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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, Campania, with parts of Lazio, Puglia and Molise

Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDOMozzarella di Bufala Campana

Fresh whole milk from Italian Mediterranean buffalo is set with calf rennet and a natural whey starter saved from earlier makes. The curd sours under its whey for a few hours until it will stretch, then it is pulled in boiling water, pinched off by hand or machine, firmed in cold water and brined. It is sold fresh in a slightly sour liquid, with no ripening. Made in 8 steps over 2.7 days – 2.9 days. The longest step, collect fresh buffalo milk, takes up to 2.5 days (European Union 2007). Salt is 4–18 % (ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori F…). Streptococcus thermophilus, the dominant species in the whey starter and the curd and Lactobacillus helveticus and L. delbrueckii, which take over in the finished cheese do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepup to 2.5 daysSet[mozz-oj2007]Collect fresh buffalo milk
Temperature33–39 °CSet[mozz-oj2007]Add whey starter and calf rennet
Salt4–18 %Reported[onaf-sheet][levante2023]Firm in cold water and brine
AciditypH 4.8–4.9Measured[levante2023]Sour the curd under its whey

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification fixes limits, not a recipe. Pieces weigh 10–800 g, and plaits (trecce) up to 3 kg.
Whole fresh buffalo milk · Italian Mediterranean breed; at least 7.2% fat and 4.2% protein; raw, thermised or pasteurised; frozen milk is not allowed[mozz-oj2007]
Natural whey starter · Whey from earlier buffalo-milk makes in the same or a nearby dairy[mozz-oj2007]
Natural calf rennet · Liquid rennet 1:10,000, 18–20 ml per 100 l of milk[mozz-oj2007][onaf-sheet]
Salt · As brine[mozz-oj2007]
Lactic or citric acid · Optional, to sour the liquid the cheese is packed in[mozz-oj2007]
Starter: natural whey starter (siero innesto) from earlier buffalo-milk makes

Total time across the recorded steps: 2.7 days – 2.9 days

Start
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What changes: Starting material: whole fresh buffalo milk, used within 60 hours of milking

Step 1 of 8
Collect fresh buffalo milk
Time
up to 2.5 days
Set
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
S. thermophilus
Lactobacillus helveticus
L. delbrueckii
Lactic acid bacteria

The milk is filtered. It may be used raw, thermised or pasteurised; cheese from raw milk must say so on the label.

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

What makes this one different

It is made only from buffalo milk, which is much richer than cow milk, and soured with whey saved from earlier makes instead of a bought culture. The curd ripens under whey for hours before it is stretched. Cow-milk fior di latte is made the same way but from cow milk.

Milk
Whole fresh Italian Mediterranean buffalo milk, at least 7.2% fat and 4.2% protein, used within 60 h of milking
Starter
Natural whey starter from earlier buffalo makes
Setting
Natural calf rennet with the milk at 33–39 °C
Ripening
None; sold fresh in its liquid
Size
Rounds, bocconcini, plaits, cherries, knots and others of 10–800 g (plaits up to 3 kg); fat in dry matter at least 52%, moisture at most 65%

Related ferments

Variants

  • Mozzarella di Bufala Campana affumicataSmoked by natural, traditional methods only; the name must add "affumicata"
  • ShapesBocconcini, trecce (plaits), perline, ciliegine, nodini and ovoline

Safety

The PDO allows raw milk. ANSES names Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella and Shiga-toxin-producing E. coli as the risks of raw-milk cheeses and advises pregnant women, young children, people over 65 and people with weak immunity not to eat them. Keep the cheese cold in its liquid.

Hazards the sources name: Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella and Shiga-toxin-producing E. coli (risks ANSES names for raw-milk cheeses; the PDO allows raw milk).

History and sources

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

The 2007 application notes records of buffalo being farmed profitably in southern Italy from the late 1200s. The name was protected in Italy in 1993 and in the EU in 1996.

  1. [mozz-oj2007] European Union, Publication of an amendment application for "Mozzarella di Bufala Campana" (PDO) with the summary sheet, Official Journal C 90, 25 April 2007, pp. 5–9 (Italian text, copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP (restating the disciplinare)web
  3. [levante2023] Levante A. et al. 2023, The microbiota of Mozzarella di Bufala Campana PDO cheese, a study across the manufacturing process, Frontiers in Microbiology 14:1196879paper
  4. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov