Ricotta

Ricotta can come in many forms; cow’s, Buffalo, Goats and Sheeps milk Ricotta. Some Ricotta’s are D.O.P. which preserves the traditional methods of producing and the areas from which the milk for that particular Ricotta can be taken.  The most common type of Ricotta found in the UK supermarkets is Italian Ricotta – a fresh cheese made from cow’s milk.

 

This cheese is a low fat cheese made from the whey from Mozzarella production, like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the casein has been used to make Mozzarella.  Ricotta (literally meaning "recooked") uses whey, the liquid that remains after straining curds when making cheese. Most of the milk protein (especially casein) is removed when cheese is made, but some protein remains in the whey, which is what forms the granular texture of the Ricotta. 

Ricotta curds are creamy white in appearance, slightly sweet in taste, and typically has a low fat content of around 11%. In this form, it is somewhat similar in texture to some cottage cheese variants, though considerably lighter.