How Much Do You Know About Mozzarella?

Who doesn’t love mozzarella? Rich, moist, and slightly elastic when fresh (meaning from a few hours to a couple of days), it’s pretty chewy when still warm right after being made. Releasing a generous quantity of whitish liquid as one cuts it open and spreading a lovely aroma of milk fermentation before the palate can taste the distinctive but delicate flavor. Milky notes flank the herbal ones, the authentic Mozzarella di Bufala is truly unique, and its flavor is unmistakable, making it a must-try for any cheese enthusiast.

While it’s pretty easy to recognize the real deal after tasting it, detecting the subtle differences amongst the products made in the different geographical areas is a fascinating journey of discovery and diversity in mozzarella production.

 

One Cheese, Many Styles

One word for many products: buffalo mozzarella, Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDO and “fiordilatte” mozzarella. To be clear, we’ll refer to the different areas included in the Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDO regulation, which, following the effort carried on by the Consorzio di Tutela since 1981, guarantees the authenticity and integrity (mainly meaning that it’s made with 100% fresh, full-fat buffalo milk from the certified farms) of this luscious fresh cheese. Around 4 liters of buffalo milk, richer in proteins, fats, and calcium than cow’s milk, are required to make 1 kg (approximately 2.2 pounds) of mozzarella, giving it a rich yet fresh taste and well-rounded texture. 

 

Background

Probably born in the San Lorenzo in Capua monastery, near Caserta, in the twelfth century and fostered by the Bourbon kings living in the sumptuous Royal Palace in Caserta (currently hosting the Consorzio’s headquarters since 2016), today the PDO-certified production embraces a vast area in Central-Southern Italy. This spans from out of five Campania provinces (Caserta, Salerno, Naples, and Benevento) to part of Lazio (up to Rome), Apulia, and Molise regions, and includes three National Parks (Circeo, Cilento, and Gargano) in its borders.

 

Top Mozzarella Producers

Yet, there are a few very interesting producers well beyond the PDO territory: from the delicious mozzarella made by the Caseificio Moris in Piedmont, using the milk of the over 1,000 buffalos raised on the slopes of the Alps at Italy’s northern far end, to the one made by Caseificio Preziosa in Lombardy. Not too far from Bergamo (and from the third airport serving the city of Milan), Caseificio Preziosa produces the Mozzarella di Seriate, a registered brand embracing all their dairy products, from quality cow’s mozzarella to traditional “ricotta”, besides buffalo mozzarella. Founded in 1950 by Mr. Teodosio Preziosa, today the company, matching artisanal care and handicraft knowledge, boasts a daily production of between 16 to 20 short tons of fresh product, mainly from the cow’s milk collected by 40 local historic farms in the Lombardia region. 

 

Where is Great Mozzarella Made?

Back to buffalo mozzarella, the provinces of Caserta and Salerno represent, on their own, around 90% of the Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDO production. These figures mirror the geographical spread of the overall production, also including a number of excellent farms that are not part of the Consorzio, such as the well-renowned Tenuta Vannulo farm in Capaccio, Salerno: here, not too far from the magnificent Greek temples of Paestum archeological area, visitors can admire the placid animals enjoying mud baths and massages in the stables before tasting gorgeous mozzarellas, yogurts and ice creams. 

Representing the two pivotal areas of the present buffalo breeding and mozzarella making in Italy, Salerno and Caserta provinces also are the major contenders in an eternal, mouthwatering challenge trying to establish which one is the tastier or, to be more fair and realistic, which one gathers the more considerable number of passionate supporters. While the production process for buffalo mozzarella is quite similar anywhere – no matter the place or certification, and aside from the peculiarity of each season and every single farm depending on the milk and the dairyman’s touch -a well-trained palate could be able to guess where the mozzarella comes based on a series of subtle hues in aroma, flavor, and texture. 

 

From Caserta: intense, rich and sapid

The “Casertana” mozzarella usually has a more intense and sapid taste: this is due to the usual immersion in brine, where the exquisite round-shaped fresh cheese shortly matures after forming, and to a relatively higher salt (around 5%) in the preserving liquid. (Sometimes, they also add salt to the curd in this area.) Here, the texture is also a bit more compact and elastic, and in some instances, the herbal and lactic aromas of the milk are accompanied by a light “wild” scent.

 

An excellent example is the one made by Mini Caseificio Costanzo in Lusciano, near Aversa (the city where the name “aversana,” used to indicate both the origin and the glorious 500-gram sizing, comes from.) A family-run company founded in 1991 by Gennaro and Lia Costanzo after a frost destroyed the family’s entire kiwi crop, this “miniature dairy” – as the complete name goes, underlying the genuine artisanal dimension and the short and carefully controlled supply chain – breeds its own buffalo livestock since 1995, feeding the 650 heads with self-cultivated forage. Over the years, Gennaro and Lia, flanked by their sons Luigi, Alessandro, Valentina, and Davide, opened five stores, including one in Naples and one near Rome. 

Besides the tasty, hand-cut buffalo mozzarella (available in different sizes, both in the round and braid shapes and even lactose-free) and several cow’s milk fresh and matured products from its own buffalo breed Mini-Caseificio Costanzo also produces a gently smoked mozzarella (or provola), a creamy traditional ricotta, butter, yogurt, matured cheese and the original Cheesella: a cow’s milk spun paste cheese with a whole small buffalo mozzarella nestled inside. 

 

From Salerno: delicate, gentle and creamy

In the Salerno province, namely in the small area of the southern Cilento region including the villages of Battipaglia, Capaccio, and Eboli, the mozzarella – thus often called “Cilentana” – has a more gentle and delicate flavor, as the lesser content of salt (around 3%) let the herbal and floral aromas of the milk to emerge, especially in Spring. Meanwhile, the texture, in this case, is a bit creamier and yielding. Of course, both texture and taste also depend on the size of the mozzarella balls and the length of preservation: connoisseurs wisely pick their preferred sizing and timing, besides the origin and farm, to enjoy buffalo mozzarella at its (very personally assessed) best.

 

In Sassano, in the inner and wilder area of the Cilento e Vallo di Diano National Park, Diano Casearia shares a family story similar to Costanzo’s, yet with older origins. Established in 1933 by Maria e Vincenzo Scaramuzzo – following her father’s steps – and today managed by the fourth generation represented by Rossella, Alfonso, and Nicola Scaramuzzo, over the decades, the small dairy focused on spun paste cow’s milk cheeses became a modern and well-structured company. Since 2007, they have also produced Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDO in two of the four current manufacturing plants. At Diano Casearia, the production also pays attention to sustainability, ethics, and social responsibilities: from the meticulously checked and carefully sourced milk from local, non-intensive (and often organic) stock farmings and reduced carbon footprint to social inclusion for immigrant workers and welfare policies for women and mothers.

Widely distributed in Europe – where a dairy company has been acquired in The Netherlands to produce and sell fresh products – Diano Casearia exports its cheeses to roughly twenty different countries, including the US, where their mozzarella also arrives frozen. The company developed a special producing and packing technology to ensure the delivery of a flawless and typical product even on the other side of the world.

While mozzarella is made all over the world, a taste from Campania is truly exceptional.