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Cheese from Italy, Piemonte

Vaciarin

Raw whole cow milk is set with animal rennet at milking temperature, straight after milking, in about an hour. The curd is broken coarsely to keep water in and drains a few hours in cloth-lined moulds. It is not salted and not soured much, and is eaten fresh, kept cold at most 4–5 days.

Fully documentedCheese1 hPAT (traditional agri-food product, Piemonte; D.D. 460/2015, product D 51)Family: Uncooked or semi-cooked pressed cheese family (tomme, Saint-Nectaire, Reblochon, Morbier, Raclette)

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe regional sheet gives the method, not a batch size or doses. A cheese weighs about 1.0 kg.
Raw whole cow milk, used straight after milking[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]
Animal rennet[pat-sheet]
Ground black pepper (optional, on the surface)[onaf-sheet]
Starternone; little acid develops

Total time across the recorded steps: 1 h

Start
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What changes: Animal rennet sets the milk, still warm from milking, in about an hour

Step 1 of 4
Set at milking temperature
Time
1 h
Reported
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

The milk is not prepared at all; it is set at the temperature it leaves the cow.

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 cow milk is set with animal rennet at milking temperature, straight after milking, in about an hour. The curd is broken coarsely to keep water in and drains a few hours in cloth-lined moulds. It is not salted and not soured much, and is eaten fresh, kept cold at most 4–5 days. Made in 4 steps over 1 h. The longest step, set at milking temperature, takes 1 h (Regione Piemonte 2015).

Key numbers
Main step1 hReported[pat-sheet][onaf-sheet]Set at milking temperature
Temperature2–4 °CReported[onaf-sheet]Keep cold

What makes this one different

Made at once from warm milk with no preparation, broken coarsely and never salted, so it stays very moist and sweet. It is eaten fresh rather than ripened.

Size
Irregular flat cylinder about 20–25 cm across and 2–3 cm high, about 1.0 kg
Rind
None; the whole cheese is eaten

Related ferments

Safety

The regional sheet rates it of medium-low safety, because it is a raw-milk, moist fresh cheese with little acid, which can let unwanted microbes grow. It names animal health, milking hygiene and a strict cold chain as the controls, and suggests heat-treating the milk as a safer option.

History and sources

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

The ONAF sheet says that where a farm family kept even one cow, Vaciarin was made from the little milk she gave. It is among the simplest cheeses, since it needs no fire under the vat, and in the poor, isolated Valsesia of the past, where salt came from far away and cost much, leaving it unsalted became the custom. Both sheets say its tradition is documented only by the oral testimony of elders and experts.

Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [pat-sheet] Regione Piemonte, D.D. 24 July 2015 n. 460 (BU38S1, 24 September 2015), Schede tecniche prodotti PAT, category D product 51 'Vaciarin' (copy hosted by ONAF)gov
  2. [onaf-sheet] ONAF (Organizzazione Nazionale Assaggiatori Formaggi), technical sheet 'Vaciarin'web
  3. [onaf] ONAF, cheese page 'Vaciarin' (id 760)web