Parmigiano-Reggiano is a high-quality hard cheese made in the Parma region of Italy. Look for cheese with the rind on and aged for at least a year. Only cheese made in the Parma area can be called Parmigiano-Reggiano.
By simply choosing Parmigiano-Reggiano, rather than “parmesan,” you’ve already made a choice that will typically ensure you’ve selected a high-quality cheese. If you want to be sure you’re selecting the best cheese for your purposes, however, you should look for a piece of cheese that still has the rind on it so you can be sure of its origin. Whenever possible, you should also try to determine how long the cheese has been aged and that it has been aged for at least a year. As long as you’re buying the cheese from a reputable grocery store, however, anything labeled Parmigiano-Reggiano should be of excellent quality.
True Parmigiano-Reggiano is a type of hard cheese made in the Parma region of Italy, from which it gets its name. The cheese is protected by European legislation as a Protected Designation of Origin, just like champagne, and therefore only cheeses produced in that region are allowed to use the name. Italy has also established the Consorzio Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano, a consortium that oversees the production of the cheese to ensure that every wheel produced meets the highest standards.
The production of Parmigiano-Reggiano begins with milk from cows fed only on grass or hay and uses a combination of whole milk and skimmed milk from natural production. This is combined with natural whey cultures and calf rennet. The entire mixture is then cooked in large copper vats at precise temperatures before the solids are collected and formed into wheels. The cheese is also washed in a saline solution using salts from the Mediterranean Sea – this is the only flavoring added. Once the wheels of cheese have set, they are then aged for at least a year, although two years is also quite common.
Only cheeses made with this process in the Parma area can truly be called Parmigiano-Reggiano and this name, as well as the consortium’s stamp in Italy, is pressed into the outer crust of the cheese. Due to the protection of the Parmigiano-Reggiano trademark, fake cheeses typically use the name “parmesan” or a similar derivative. As long as you find a cheese that was part of a wheel and still has the rind with “parmigiano-reggiano” stamped along it, then you know you’re buying a quality cheese. Beyond that, you may want to try to determine how long the cheese has been aged. Sometimes, cheeses aged longer are labeled “extra” on the rind.
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