Peccorino Romano

[Subee]

Hi all,

I have a lot of cheese looking to expire mid October. Any recipes out there requiring large amounts of the stuff?

Thanks

[EclecticEater]

I sometimes grate this or parmesan and put it in a mason jar with a pump-n-seal thing-a-madoodle to take the air out; it lasts forever. When I brought back a full round of pecorino I had it shrinkwrapped and sent it back in a box in the middle of my dirty laundry; it took a month to get to the U.S. but it tasted as fresh as if I had cut into it in Italy. So you can shrink wrap it, using a food saver, and keep it indefinitely too. They only age a little more and taste even better that way.

[Robert Lauriston]

If you're talking about the hard grating kind of pecorino romano (e.g. Locatelli), it has an almost indefinite shelf life. Eventually it'll go rancid but if you keep it tightly wrapped that's years.

[cheryl_h]

The obvious answer is pasta but that may not use up enough. You know you can freeze pec. romano and use it later?

[Subee]

Thanks Cheryl, I have been considering hosting a few Sunday dinners.......If I freeze the cheese, how long after the thaw can it be used?

[cheryl_h]

As soon as it's soft enough to grate, perhaps an hour or so? Store it in freezer bags so you don't get ice on the cheese. I buy pecorino in chunks, usually a pound or so at a time and keep it in the freezer until I need it. I'd hate to run out.