Cheese "Gran Padano". Recipes of ancient Italy

Any Italian can proudly call Grana Padano cheese a national product. Its history began long ago. Even in the annals of ancient Rome, there is a mention of the recipes for its preparation.

Product Description

Now Grana Padano cheese is produced in all corners of sunny Italy. It is easy to recognize on store shelves. These are three-dimensional cylindrical heads about 45 centimeters in diameter with a white or yellowish crust. The product has a granular consistency and belongs to the category of hard cheeses. It is difficult to confuse its unusual salty taste with a barely noticeable shade of walnut.

The Grana Padano cheese is a bit like Parmesan. True, unlike this famous variety, he does not have such strict limits on the geography of origin of the raw materials. The unusual name of the product consists of two words that can be translated as: "grana" is a "granule" or "grain", and "padano" is a derivative on behalf of the famous Po river, which flows through the whole of Italy. The cheese "Grana Padano" is of three types:

1) Young. Ripening time is less than 10 months.

2) Medium-seasoned. Ripens up to 16 months.

3) Aged. It takes more than 20 months to prepare it.

Each of them is good in its own way and has a certain group of supporters.

Features of the production process

It is known that the characteristics and properties of any product depend on the method of its preparation. Also the Grana Padano cheese. The photos allow you to verify this by considering its unusual structure.

Outwardly it looks like a clot in the form of small clumps of clumps. The process of preparing such a product is quite interesting:

1. First, skimmed milk is poured into the copper boiler.
2. Then rennet and natural serum are added to it. Over time, in the process of coagulation of the ingredients appear formations in the form of small grains.
3. Then the mass is heated, all the clumps settle to the bottom.
4. The product obtained is collected and placed in a saline solution for 30 days.
5. After that the semifinished product is sent for maturation. For this, the pressed heads are placed on the shelves in a room where a certain humidity and temperature are maintained. To avoid the appearance of mold or possible weathering, the cheese should be constantly turned over.

The holding time depends on the type of product. This is followed closely by technologists.

New Product

In the product line of the famous trademark there is quite an interesting specimen - the cheese "Grana Padano is lactose-free". It was developed by specialists for that category of people who, due to the characteristics of the organism, do not have the opportunity to consume dairy products. The main cause is lactose intolerance. This is usually due to a lack of the intestine of a certain enzyme, which is responsible for the process of assimilation of milk sugar. Doctors call it hypolactasia. Such a person is forced to selectively treat food and limit himself all the time. Specialist cheese makers found a way out of this situation. They invented to add a special enzyme to the clot, which will decompose lactose during the time when the product ripens. It turned out very well.

The finished product tastes no different from ordinary cheese. It retains all the organoleptic and physico-chemical properties that are inherent in the sample of a particular species. Perhaps this explains its special popularity.

Benefits for the body

Very popular is not only in Italy, but also around the world enjoys the cheese "Grana Padano". Its composition is very rich and varied, which characterizes the product only on the positive side. First you need to pay attention to the mineral substances, which are many. Here you can find a lot of calcium and phosphorus, which are responsible for the state of bone tissue, as well as the flow of all metabolic processes. In addition, there is potassium, which normalizes the water balance and affects the work of the heart. In addition, zinc, magnesium, selenium, copper and iron are available. All these elements, one way or another, strengthen the body and help its recovery. There is also a vitamin complex where the majority of the group B. predominates. They have a beneficial effect on the nervous system and the body as a whole.

A slice of this cheese in the evening will allow us to feel a rush of cheerfulness in the morning and not to remember yesterday's fatigue.