Posted by Riccardo Pentenero (194.116.8.6) on September 07, 1999 at 09:41:52:
I just made a call to Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium in Italy.
They abolutely confirm what i said: no E620 (monosodic glutammate) nor E621 (sodium hydrogen L-glutamate) is put in the parmesan.
They also said me that many US alimentary industries sell parmesan that is not imported nor created in the right way. The main tip i can give you is this (already said to Bob):
Control the parmisan crust: if you read "PARMIGIANO REGGIANO" is the best, if you read "GRANA PADANO" is good but not too much flavoured, if you read ANY OTHER THING is NOT italian parmesan!
If you need more info on this, go to the Italian site of Parmesan consortium is (also in english):
http://www.parmigiano-reggiano.it
And finally...... i report here the main properties and.....why not, some recipes .....:-)
NUTRITIONAL VALUE
Composition of ripened Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for 100 g
WATER g 30.8
TOTAL PROTEIN g 33.0
FAT g 28.4
ENERGY Kcal 395
CALCIUM mg 1160
PHOSPHORUS mg 680
SALT (NaCl) g 1.39
SODIUM mg 650
POTASSIUM mg 100
MAGNESIUM mg 44.3
ZINC mg 4
VITAMIN A mcg 270
VITAMIN B1 mcg 34
VITAMIN B2 mcg 370
VITAMIN B6 mcg 110
VITAMIN B12 mcg 4.2
VITAMIN PP mcg 55
PANTOTHENIC ACID mcg 320
CHOLINE mg 40
BIOTIN mcg 23
Also in Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese are not present preservatives or other additives .
RECIPES (in other word....also CHs have a stomach.....)
CANAP WITH PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO (to serve 6 people)
Ingredients
10 slices of toasted bread
100 gr of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
60 gr of butter
30 gr of ground fresh truffle slice the truffle for decoration
Obtain from the toasted bread 18 round canaps.
Mix the soft butter with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the ground truffles, mix well to obtain a soft consistant paste.
Put an equal amount of the paste on each canap. Spread the paste evenly over the canaps and decorate with the sliced truffles.
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CHEESE SALAD (for 4 to 6 people)
Ingredients
1/2 pound Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese cut into slivers
1 roasted pepper cut lenghtwise into strips
2 ounces chopped green olives
1 cup diced celery hearts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon aceto balsamico
salt
pepper
Combine all the ingredients, toss and serve.
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PENNE WITH RAW TOMATOES AND PARMIGIANO-REGGIANO (for 4 to 6 people)
Ingredients:
1/2 pound fresh, ripe plum tomatoes
1 pound penne
1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
salt
Cut the tomatoes lenghtwise, remove the seeds and dice.
Cook the pasta "al dente". Drain and transfer the pasta to a serving bowl, pour the oil, the Parmigiano-Reggiano and the tomatoes over the pasta, toss throughly and correct for salt.
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CHICKEN PIECES ALLA MODENESE (to serve 6 people)
Ingredients:
6 pieces of chicken
150 gr of ham
150 gr of sliced
Parmigiano-Reggiano
50 gr of butter
4 spoonfulls of cream
salt
flour
Tenderize the pieces of chicken in order to obtain escalopes.
Roll the pieces in flour with saut butter and a pinch of salt.
Finally just before the pieces are fully cooked place a slice of ham on top of each piece and above this a slice of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
Let the pieces of chicken simmer slowly while adding a little cream.
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