Grana Padano

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Grana Padano

Country of origin	Italy
Region, town	Emilia-Romagna: province of Piacenza Lombardy: provinces of Bergamo, Brescia Cremona, Lodi, Mantua (to the left of the Po), Milan and Pavia Piedmont: province of Cuneo Veneto: province of Padua, Verona Vicenza, Rovigo and Treviso, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol: province of Trento In addition to these main centres production is permitted in Emilia Romagna: province of Bologna (to the right of the Reno) Ferrara, Ravenna, Forlì-Cesena. and Rimini Lombardy: provinces of Como, Lecco, Sondrio and Varese Piedmont: provinces of Alessandria, Asti, Biella, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Novara, Turin and Vercelli Veneto: province of Venice
Source of milk	Cows
Pasteurised	No
Texture	Hard
Aging time	8–24 months
Certification	Italy: DO 1955 EU: PDO 1996

Grana Padano is one of the most popular Denominazione di Origine Controllata cheeses of Italy. The name comes from the noun grana (‘grain’), which refers to the distinctively grainy texture of the cheese, and the adjective Padano, which refers to the valley Pianura Padana. Grana Padano is made in the Region of Lombardy, in the Po Valley.

Grana Padano was created by the Cistercian monks of Chiaravalle who used ripened cheese as a way of preserving surplus milk. By the year 1477, it was regarded as one of the most famous cheeses of Italy. Today, this similar products are made in the regions of Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Piedmont, Trentino, and Veneto.

Like Parmigiano Reggiano, Grana Padano is a semi-fat hard cheese which is cooked and ripened slowly (for up to 18 months). It is produced by curdling the milk of grass-fed cows. The cows are milked twice a day, the milk is left to stand, and then partially creamed. It is produced all year round and the quality can vary seasonally as well as by year.

A wheel of Grana Padano is cylindrical, with slightly convex or almost straight sides and flat faces. It measures 35 to 45 cm in diameter, and 15 to 18 cm in height. It weighs 24 to 40kg per wheel. The rind, which is thin, is white or straw yellow.

Grana Padano cheese has been produced since the 12th century, and production and quality are now overseen by the Consorzio per la Tutela del Formaggio Grana Padano.