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Cheese from Italy, the whole of Sardinia

Pecorino Sardo PDO (dolce/maturo)

Whole Sardinian sheep milk, raw or thermised or pasteurised, may be inoculated with local lactic cultures, Streptococcus thermophilus or other species, and is set with calf rennet at 35–39 °C. The curd is broken to hazelnut size for the young dolce or maize-grain size for the maturo, semi-cooked at 42–43 °C, pressed and salted. Dolce ripens 20–60 days; maturo ripens over two months and may be smoked.

Fully documentedCheese20 days – 2 monthsPDO (EU), Reg. (EC) No 1263/96; amended by Reg. (EU) No 215/2011 and Reg. (EU) No 313/2014 (national DPCM of 4 November 1991)Family: Hard pressed ewe cheese family (Manchego and Pecorino Romano as templates)

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceThe specification gives conditions, not doses. Dolce weighs 1–2.3 kg; maturo 1.7–4 kg.
Whole sheep milk from Sardinia, raw or thermised or pasteurised[sardo-2010][sardo-2013]
Lactic cultures from the area of origin, which may include Streptococcus thermophilus (optional)[sardo-2010]
Calf rennet[sardo-2010][sardo-dpcm]
Salt, as brine or dryAt most 2.0 g per 100 g of cheese[onaf-sheet]
Starteroptional local lactic cultures, which may include Streptococcus thermophilus

Total time across the recorded steps: 20 days – 2 months

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
shapes, not to countS. thermophilus35–39 °C

What changes: Local lactic cultures and calf rennet go into the sheep milk

Step 1 of 6
Inoculate and set with calf rennet
Time
35–40 min
Reported
Temperature
35–39 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
S. thermophilus
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

Whole Sardinian sheep milk, raw or thermised or pasteurised, may be inoculated with local lactic cultures, Streptococcus thermophilus or other species, and is set with calf rennet at 35–39 °C. The curd is broken to hazelnut size for the young dolce or maize-grain size for the maturo, semi-cooked at 42–43 °C, pressed and salted. Dolce ripens 20–60 days; maturo ripens over two months and may be smoked. Made in 6 steps over 20 days – 2 months. The longest step, ripen, takes 20 days – 2 months (European Commission 2013) and runs at 6–12 °C (ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters)). Lactic cultures from the area of origin, which may include Streptococcus thermophilus; the ONAF sheet notes it is one of several species of the native milk flora, not the only one does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step20 days – 2 monthsSet[sardo-2013]Ripen
Temperature6–12 °CReported[onaf-sheet]Ripen

What makes this one different

A semi-cooked pecorino sold in two types set by curd size and age, hazelnut-size curd for the young dolce and maize-size for the maturo. It is set with calf rennet, and the local cultures may include Streptococcus thermophilus.

Types
Dolce (20–60 days) and maturo (over two months)
Grated maturo
Grated maturo must have ripened at least 4 months in the area and hold at most 42% moisture
Size
Dolce 1–2.3 kg, 15–18 cm across; maturo 1.7–4 kg, 15–22 cm across in the 2013 amendment application (15–20 cm in the 1991 decree and the ONAF sheet)
Fat
Fat in dry matter at least 40% (dolce) and 35% (maturo) in the 1991 decree

Related ferments

Safety

The milk may be raw, thermised or pasteurised, and dolce ripens from only 20 days. In a challenge study on raw and thermised ewe milk, treatments short of pasteurisation reduced E. coli O157 but did not eliminate it, and it was still detectable in Pecorino after 90 days of ripening. ANSES advises pregnant women, young children, people over 65 and people with weak immunity not to eat raw-milk cheeses other than pressed cooked ones such as Gruyère, because of Listeria, Salmonella and Shiga-toxin E. coli. The ONAF sheet notes freezing is banned and that cheese may be stored colder than it ripened.

History and sources

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

The application for EU registration says that since the beginning of the century the cheese has been regarded as an alternative to Pecorino Romano. It was first called by invented names or names of the area it came from, which in time merged into the name of the whole region.

  1. [sardo-dpcm] Disciplinare di produzione della denominazione di origine del formaggio "Pecorino Sardo", DPCM 4 November 1991, GURI n. 83, 8 April 1992 (copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  2. [sardo-2010] European Commission 2010, publication of an amendment application, "Pecorino Sardo" PDO, OJ C 162, 22.6.2010 (copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  3. [sardo-2013] European Commission 2013, publication of an amendment application, "Pecorino Sardo" PDO, OJ C 318 (2013), approved by Reg. (EU) No 313/2014 (copy hosted by ONAF)spec
  4. [eamb-sardo] Ministero dell'agricoltura e delle foreste, Application for registration "Pecorino Sardo" PDO, national file No. 18, summary sheet (English), eAmbrosia attachment 74233archive
  5. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Pecorino Sardo'web
  6. [centorotola2021] Centorotola G. et al. 2021, Survival rate of Escherichia coli O157 in artificially contaminated raw and thermized ewe milk in different Pecorino cheese production processes, International Journal of Food Microbiology 347:109175 (abstract)paper
  7. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov