PECORINO ROMANO

Pecorino Romano is a hard, salty, Italian cheese made, as the name implies, in or near Rome. Similarly, there’s Pecorino Siciliano from Sicily, Pecorino Sardo from Sardinia, etc. In Italy, cheese made from sheep’s milk is known as pecorino. Most pecorino cheeses are aged and classified as grana and are granular, hard and sharply flavored. (There is also a soft pecorino — a ricotta — that’s white and young, meaning not aged, so it’s mild in flavor.) Aged pecorinos range in color from white to pale yellow and have a sharp, pungent flavor. Pecorino Romano — which comes in large cylinders with a hard, yellow rind encasing a yellowish-white interior — is the best known of the genre. Similar to its cousin, Parmigiano Reggiano (parmesan), it’s a hard, dry cheese good for grating. Like parmesan, pecorino is used mainly in cooking. Substituted in any recipe calling for parmesan, pecorino gives the end result a sharper flavor. Pecorino cheeses are generally aged up to a year. As they age they develop a brittle, hard texture, and the rind yellows. The younger the cheese, the softer and whiter it is. Pepato, a variety we’ve also featured in the club, is spiced with peppercorns.

Price per LB.