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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Italy, Sicilia

PicurinuTuma

Made in 5 steps over 8 months. The longest step, ripen, takes up to 8 months (ONAF) and runs at 12–16 °C (ONAF).

Key numbers
Main stepup to 8 monthsReported[onaf][onaf-sheet][pat-sheet]Ripen
Temperature12–16 °CReported[onaf][onaf-sheet][pat-sheet]Ripen

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedWhat goes in. No source gives amounts for this ferment.
sheep milk, (various breeds), raw, whole
Starter: none; natural milk microflora

Total time across the recorded steps: 8 months

Start
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What changes: Raw whole sheep milk goes into the vat

Step 1 of 5
Prepare the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

S (various breeds), raw, whole

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

Generic Sicilian farm pecorino sold under names that track its salting stage.

Rind
None (tuma) to clean or oiled; basket-marked, white-yellowish
Size
4.0–12.0 kg; Ø 18–35 cm, height 10–18 cm (tuma: 4–20 kg, Ø 30 cm)

Variants

  • Tuma fresca: just-made, unsalted
  • Primosale: 8–10 d, salted once
  • Secondo sale: 2–4 mo, salted twice
  • Stagionato: aged longer, piquant
  • Aromatizzato: pepper or chilli

History and sources

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

  1. [onaf] ONAF, scheda formaggio 'Picurinu (tuma, primosale, secondo sale, stagionato)' (id 1236)web
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF technical sheet PDFweb
  3. [pat-sheet] Regione Siciliana PAT sheetgov