Basic Facts about Italian Cheese, Prosciutto, and Salami

Cheese, prosciutto, and salami are some of the basic ingredients in most Italian dishes. Italian cuisine is popular throughout the world for its simple yet appetizing dishes that people from other cultures enjoy. Various cooking magazines feature different Italian dishes that readers try to make in their own homes. Here are some basic facts about cheese, prosciutto, and salami that those who want to try Italian dishes can use. There are a lot of cheese varieties in Italy, each of them representing unique dished of its specific regions. For example, northern regions of Trento, Lombardy, and Friuli Venezia-Giulia have asiago d’allevo, grana padano, and baita friuli cheeses that have own authentic characteristics. The southern region of Calabria has calabrese and crotonese cheeses while the islands of Sardegna and Sicilia have testadura, novello, and provolone cheeses. Prosciutto is a dry cured ham aged for 10 months in a series of temperature and humidity-controlled rooms. These rooms imitate the classic seasons of Italy, starting in the cool and dry winter, the warmer and moist spring, and lastly, in the warm summer period. Prosciutto slowly becomes drier as it cures and ages, creating the true and intense flavor of the ham. Most people serve prosciutto with melon, cantaloupe, or a fresh fig. Most Italians alternate bites between the prosciutto and fruit, while others enjoy wrapping the prosciutto around the fruits. Like other Italian specialty deli meats, prosciutto is served at room temperature to allow the aroma to compliment the taste. Prosciutto is also used in classic grilled cheese and other popular sandwiches. salami is cured sausage fermented and air-dried meat that’s also popular in Italy. Ingredients for salami include beef, various spices and herbs, wine, and other flavor-enhancing elements. The raw meat mixture is allowed to ferment for a day and then either stuffed into an edible natural or inedible cellulose casing, and then hung to cure. Heat treatment is then used to accelerate fermentation and start the drying process. Like Italian Cheese, types of salami depend, on the different regions in the country. There are Milanese, Genovese, and Cacciatore salami, each with its own unique taste and texture, depending on how the people utilized the ingredients. Like prosciutto, salami is also popular in different types of sandwiches in Italy and other foreign countries.