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Cheese from Italy, Sicilia

Formaggio di capra "padduni"Padduni

Raw goat milk, chilled evening milk with warm morning milk, is set in a wooden vat at about 37 °C with lamb or kid paste rennet in about 45 minutes. The curd is broken to lentil size, worked by hand in a wooden bowl (cisca) to drain, shaped into balls of about 300 g, sealed in hot whey and dry-salted once. It is sold fresh, with no ripening.

Fully documentedCheese45 minTraditional food product (PAT, Regione Siciliana, D.M. 16 February 2018)Family: Whey-cooked rennet curd family (halloumi type)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo doses are given; each ball weighs about 300 g.
Raw whole goat milk, from the chilled evening milking and the warm morning milking[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Lamb and/or kid paste rennet[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Fine salt[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Black peppercorns or chilli flakes (optional)[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
StarterNo culture is added; the curd forms through the raw milk's natural microflora, with lamb or kid paste rennet (PAT sheet)

Total time across the recorded steps: 45 min

Start
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37 °C

What changes: Lamb or kid paste rennet sets the goat milk at 37 °C in about 45 minutes

Step 1 of 5
Set in a wooden vat
Time
45 min
Reported
Temperature
37 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

The milk is warmed in a cauldron and poured into a wooden tina; ONAF adds a rest of 5–30 minutes after setting.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Raw goat milk, chilled evening milk with warm morning milk, is set in a wooden vat at about 37 °C with lamb or kid paste rennet in about 45 minutes. The curd is broken to lentil size, worked by hand in a wooden bowl (cisca) to drain, shaped into balls of about 300 g, sealed in hot whey and dry-salted once. It is sold fresh, with no ripening. Made in 5 steps over 45 min. The longest step, set in a wooden vat, takes 45 min (Regione Siciliana 2018) and runs at 37 °C (Regione Siciliana 2018).

Key numbers
Main step45 minReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Set in a wooden vat
Temperature37 °CReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Set in a wooden vat

What makes this one different

The fresh counterpart of the Sicilian formaggiu ri capra; the PAT sheet sets them apart by shape (ball against cylinder), weight (300 g against 3 kg), salting and age (fresh against three months).

Rind
None; snow white
Size
Irregular ball or egg shape, shaped by hand
Season
February to October (ONAF)

Related ferments

Variants

  • With black pepper or chilliPeppercorns or chilli flakes worked into the curd

Safety

Raw-milk cheese sold with no ripening; ONAF says it keeps only a few days chilled. ANSES advises pregnant women, young children, people over 65 and people with weak immunity not to eat raw-milk cheeses other than cooked pressed ones, because of Listeria, Salmonella and enterohaemorrhagic E. coli.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

The PAT sheet says the origins of this cheese go back to the 11th century BC, citing Homer on a drink of grated goat cheese, and cites Aristotle and Varro on goat milk and goat cheese. It says the method is described in Carmelo Campisi's 1933 book on Sicilian sheep and pecorino.

Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [pat-sheet] Regione Siciliana, Prodotti Agroalimentari Tradizionali (2018), D.M. 16 February 2018, sheet 'Formaggio di capra "Padduni"' (copy hosted by ONAF)gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Formaggio di capra "padduni"'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Formaggio di capra "padduni"' (id 1229)web
  4. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov