After visiting a Gorgonzola factory in Italy, we had the opportunity to visit Auricchio, one of the best-selling Provolone producers in the world. This cheese business is crazy stuff. SO much going on in these factories… I’m telling ya, you’d be amazed. Provolone is a whole-milk cow cheese. 15 milk trucks a day deliver 400 tons of milk, which in turn makes 40 tons of cheese. Provolone is a semi-hard cheese with taste varying greatly from Provolone Piccante (sharp) to Provolone Dolce (sweet). The sharp provolone is made only by hand. The process was fun to watch. One guy gets the cheese all nice and smooth by folding it over and over and rounding it into a big ball.
Then he calls his buddy over and says, “Hey, I’ll buy you a glass of Chianti after work if you help me roll this into a big, long cylinder shape.”
Together, they pick up the cheese and place it into a metal cannister, which will help it to keep its shape.
Isn’t that amazing? They do this all day long… 6.5 hour shifts/6 days a week doing exactly what you see here. I’ve been complaining about my arms lately, but if I worked their job I don’t think I’d have any worries (good workout!) The cannisters are transferred to a big machine that will dip a whole bunch of them into cool water (to harden the form), then they’re dipped in warmer water, where the cheese will slide out and go into a brine for 20 days.
To make sharp provolone, it is aged for a minimum of 4 months. There is aging provolone all over their company, from floor to ceiling, in all different shapes and sizes.
Yeah, even cheese that is this big. What the heck they do with this, I have no idea.
This was interesting- a giant bell… made out of provolone, painted/decorated with food-safe paint & with “Auricchio” boldly emblazoned on all sides. When I asked what they use these 100 pound cheese bells for, I was told that they sell 3,000 per year. Apparently, they’re popular to display as a table decoration for holidays in Italy. And then people eat them, of course. Hmmm.
Lots of different machines cut the provolone into all different shapes for packaging.
After the tour, Mr. Auricchio himself showed us his favorite place to eat lunch (one of those restaurants in Italy that you would never, ever find on your own as a tourist). Mr. Auricchio is a man full of life and personality. He sat at the head of the table and had our full attention with his stories and gregarious nature.
He asked the restaurant to make us tortelli (ravioli) stuffed with Auricchio’s sweet provolone. They complied. We had a lot of pasta while in Italy. None of it had sauce. None of it needed any. This pasta was sauteed in butter with a little bit of sage. And it was perfect.
I hope you enjoyed seeing the process of making provolone. We tasted a lot of it on the trip and I’ve purchased the sharp variety of Auricchio at Sam’s Club since I’ve returned. The sharp variety is just that… it has a strong, sharp flavor, and a little of it goes a long way. I think you really have to be a fan of Provolone to enjoy the sharp on its own, but it’s fabulous when it’s incorporated into recipes. I love the stuff myself. I’ve purchased competitor brands of provolone in the U.S. before, and I have to say that they really can’t compare. They either have very little flavor or are too much over-the-top with the strong flavor. Look for this brand, and give it a try! Be sure to read about my visit to the Italian Asiago factory too!
Provolone cheese is my favorite! Boy, it would have to be a BIG party to consume that whole bell! 🙂
I love that you got to go and see how it was made. I can only imagine what it would be like to roll that huge roll of cheese!
Two things I hate to see about pasta: a plate of overcooked pasta covered in red sauce speckled with insipid balls of ground beef, and pasta on the other end of the scale – al dente.
The butter/sage provolone sauce looks amazing, and it does what you should do best – showcase the pasta. The sauce is a condiment to the main star of the show, which is why it is such a shame to see it overcooked and tossed on a plate.
Have you the chance to see regional pasta specialties as well?
Holy Moly! That is friggin awesome! I want to go there!
MMMMM Cheese. I’m pregnant and cheese is one of those things I’ve been craving. Going to the factory must have been awesome! Thank you so much for sharing it!
That sounds like an amazing experience. My husband loves this very, very sharp imported provolone that he gets from a specialty retailer, but the sweet one you mentioned sounds right up my alley.
If it were only available during the holidays, then yes, the larger size would probably make more sense. The first question that pops into my head though is about leftovers. I wonder how that would keep? With the smaller portions i wouldn’t be too worried about it. I think it would be cool if they were available in both sizes, but that might not be economically realistic, especially with a new item that they aren’t sure will even be a success yet! 🙂
Great post Lori. I loved seeing the cheese made, that’s awesome! I have to agree with Memoria and hope that Sam’s would still offer the smaller portions. I think your point make sense, but perhaps a combination of the ideas would work: a bulk package of smaller portions, say six in a pack? We shop at Sam’s because there are 6 of us, but we don’t entertain much, so the big portion wouldn’t really go over well in this house. The smaller ones would be better for us 🙂
As for drenching pasta in sauce (or gravy as they really call it), I couldn’t agree with them more! I make several different kinds of sauces, but I think my favorite is one that uses olive oil and garlic. I can’t stand a plate of pasta devoured by red sauce. There should really only be enough sauce to coat the pasta and add flavor. Mmmmm I’m thinking pasta tonight now! LOL
Thanks for sharing your tour, I loved it and look forward to the next installment 🙂
@Amanda, Thanks for your feedback! What if the terra cotta cheese dish was something that they only carried during the holiday season- as a specialty holiday item? Would it make more sense then to carry a larger size?
Lori, I found this a fascinating post. I make soft cheeses here at home, but have never seen a commercial operation. I loved the photos. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings…Mary
Cheese heaven! That Italian grilled cheese looked amazing. Provolone is in my top 5 favorite cheeses. 🙂
Jenn
Love it! Especially the foto of you with the ginormous Provolone! Burro e Salvia {butter & sage} is my most favorite sauce, it’s the perfect topping for a great pasta dish! Light & flavorful. Looking forward to seeing this at Sams – I’ll def be getting those 🙂 Ciao!