Just like all of Emilia-Romagna, Parma and the surrounding area are a pasta paradise, whether it be semolina-based pasta secca or pasta fresca made with wheat flour and eggs…

 

It is said that nowhere is pasta fresca smoother, finer or more elastic than in this region, where it is worked into strips or diamond shapes, stuffed with meat or cheese, in the form of ravioli, tortellini, tortelli, terrific lasagna, anolini in brodo (with meat stock), agnolotti, cappelletti or cappellacci…

 

Parma is above all renowned for its tortelli di primavera,stuffed with ricotta and mixed herbs, but also for its tortelli stuffed with pumpkin marinaded in fruit mustard (a recipe dating back to the Renaissance!). Of course, each rasdora (old dialect name for a housewife) has her own technique and gives a special texture to the pasta.

 

But the finest and most exceptional tortelli that I tasted was definitely that made by Maria Teresa Labadini, whose discreet trattoria is lost in the mountains, in the village of Tosca di Varsi, 60 km from Parma…

 

In the town of Parma itself, the Il Cortile trattoria also offers delicious samples in the old working-class district of Oltretorrente (which means “on the other side of the river”), famous for its gardens hidden away in courtyards.

 

As early as the Middle Ages, the large cheeses that lay in the cheese shops of Parma (under the protection of San Lucio, patron saint of master cheesemakers) constituted a sort of tourist attraction! In the 16th century, pilgrims and travellers were offered mouthfuls of Parmesan to give them strength.

 

It was in 1612 that a certain Bartolomeo Riva, treasurer of the Farneses under Duke Ranuccio I, established the Parmigiano Reggiano trademark. Almost five centuries later, the methods of production remain the same and are fixed by law! Thus, only cheese made in the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Mantua and Bologna can be called Parmigiano Reggiano.

 

The production of this exceptional cheese cannot be industrial in the sense that, even though the quantities are considerable (3 million cheeses weighing 38 kg each are produced every year!), they are still made by hand.

 

Therefore, whether it be small producers or large cooperatives, the process is the same: milk from the evening and morning milkings is mixed together and heated. After adding natural rennet, the curds (cagliata) are then broken up with a fork until they form small grains, then heated again in order to form a young cheese; a cloth is then placed under this cheese and it is drained to get rid of the first whey; it takes two robust men to take this cheese, which weighs over 60 kg, out of the vat; the cheese is pressed in a mould for a day so that the whey can continue to drain off, and is then put into brine for 3 to 4 weeks.

 

For the first 6 months, the cheese has to be turned over every 4 or 5 days, then every 10 days the following months. The cheese must be at least one year old to benefit from the “Parmigiano Reggiano” designation. I recommend a visit to the maturing cellars – cathedrals over 30 metres high, housing between 50,000 and 100,000 cheeses stacked up on wooden shelves!