Don’t take a bite until you’ve read what we have to say.
By Stacey Ballis October 11, 2021
I've been eating Parmesan cheese my whole life, from the ubiquitous green shaky can that lived in the fridge my whole childhood, to the eventual tubs of grated and shredded that started to supplant them in my high school years, to the wedges of Parmigiano Reggiano that became my cheese drawer essential as a young cook in my first apartment. We are talking nearly five decades of eating this magical king of cheeses.
So, imagine my shock when on a recent trip to Italy, I learned that I have been eating my Parmesan all wrong.
Yeah, I know. Mortifying.
The better way to eat Parmesan cheese
Europeans in general, but especially those with strong cheese production, have very specific ways they engage with their cheeses. If you are in France and facing a wedge of Brie, do not cut the point off for yourself: It is considered rude to bogart the prized "nose," and etiquette dictates you slice long thin wedges off the larger wedge, so everyone gets some.
In Italy, they take their Parm seriously, and to optimize eating pleasure, they have a three-step process.
Parmesan cheese
Credit: Getty / TinaFields
Step 1: The pointy edge of the wedge
Parm is a salt-washed cheese. As the cheese ages, that brine that gets wiped on the rind gets absorbed into the cheese. That means that when you look at a wedge, from the point to about halfway towards the rind, the cheese will be the mildest in terms of flavor, because the salt does not penetrate that far into the large wheels. This section of cheese, according to tradition, should be used for either eating plain on a cheese board, or shaved into wide strips to garnish things where you want that gentler flavor.
Step 2: The middle of the wedge
Once you hit the middle of the wedge, you'll notice the cheese gets a little more dense and salty, or a lot saltier if the cheese was aged longer. This is when you pull out your grater and use it to top pasta, or add shreds to a salad, or use as an ingredient in a cheese sauce.
Step 3: The rind!
Once you hit the rind, stop grating, and give the exterior a quick wipe-down with a mild white vinegar solution. (This is just because the rind will have been handled a lot so it could use a little cleaning at this point). Remember: There is no wax or other sealant on the cheese, so even though the rind is hard, it is just dried cheese and fully edible.
Stash the rind in the freezer to flavor pots of soup, stew, or beans. You can save a lot of them and make a pure Parmesan stock to make risottos, or steep them in hot cream, chill, and strain the cream to make Parmesan-flavored whipped cream (great for filling savory cheese puffs or garnishing soups like cream of mushroom).
Now comes the best part: Once you fish the rinds out of your soup or beans, you'll notice that while they have not melted into the dish, they have softened beautifully. Put the warm, softened rind on a slice of bread, drizzle with balsamic vinegar, and sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs for a fabulous snack. Or cut into small cubes and pan-fry crisp to make fun little croutons to top whatever dish you made with them.
FAQs
The rind is completely safe to be consumed raw or cooked, though its texture is unappealing compared to that of the cheese.
Is it okay to eat the rind on Parmesan cheese? ›
The rind is a protective layer that develops on the outside of the cheese wheel as it ages. While it is edible, it can become too hard and tough to chew (think of it as the crust on a loaf bread). Still, Parmigiano Reggiano rinds are packed full of flavor and can be used to enrich sauces, soups, stews and more.
Are you supposed to grate the rind of Parmesan cheese? ›
Some people use a micro planer and grate the rind itself and use it like grated parmesan, but I save the rinds for other dishes. If you've been throwing away your rinds, you've been missing out on putting them to a delicious second use. Here are 10 ways to use the rinds: Throw them into tomato sauce when cooking.
How to tell if a rind is edible? ›
Yes, the rind is generally safe to eat
Unless there is wax, cheesecloth, or paper on the rind, Bivins says you don't need to worry about getting sick if you eat it, which Food & Wine has pointed out before. "Just taste a little bit, you'll be fine.
Is Parmesan crust safe to eat? ›
The rind of Parmesan cheese is definitely safe to eat. It's very flavorful. Some people save the rind to use as flavoring for soup stock, beans, rice.
How many times can you reuse a Parmesan rind? ›
As Rach explains of the cheese, made in Parma, Italy, “When you buy Parmigiano Reggiano, you should always buy it with rind, because you can use it in soups and sauces.” But, keep in mind, these rinds are for one time use. "In soups and sauces, [the rind] does not dissolve, but it may not be reused,” says Rach.
Can you digest cheese rind? ›
In short, the answer is yes, cheese rind is edible, but there are a lot of intricacies. "I know die hard turophiles who eat the rind no matter what—and there are those who mostly avoid them," says Serino.
What cheese has mites in the rind? ›
Mimolette is a hard cheese that is produced in the north of France, distinguished for its orange-coloured rind that is covered in cheese mites.
Which cheese to avoid? ›
Unhealthy Cheeses
- Halloumi Cheese. Be aware of how much of this squeaky cheese you're adding to your morning bagel and salads! ...
- Goats/ Blue Cheese. 1 oz. ...
- Roquefort Cheese. Roquefort is a processed blue cheese and is incredibly high in sodium. ...
- Parmesan. ...
- Cheddar Cheese.
The thick, red wax of a gouda won't kill you if you eat it, but it's hardly appealing as something that enriches the cheese's flavor or texture. (You've probably ingested food grade wax more often than you think, however.
The protective wax we use to coat our products is made of a blend of paraffin and microcrystalline waxes and colouring, which specifically contains no bisphenol A. It's “food safe” and meets very strict regulatory standards. It poses no health risk if accidentally ingested while you or your child snacks.
Is cheese rind mold? ›
The bloomy rind is a white and soft rind that can sometimes be fuzzy. It usually has a woodsy flavor and is created after cheese-makers spray a solution that contains edible mold spores onto the cheese, which then blooms into the rind.
Can you eat Parmesan if the rind is Mouldy? ›
Mold generally can't penetrate far into hard and semisoft cheeses, such as cheddar, colby, Parmesan and Swiss. So you can cut away the moldy part and eat the rest of the cheese. Cut off at least 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) around and below the moldy spot.
What to do with rind of Parmesan cheese? ›
Have you ever made a soup or pasta sauce and wished it just had a little something-something extra? That's where parmesan rinds come in. Throw them in with a sauce, a soup, a stew, or stock and they'll melt (not disintegrate!) releasing just a little extra cheesy, salty flavor into your dish.
Can you eat the waxy part of Parmesan cheese? ›
Rind is naturally a part of the parm making process and is totally edible, just with a different texture than the core of the wheel we all know and love.
Does Parmesan rind dissolve? ›
The rind will become malleable in the heat, but won't completely disintegrate, so be sure to remove it from the pot before serving. For an added bonus, cut the softened cheesy bits into smaller morsels and stir them back into the pot to enjoy as tiny Parmesan rind dumplings.
