Pecorino Siciliano PDO - Characteristics of Sicilian Pecorino DOP

Characteristics of Sicilian Pecorino DOP

Shape : Characteristic cylindrical shape with flat or slightly concave faces. The side is about 10-18 cm high.
Weight : Its weight is between 4 and 12 kg.
Appearance :The crust is white/yellow with a very rough surface due to the reed basket. The paste is compact, white or pale yellow with few holes.
Flavor : strong taste, slightly spicy but fruity, with a floral and spicy scent.

qualities Pecorino Siciliano PDO reference : CoRFiLaC

The spicy taste increases with the aging period which varies from 4 to 8 months.

The spicy gradation is due to the presence of polyphenols and antioxidants. The traditional production method and the use of wooden tools allow an optimal regulation of the surface bacterial flora. This method influences both the health and sensory spheres of Pecorino Siciliano PDO.

The floral and spicy aroma, with a slightly fruity aftertaste.

The quality of pecorino depends significantly by animal feeding and by the milk processing methods.
The floral scents come from the green pastures that the herd feeds on. Fresh milk is not altered by the pasteurization processes which cancel all its characteristics.

Traditional cheese

As required by the production regulation, which simply takes up the traditional method, the milk to be processed must be from the morning or evening milking, collected in a wooden vat together with the lamb or kid rennet paste.
Then, the curd is broken with a wooden ladle and reduced into pieces as large as a grain of rice, finally hot water at 70 ° is added.
about ten minutes after adding the water, the pasta is purged with your hands in the piddiaturi and placed in the fasceddi, the reed baskets that give the pecorino its characteristic shapee.
After about twenty minutes, which allow for optimal settling, the dough is scalded for about 2-3 hours.

Subsequently the curd remains spread for two days on an inclined surface (tavoliere). The wheels must be turned several times in the wrappers in order to give the Pecorino Siciliano PDO the characteristic cylinder shape.
The salting is applied manually the day after production, ten days later the wheels are put to a new salting treatment.

Character

Pecorino Siciliano PDO is produced exclusively with whole sheep's milk, fresh and coagulated with lamb rennet.
The milk to be processed comes from sheep raised on spontaneous pasture in the Sicilian territory. The processing takes place with wooden tools and the salting is applied manually on each wheel.
In addition, the seasoning period is carried out in naturally ventilated rooms and is not less than 4 months.
Only in this way the Sicilian Pecorino PDO acquires its own character, keeping all the flavors of Sicily.