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Cheese from Italy, Toscana

Ricotta di pecora pistoiese

Ricotta is a boundary entry, set by heat and acid, not by microbes. Whey from local pecorino is heated, 15–20 % whole Massese ewe milk is stirred in at 55–65 °C, and heating goes on to 82–88 °C until the whey proteins rise as flakes. They are ladled into perforated cone-shaped baskets and drained until cool.

Fully documentedCheese1.1 h – 3.2 hPAT (traditional agri-food product, Regione Toscana)Family: Whey cheese (heat-precipitated whey protein) family

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceThe ONAF sheet gives shares, not a batch size. Each ricotta weighs 1.0–1.5 kg.
Whey from pecorino makingFiltered through a mesh strainer[onaf-sheet]
Whole sheep milk from Massese ewes15–20 % of the whey[onaf-sheet]
StarterHeat and added acid set the curd; ONAF classes the coagulation as acid-thermal.

Total time across the recorded steps: 1.1 h – 3.2 h

Start
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What changes: Starting material: sheep whey left from pecorino making, warmed and stirred

Step 1 of 5
Filter and warm the whey
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

The whey left from pecorino making is strained and heated slowly while stirred with a wooden stick.

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

Ricotta is a boundary entry, set by heat and acid, not by microbes. Whey from local pecorino is heated, 15–20 % whole Massese ewe milk is stirred in at 55–65 °C, and heating goes on to 82–88 °C until the whey proteins rise as flakes. They are ladled into perforated cone-shaped baskets and drained until cool. Made in 5 steps over 1.1 h – 3.2 h. The longest step, drain in baskets until cool, takes 1–3 h (ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori F…).

Key numbers
Main step1–3 hReported[onaf-sheet]Drain in baskets until cool
Temperature55–65 °CReported[onaf-sheet]Add whole ewe milk

What makes this one different

Whole Massese ewe milk, 15–20 % of the whey, is added before the flakes rise. It is made from November to March and is eaten with necci, the chestnut-flour pancakes of the same mountains.

Shape and size
Truncated cone of 1–1.5 kg
Rind
None; white, marked by the baskets
Season
November to March (ONAF)

Related ferments

Safety

The ONAF sheet does not age the ricotta and keeps it in a cold room at 0–4 °C.

History and sources

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

The regional sheet counts about 20 producers in the Pistoia mountains and about 40 in the province, making 600–800 quintals a year, all sold locally, mostly direct to buyers at the farm.

  1. [pat-sheet] Regione Toscana / ARSIA, Prodotti agroalimentari tradizionali, sheet «Ricotta di pecora pistoiese» (copy hosted by ONAF, which marked its process text as wrong in 2018)gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet «Ricotta di pecora pistoiese»web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page «Ricotta di pecora pistoiese» (id 957)web