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Grana Padano is a cheese originating in the Po Valley, in northern Italy. It is similar to Parmesan but with less strict regulations governing its production.[1] This hard, crumbly-textured cheese is made with unpasteurized cows' milk that is semi-skimmed. To preserve the authenticity of the manufacturing processes and raw materials used to make this cheese, Grana Padano was registered as a denominazione di origine controllata (DOC) in 1955, and as a European Union protected designation of origin (PDO) in 1996.[1][2][A] Outside of the EU, its name is protected in several other countries based on the Lisbon Agreement and bilateral agreements.[4][5]
| Grana Padano | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country of origin | Italy |
| Source of milk | Cows |
| Pasteurised | No |
| Texture | Hard |
| Aging time | 8–20 months |
| Certification | Italy: DOC: 1955 EU: PDO: 1996 |
 Related media on Commons | |
Etymology
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The Italian word grana refers to its grainy texture, and the demonym padano means 'from Val Padana' (the Po Valley).
History
editGrana Padano was developed by monks of Chiaravalle Abbey in the 12th century.[2] It can last a long time without spoiling, and is sometimes aged for up to two years. It is made in a similar way to the Parmesan of Emilia-Romagna, but over a much wider area and with different regulations and controls.[1]
It has been traditionally produced in a number of territories throughout the Po Valley, including in Piedmont, Lombardy (excluding parts of Mantua), Veneto (excluding the province of Belluno), Trento, parts of Emilia-Romagna, and some municipalities within the South Tyrol.[6]
Production process
editLike Parmesan, Grana Padano is a semi-fat hard cheese which is cooked and ripened slowly for at least nine months. If it passes quality tests, it is fire-branded with the Grana Padano trademark. The cows are milked twice a day.[7] Milk produced in the evening is skimmed to remove the surface layer of cream and mixed with fresh milk produced in the morning. The partly skimmed milk is transferred into copper kettles and coagulated; the resulting curd is cut to produce granules with the size of rice grains, which gives the cheese its characteristic texture, and then warmed to 53–56 °C (127–133 °F). It is produced year-round, and varies seasonally as well as by year. Although similar to Parmesan cheese, the younger Grana Padano cheeses are less crumbly, milder, and less complex in flavor than the better-known, longer-aged Parmesan.[1]
It is produced via lactic acid fermentation and a long, slow ripening process[6]: 103 lasting 14-16 months.[8]: 729 The addition of non-starter lactic acid bacteria is affected by the production process, and in turn affect the resulting microbiota that gives the cheese its typical characteristics.[6]: 103 The production process differs from that of Parmesan in that cattle producing the milk may be fed high-quality silage.[6]: 110 This "favors the contamination of raw milk by spore-forming clostridia".[6]: 110 Lysozyme is added to the vats to prevent late blowing (swelling during the ripening process) that may result from butyric fermentation,[6]: 110 and is an anti-clostridial agent.[8]: 728
About 150 factories make Grana Padano in the Po Valley area, and an estimated 76,724 tons of this cheese are manufactured annually.[9] About 14.4 kilograms (32 lb) of milk yield 1 kilogram (2.2 lb) of cheese.[8]: 729
Specifications
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A wheel of Grana Padano is cylindrical, with slightly convex or almost straight sides and flat faces. It is 35 to 45 cm (14 to 18 in) in diameter, and 15 to 18 cm (5.9 to 7.1 in) high. It weighs 24 to 40 kg (53 to 88 lbs) per wheel. The rind, which is thin, is pale yellow.[10]
Grana Padano is sold in three different ripening stages:[11]
- "Grana Padano" (9 to 16 months): texture still creamy, only slightly grainy
- "Grana Padano oltre 16 mesi" (over 16 months): crumblier texture, more pronounced taste
- "Grana Padano Riserva" (over 20 months): grainy, crumbly, and full-flavoured
Grana padano cheese typically contains cheese crystals, semi-solid to gritty crystalline spots that at least partially consist of the amino acid tyrosine.
Nutritional value and calories
editThe Grana Padano PDO Production Specifications regulate the entire production chain, from the cows' fodder to the branding of the wheels, therefore the average nutritional value and calories of Grana Padano PDO cheese remain stable and any variation in them is irrelevant for the purpose of defining a balanced diet.
100 grams of Grana Padano PDO cheese contain 398 kilocalories (1,666 kJ).
Below is the nutritional table for a medium portion of 100 grams of Grana Padano:
| Main nutrients | |
| Water | 32 g |
| Calories | 398 kcal |
| Total proteins | 33 g |
| Total amino acids | 6 g |
| Fat | 29 g |
| Fiber | 0 g |
| Ashes | 4.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | |
| Sugar (Carbohydrates) | <1 g |
| Minerals | |
| Calcium | 1165.0 mg |
| Phosphorus | 692.0 mg |
| Potassium | 120 mg |
| Magnesium | 63 mg |
| Zinc | 11 mg |
| Copper | 0.5 mg |
| Iron | 0.14 mg |
| Calcium / phosphorus ratio | 1.7 |
| Salt | 1.5 g |
| Iodine | 35.5 μg |
| Selenium | 12 μg |
| Vitamins | |
| Vitamin A | 224 μg |
| Vitamin B1 | 20 μg |
| Vitamin B2 | 0.36 mg |
| Vitamin B3 | 3.0 μg |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.12 mg |
| Vitamin B12 | 3.0 μg |
| Vitamin D3 | 0.5 μg |
| Vitamin E | 206 μg |
| Pantothenic acid | 246 μg |
| Choline | 20.0 mg |
| Biotin | 6.0 μg |
| Lipids | |
| Saturated fat | 18.4 g |
| Monounsaturated fat | 7.4 g |
| Polyunsaturated fat | 1.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 98.3 mg |
See also
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Notes
edit- ^ Grana Padano is the most produced cheese under the protected designation of origin-scheme.[3]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Grana Padano - Cheese.com". www.cheese.com.
- ^ a b Pellegrino, Luisa (2017). "Grana Padano". In Donnelly, Catherine (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Cheese. doi:10.1093/acref/9780199330881.001.0001. ISBN 978-0-19-933088-1. OCLC 947145356.
- ^ Aspinwall, Martin; et al. (2009). Harbutt, Juliet (ed.). World cheese book (1st American ed.). London: DK. ISBN 978-0756654429. OCLC 298183484.
- ^ "oriGIn Worldwide GIs Compilation". ORIGIN-GI. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
- ^ "Grana Padano". GI View - European Union. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f Gobbetti, Marco; Neviani, Erasmo; Fox, Patrick (2018). The Cheeses of Italy: Science and Technology. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-89854-4. ISBN 978-3-319-89853-7.[page needed]
- ^ Gobbetti, M. (2016). "Hard Italian Cheese". Reference Module in Food Science. doi:10.1016/B978-0-08-100596-5.00671-5. ISBN 978-0-08-100596-5.
- ^ a b c Di Cagno, R.; Gobbetti, M. (2011). "Cheese | Hard Italian Cheeses". Encyclopedia of Dairy Sciences. pp. 728–736. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-374407-4.00087-X. ISBN 978-0-12-374407-4.
- ^ Fox, Patrick F.; McSweeney, Paul L. H.; Cogan, Timothy M.; Guinee, Timothy P. (2000). Fundamentals of Cheese Science. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-0-8342-1260-2. OCLC 1016031218.[page needed]
- ^ "Grana Padano - Cheese.com". www.cheese.com. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
- ^ Gillingham, Sara Kate (October 8, 2008). "A Primer on Grana Padano". Retrieved September 10, 2016.
External links
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