Cheesemaker Giovanni Samela uses his own and, sometimes, his brother's sheep's milk to make perhaps the most intriguing ricotta salata I have ever had. In fact, the Bay Area importer prefers to call the cheese "ricotta stagionata" (aged ricotta) because the salata is so often dry, salty and difficult for American consumers to like.
Samela's version, from the sparsely populated southern Italian region of Basilicata, looks a lot like other ricotta salatas from Puglia, Calabria and Sicily. It is off-white and rindless, shaped like a truncated 1-pound cone. But it doesn't taste like the others.
It has little apparent aroma apart from a faint but appealing animal scent common to young cheeses made with sheep's milk. Its most compelling feature is its texture – dense and creamy – without the chalky mouthfeel or pronounced saltiness of more mature ricotta salatas. Unlike cheeses that seduce you with their fragrance, the character of this cheese doesn't really emerge until it melts on your tongue.
I love ricotta salata at any stage, but it fascinates me to taste one that is so youthful and moist, barely firm enough to grate. You can enjoy it as a table cheese, whereas more mature ricotta salata is usually destined for the cook to shower over pasta with tomato sauce, or orecchiette with broccoli rabe. It complements fava beans, cauliflower, eggplant and zucchini. I also like to shave it over beets and arugula.
Ricotta salata, historically, is the cheesemaker's way of preserving fresh ricotta, which lasts only a few days. By draining and salting the fresh ricotta curds, the cheese lasts much longer – months, even. But Samela's aged ricotta, sold under his farm name of Pietra del Sale, is still relatively young – the importer estimates that it leaves Italy at about 3 weeks old – and so moist that it easily develops mold. I had a hard time keeping the exterior free of it.
Andy Lax, a sales representative for the importer, suggests buying no more than you need for a few days. Merchants may be willing to cut the cheese in half or quarters. At home, rewrap any unused portion tightly in plastic wrap. I rarely recommend plastic, convinced that a loose wax-paper wrap and sealed container is better, but that method didn't work in this case.
Pietra del Sale Ricotta Stagionata (or ricotta salata, if you prefer) has balanced flavor, a restrained salt level and an ingratiating smoothness. Experiment with it in the kitchen as spring and summer vegetables arrive, or add it to a cheese board.
A young cheese, it needs a young and high-acid white or red wine to accompany it. An Italian Fiano di Avellino or Spanish Garnacha would be a suitable choice.
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