Pecorino vs. Parmesan
Yes, you love Italian food for its celebration of the earth’s bounty, the heartiness of its famed ragù, its penchant for playing with texture. But let’s be honest: You also love the cheese. Specifically, those two sharp, salty delights known as pecorino cheese and Parmesan cheese. But let’s get specific: What is pecorino cheese, and what is Parmesan cheese, exactly? They’re both edible out of hand but also delightful grated or shaved atop a variety of dishes, and both have a brilliant tang. To top it off, they look similar—a cake of vanilla-white cheese, flaky and flecked with crystals. So with all these similarities, what’s the difference between pecorino and Parmesan? One point is that pecorino cheese—salty and sharp in its most well-known incarnation, pecorino Romano—is made from sheep’s milk, and Parmesan is made from cows. Pecorino also has a stronger taste than Parmesan, with a characteristic nutty flavor. If you’re wondering how to use pecorino cheese and when to use Parmesan cheese, or perhaps entertaining the cook’s substitution dilemma—“can I use pecorino Romano instead of Parmesan?”—we’re here to guide you.
