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We're in Locorotondo, Italy,
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and today we're going to see how ricotta is made.
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Ricotta is a very versatile cheese, we all know it,
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that can be eaten in very different ways.
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And, technically speaking, it's not even really a cheese,
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because it comes from liquid whey when the milk is curdled.
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So, today we're going to visit
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a small dairy here in the countryside
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to find out more about how it's made.
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Let's go.
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Ricotta is part of a family of fresh cheeses
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that are normally eaten the same day.
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Fresh dairy products are very popular in southern Italy,
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where each region will make its own version of ricotta
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depending on the milk used and its flavor profiles.
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Puglia, the region we're in today,
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favors a soft, delicate ricotta
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made with liquid whey derived from cow's milk.
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Bigger dairies that make cheese
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often consider liquid whey just a leftover product
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and use it to feed livestock
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or even discard it.
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But for smaller, local dairies here in Italy,
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it is a great opportunity to optimize their resources
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and get something great out of them.
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Just like its sisters, mozzarella and burrata,
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ricotta is a game of time and chemistry.
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Today, Giovanni is going to show us how he makes ricotta
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from 100 liters of milk.
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Out of these 100 liters, only 10 will turn into curds
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that will then make cheese.
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But cheese is not the star of the show for us today.
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In reality, as much as 90% of what's in here is liquid whey,
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and that's all going to be turning into ricotta.
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When the curds have reached the desired texture and size,
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Giovanni will extract them and place them into molds,
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which will go on to age and become cheese.
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Finally free from its curdled twin,
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the liquid whey is ready to be turned into ricotta.
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Giovanni then starts heating up the whey
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to add milk and ferments to it.
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If we had to judge a step by how loud it is,
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I'd say this is definitely a crucial one.
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[machine whirring]
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Thankfully for our ears, it was also a pretty quick one.
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While Giovanni carefully removes all the excess foam,
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we can see it slowly starting to surface --
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the ricotta we came for today.