One of Italy’s most famous culinary exports, Parmigiano Reggiano PDO is known as ‘the king of cheeses’ for a reason. Not only is it one of the most versatile and popular cheeses in existence; a huge amount of work goes into creating every wheel to ensure they’re of the highest quality required to be approved by the Consorzio del Parmigiano Reggiano. Most of us only come across it in the shops as pre-cut wedges or ready-grated, but all Parmigiano Reggiano begins its life as part of a massive 40kg wheel of cheese.
Over 3.5 million wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano are produced every year in its area of origin: a small part of northern Italy that includes the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, and parts of Mantua and Bologna. The distinct shape comes from the mould the cheeses sit in for two days, before they’re moved onto the salting and lengthy ageing process. Over time, these wheels firm up and develop their complex flavour until they’re eventually cracked open the traditional way (which involves carefully scoring the rind before sinking a special knife into the cheese to break it open). Over the course of its life, each wheel is adorned with a variety of different marks and stamps, all of which hold specific meanings. Below we’ve broken down the meaning behind each of these etchings to help you better understand what they represent.