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Cheese from Italy, Sardegna

Pecorino di NuleCasu de Nule

Raw whole ewe milk from one or two milkings is warmed to about 35–39 °C and set with liquid calf rennet in 20–50 minutes. The curd is broken to rice or millet size, semi-cooked at 40–42 °C, pressed in the cauldron into one block, cut and moulded, then pressed with weights and salted in brine or dry. It ripens at least 60 days, up to a year, in semi-underground cellars.

Fully documentedCheese2 months – 12 monthsPAT (traditional agri-food product of Sardegna)Family: Hard pressed ewe cheese family (Manchego and Pecorino Romano as templates)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedNo fixed amounts are recorded. Wheels weigh 2.5–3.5 kg.
Raw whole ewe milk from one or two milkings[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Liquid calf rennet[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Salt, as saturated brine and/or dry[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Extra-virgin olive oil and/or vinegar for the rind[onaf-sheet]

Total time across the recorded steps: 2 months – 12 months

Start
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35–39 °C

What changes: Raw ewe milk is warmed to 35–39 °C in a copper or steel cauldron

Step 1 of 8
Warm the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
35–39 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria
Lactococcus lactis
Enterococcus faecium
Lactobacillus plantarum

Output: warm raw ewe milk.

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

Raw whole ewe milk from one or two milkings is warmed to about 35–39 °C and set with liquid calf rennet in 20–50 minutes. The curd is broken to rice or millet size, semi-cooked at 40–42 °C, pressed in the cauldron into one block, cut and moulded, then pressed with weights and salted in brine or dry. It ripens at least 60 days, up to a year, in semi-underground cellars. Made in 8 steps over 2 months – 12 months. The longest step, ripen in semi-underground cellars, takes 2–12 months (Laore Sardegna (regional agricultural develop…). Lactic acid bacteria and enterococci, mainly Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus plantarum and the Lactobacillus casei group, as found in the related Sardinian raw ewe-milk cheese Fiore Sardo made without starter does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step2–12 monthsReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Ripen in semi-underground cellars
Temperature35–39 °CReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Warm the milk

What makes this one different

A semi-cooked, pressed farm pecorino from Nule. Its fine rice- or millet-size curd is pressed into one block before moulding, and it ripens in half-buried cellars whose temperature is not controlled.

Rind
Thin, smooth, fairly hard, straw-yellow
Size
Cylinder about 18–22 cm across and 9–15 cm high
Season
Made January to October

Related ferments

Variants

  • Semistagionato60–120 days
  • Stagionato120 days to 1 year; slightly sharp

Safety

A raw-milk cheese ripened at least 60 days. The regional sheet notes it falls under the hygiene derogations for small dairies and for cheeses matured over 60 days. In a challenge study, E. coli O157 added to raw ewe milk was still detectable in pecorino after 90 days of ripening, so ripening alone is no guarantee. ANSES, the French food safety agency, says Listeria and enterohaemorrhagic E. coli in raw-milk cheeses can kill, and advises pregnant women, people with weak immunity, people over 65 and young children to avoid these cheeses unless well cooked.

Hazards the sources name: Escherichia coli O157 in raw ewe milk; in a challenge study of pecorino made by other recipes it was still detectable after 90 days of ripening.

History and sources

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

Casalis's geographic dictionary of the Kingdom of Sardinia (1833–1856) describes Nule as a shepherding town whose cheeses, especially autumn ones, were well regarded.

Starter
The sources we found do not say how its fermentation begins.
  1. [pat-sheet] Laore Sardegna (regional agricultural development agency), Prodotto tradizionale della Sardegna, sheet 'Pecorino di Nule'gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (national organisation of cheese tasters), technical sheet 'Pecorino di Nule'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Pecorino di Nule' (id 373)web
  4. [pisano2006] Pisano M.B., Fadda M.E., Deplano M., Corda A., Cosentino S. 2006, Microbiological and chemical characterization of Fiore Sardo, a traditional Sardinian cheese made from ewe's milk, International Journal of Dairy Technology 59(3):171-179, doi:10.1111/j.1471-0307.2006.00260.x (abstract)paper
  5. [centorotola2021] Centorotola G., Sperandii A.F., Tucci P. 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, doi:10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2021.109175 (abstract)paper
  6. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov