarella, however, is best enjoyed fresh, so its qualities are milder and subtler\u2014an embodiment of the \u201cpristine flavor of the milk,\u201d says Jill Giacomini Basch, co-owner of California-based Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co.<\/a> When comparing mozzarellas, seek these important attributes:<\/p>\n

In terms of APPEARANCE<\/strong>, examine the level of shininess\u2014an Italian adage says that you should be able to see your reflection in fresh mozzarella\u2019s sheen. Also consider color, which might range from the creamy, buttery hue of grass-fed cow\u2019s milk mozzarella to the porcelain-white of buffalo versions. (Because buffalo convert yellowy carotenoids into vitamin A, the pigments don\u2019t show up in the milk as they do in cow\u2019s milk.)<\/p>\n

If the stretching process goes awry, mozzarella\u2019s TEXTURE<\/strong> can be tough and rubbery or, alternatively, too elastic. The perfect ball will be moist, soft, and slightly springy; cuts made into it will be clean. When melted, the cheese should be fibrous, stretchy, and a bit chewier.<\/p>\n

On the nose, mozzarella\u2019s AROMA<\/strong> should be like a glass of fresh milk. \u201cYou get some of those cream notes, some brightness, a little citrus aroma,\u201d Basch says. Some mozzarellas are slow-cultured with bacteria while others are acidified directly using citric acid or vinegar; the slow-cultured versions will have \u201ca very nice lactic note,\u201d says University of Vermont food scientist Paul Kindstedt.<\/p>\n

TASTE<\/strong> should be clean and bright, not muddied with other flavors. Sourness and acidity might indicate the use of vinegar or citric acid during production. Salt can range from barely detectable to brackish, depending on each maker\u2019s recipe and techniques. Less-salty versions lend themselves well to cooking.<\/p>\n

Mozz from Other Milks?<\/h1>\n
\n
\"The

The Mozzarella Company Capriella<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

While several pasta filata cheeses in Turkey and the Middle East are made from sheep\u2019s and\/or goat\u2019s milk, they tend to be drier and firmer than fresh mozzarella. Thanks to a higher protein concentration, these milks don\u2019t have the same ability to hold moisture in the curd seen in cow\u2019s milk and, especially, buffalo\u2019s milk, says Paul Kindstedt. Until recently, attempts at making fresh mozzarella with other milks usually resulted in lower-moisture versions, akin to pizza cheese.<\/p>\n

However, in 2015 Italian food scientist Michele Faccia and colleagues published a paper outlining new recipes they developed for fresh goat\u2019s milk and sheep\u2019s milk versions. While the curd was trickier to stretch, varying acidification methods as well as the temperature and rennet dose during coagulation resulted in mozzarella comparable to cow\u2019s milk versions. These mozzarellas also displayed new aromas: hints of almond in the goat\u2019s milk version and walnut in the sheep\u2019s milk. For farmers with small ruminants, this might be a way to capitalize on fresh cheese\u2019s popularity. \u201cThere\u2019s a major effort in Italy to develop this mozzarella because the sheep\u2019s milk and goat\u2019s milk producers are always looking for new, value-added ways to make a living,\u201d Kindstedt says.<\/p>\n

Tasting Notes<\/h1>\n
 <\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n

MOZZARELLA<\/strong><\/a>
\nPoint Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company<\/a>
\nPoint Reyes Station, Calif.
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s milk
\nLuscious and glistening with a solid-yet-supple paste, this orb exhibits clean flavor without a trace of salt\u2014like drinking a glass of fresh farmstead milk.<\/p>\n

BOCCONCINI<\/strong><\/a>
\nMaplebrook Farm<\/a>
\nBennington, Vt.
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s milk
\nBeneath the surface, these outwardly smooth, bite-size balls yield a fairly firm yet moist and fibrous curd. Mild aromas hint at salt and bread dough, while a skim-milk flavor with a touch of bitterness grows slowly on the palate.<\/p>\n

CAPRIELLA<\/strong><\/a>
\nThe Mozzarella Company<\/a>
\nDallas
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s and goat\u2019s milk
\nThe only part-goat\u2019s milk mozzarella we could find has a firmer, somewhat sticky texture with tangy yogurt aromas and a whisper of butter.<\/p>\n

PEARLS<\/strong><\/a>
\nBelGioioso Cheese Inc.<\/a>
\nGlenmore, Wis.
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s milk
\nThese cute little nuggets are bright and milky white and taste slightly salty with a nice balance of bitter and sweet. Like chewing on whole milk\u2014in a good way.<\/p>\n

\n
\"BUF

BUF Creamery Ciliegine<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

CILIEGINE<\/strong><\/a>
\nBUF Creamery<\/a>
\nEl Rosal, Colombia
\nPasteurized buffalo\u2019s milk
\nSmelling of warm whole milk, these cherry-sized, South American morsels boast unique texture\u2014a dense center surrounded by a pillowy outer layer\u2014with creamy flavor and grassy background notes.<\/p>\n

OVOLINE<\/strong><\/a>
\nCalabro Cheese Corp.<\/a>
\nEast Haven, Conn.
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s milk
\nThese eggs have an absolutely clean scent with a shot of salt upfront followed by refreshing notes of sweet cream.<\/p>\n

MOZZARELLA<\/strong><\/a>
\nWolf Meadow Farm<\/a>
\nAmesbury, Mass.
\nPasteurized cow\u2019s milk
\nPull apart a ball of this ultra-fresh, salty mozzarella to witness the wonders of hand stretching: It\u2019ll unravel into small strings that squeak slightly and exude milkiness on the palate.<\/p>\n

MOZZARELLA DI BUFALA CAMPANA DOP<\/strong><\/a>
\nCasa Madaio<\/a>
\nEboli, Italy
\nPasteurized buffalo\u2019s milk
\nCut into this DOP-certified bufala from the Salerno region of Italy, and its insides will ooze into a puddle. The aroma is doughy with hints of grass and musk, while the flavor is bright and evolves from an initial tang to a long, salty finish.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Milky and mild, mozzarella is both an indulgence and daily sustenance<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":30778,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26354],"tags":[3179,4309,14082,27842,1158,3101,983,1268,2628,2606],"coauthors":[290,1055,1056],"class_list":["post-30777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-belgioioso-mozzarella","tag-buf-creamery","tag-calabro","tag-casa-madaio","tag-maplebrook-farm","tag-maplebrook-mozzarella","tag-mozzarella","tag-mozzarella-di-bufala","tag-point-reyes-farmstead-cheese","tag-wolf-meadow-farm"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nStretched to Perfection: A Guide to Mozzarella - culture: the word on cheese<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Stretched to Perfection: A Guide to Mozzarella\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Milky and mild, mozzarella is both an indulgence and daily sustenance\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"culture: the word on cheese\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-12-06T18:50:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-12-10T21:20:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/mozz_feature.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"368\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Molly McDonough, Photographer Nina Gallant, Stylist Jessica Weatherhead\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Molly McDonough, Photographer Nina Gallant, Stylist Jessica Weatherhead\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"13 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/developer83.wordpress-developer.us\/culturecheesemag\/stretched-perfection-guide-mozzarella\/\",\"name\":\"Stretched to Perfection: A Guide to Mozzarella - 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