Parmesan, a cheese from Italy: what it is and how it is eaten

This Italian hard cheese is made from unpasteurized cow's milk and aged for twelve months or more. It has a sharp, savory flavor with high glutamate levels that create a strong umami taste.

Share on WhatsApp

Made from unpasteurized cow's milk in northern Italy.
Aged for at least twelve months on wooden shelves.
High glutamate content creates a strong umami taste.
Protected by PDO status since 1992 in the EU.
October 27 is designated Parmigiano Reggiano Day.

What is Parmesan?

Parmigiano Reggiano is a hard, granular cheese from Italy. It uses unpasteurized cow's milk and ages for at least one year. The wheels are large and heavy, weighing about thirty-eight kilograms. The paste is pale yellow and crumbly. The rind is natural and hard. It smells savory and sharp. The taste is salty with a strong umami quality due to high glutamate content.

Where does Parmesan come from?

Legend says the cheese began in Bibbiano during the Middle Ages. Records mention it in 1254. Boccaccio praised it in 1348. Samuel Pepys buried his supply during the Great Fire of London in 1666. Casanova noted the name was misused elsewhere in the eighteenth century. Production spread through Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, and Mantua. The Consortium protects the name today.

What does Parmesan taste like?

The cheese offers a sharp, salty, and savory profile. High glutamate levels create a distinct umami taste. Aromas include aldehydes and butyric acid. The texture becomes harder and grainier as it ages. Younger wheels are softer. Older wheels are drier and more intense. The sound test with a hammer checks for cracks before sale.

How Parmesan is made

Producers mix morning whole milk with evening skimmed milk. They add starter whey and calf rennet to copper vats. The curd breaks into rice-sized pieces. Heat rises to fifty-five degrees Celsius. Workers collect the curd in muslin and mold it into wheels. Brining lasts twenty days in salt water. Aging happens on wooden shelves for twelve months minimum.

Parmesan, drawn

The cheese pale yellow, drawn as a wedge on a board. Drawn from this page, not a photograph of one wheel.

Age: Aged 6 to 12 months, on a 0 to 5 scale from fresh to extra-aged. Minimum of 12 months, often up to two years on wooden shelves.

A wedge: a cut from a wheel, with the paste on the cut faces and the rind along the back. Hard cheeses are sold like this.

Milk Cow's milk. Calf rennet.

How Parmesan is eaten and cooked

Chefs grate it over pasta, soups, and risottos. People eat chunks on their own as snacks. Slivers simmer in broths for flavor. Some broil crust pieces without wax. Infusing olive oil adds aroma. Steaming vegetables with the cheese works too. It serves well on cheese boards or with wine.

Parmesan through the day

It fits lunch and dinner menus. Grating it over dishes is common. Eating chunks alone makes a snack. It appears on cheese boards. Simmering slivers in soup adds depth. Broiling crust pieces offers a simple treat. It pairs with wine for leisure.

Parmesan in the world's kitchens

Italian cuisine relies on this cheese heavily. It grates over pasta and risotto. American pizza often uses generic versions. Caesar salads feature grated parmesan. Argentine producers make similar styles. Indian workers help maintain traditional production methods in Italy.

At a glance: where it turns up

By meal and use

Lunch Dinner Snacks

Cuisines

Italian

Faith and ritual

The cheese is not tied to fasting rules or monastic traditions in the provided text. It is a secular product enjoyed by many cultures.

Parmesan at celebrations

October 27 is Parmigiano Reggiano Day. This date honors the cheese after the 2012 earthquakes damaged the region. Chef Massimo Bottura created riso cacio e pepe to support producers. The day celebrates the king of cheeses globally.

Custom and folk tradition

Organized crime targets trucks on the Autostrada A1. Stolen cheese sells in southern Italy. Banks accept wheels as loan collateral. Workers from India form a large part of the labor force. Native Italian interest in the industry is growing again.

What to use instead of Parmesan

Generic parmesan outside Europe often imitates the style. These versions age less than twelve months. They use names like Parmesana or Real Parma. Grana Padano is another grana-type cheese. Granone Lodigiano is a historic relative.

Protection and trade

The Consortium controls production standards. About 3.6 million wheels ship yearly. This uses eighteen percent of Italy's milk. The PDO protects the name in Europe. Outside the EU, the term parmesan covers imitations. Coldiretti reported high domestic US production of Italian-sounding cheeses.

Dishes with Parmesan

Risotto alla parmigiana Lasagne alla bolognese Parmigiana di melanzane

Questions people ask about Parmesan

What milk does Parmigiano Reggiano use?

It uses unpasteurized cow's milk. Producers mix morning whole milk with evening skimmed milk. This creates a part-skim mixture for aging.

Where is this cheese originally from?

It comes from Italy. Specific provinces include Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, and Mantua. The name reflects these regions.

How long must it age?

The cheese must age for at least twelve months. Many wheels age longer, up to two years or more. The Consorzio inspects each wheel before release.

What does it taste like?

It tastes sharp, salty, and savory. High glutamate levels give it a strong umami flavor. The texture is hard and granular.

Is it safe for vegetarians?

No, it uses calf rennet. This animal-derived enzyme sets the milk. Vegetarians seeking alternatives should look for vegetable rennet versions.

Good reading and sources

Where this page comes from

The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Parmesan", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). EveryCheese rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

It may contain mistakes. Recipes, ageing and customs differ from one dairy, valley or kitchen to the next. Folk beliefs are described as tradition, never as advice. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-15.

Parmesan