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Cheeses & Dairy Products

France may be famous for an ungovernable number of cheeses, but Italy isn't far behind in its sheer number and variety of cheeses. For details, see formaggio and Italian Cheese words.

Italian cheese words

reading the labels

Abbamare

Sardinian semi-soft cheese

Accasciato

a rare cow's and buffalo's milk cheese

Acidino

soft fresh goat's milk cheese

Agrì

fresh cow or goat's milk cheese

Ainuzzi

cow's cheese in the shape of animals

Algunder Ziegenkäse

cow’s milk cheese from Alto Adige

Asiago

cow's milk cheese

asino

donkey or cheese

Baccellone

a Tuscan sheep cheese

Bagoss di Bagolino

cow's milk cheese with a pinch of saffron

Barricato

aged in barrels, and a cheese from Treviso

Bastardo del Grappa

cow's milk cheese from Mount Grappa

Bebè di Sorrento

baby caciocavallo

Bel Paese

semi-soft white cheese

Bella Lodi

'Black Parmesan'

Belmonte

soft cow's milk cheese

Bettelmatt

Cow's milk cheese from the Walser valleys

Bitto

beloved cheese from the Valtellina

Bleu d’Aoste

a mighty blue cheese

bocconcini

'little mouthfuls'

Botìro di Primiero di Malga

butter from mountain meadows

Bra

Cow's milk cheese

Branzi

whole cow's milk cheese from the Bergamo valleys

Bros

manky cheese transfigured

Brunet

creamy goat's milk cheese

bufala

mozzarella

Burrata

creamy, buttery mozzarella-like cheese

Burrino

cheese with a butter filling

burro

butter

cacio e uova

cheese balls

cacio

semi-soft cheese

Caciocavallo

hanged sheep or cow's milk cheese

Caciofiore

fresh sheep's cheese made with vegetable rennet

Cacioricotta

a soft, mixed cheese

Caciucavaddu

Sicilian Caciocavallo

caglio

rennet

Canestrato

partially cooked cheese made in a basket

Capralpina

pure goat cheese

caprino

goat cheese

Carmasciano

sheep's cheese from Avellino

Carnia

cow's milk cheese from near Belluno

Casatella Trevigiana

soft 'homemade' cow's milk cheese

casciotta

Renaissance cheese

Casieddu di Moliterno

goat's milk cheese

Casizolu

cow's milk cheese from Sardinia

Casolèt

'little' mountain cheese

Casoperuto

sheep and goat's milk cheese from Caserta

Castelmagno

The 'King of Cheeses'

Casu Axedu

Sardinian cheese, sometimes with maggots

Cevrin di Coazze

cow's and goat's milk cheese

Cinerino

sheep's milk cheese from the Cilento

Conciato Romano

ancient 'pickled' cheese

crema

cream

crescenza

soft, fermented cow’s milk cheese

erborinato

blue cheese

Fallone di Gravina

A very, very fresh cheese

Fatulì della Val Saviore

smoked goat cheese

Felciata di Morano

'fern' cheese

fior di latte

cow’s milk mozzarella

Fiore Sardo

Sardinian sheep cheese

fonduta

cheese sauce, fondue

Fontal

hybrid cow's milk cheese

Fontina

Aosta's famous cheese

Formadi Frant

a mix of cheeses blended in cream

formaggella

little goat cheeses

Formaggetta della Valle Argentina

little white cheese from the Ligurian mountains

formaggio

cheese

Formaggio di Fossa

pit cheese

Formaggio Grigio

'grey cheese'

Formai de Mut

Mountain cheese from the Valle Brembana

Frachet

soft herbal cheese

frico

cheese wafer or cheese and potatoes

Gioda

Fontina style cheese from Piedmont

gioddu

fermented sheep or goat's milk

Giuncata

a soft cheese from the south

Gorgonzola

sweet or savoury blue-veined cheese

grana

hard grainy cheese

Grana Padano

hard cow's milk cheese

Granone Lodigiano

Lodi's special hard cheese

Gransardo

Hard sheep's milk cheese

Grasso d'Alpe

Old fashioned cow's milk cheese

Graukäse

'grey cheese' from Alto Adige

Guttus

Tuscan blue cheese

imbriago

'intoxicated' cheese

Jamar

Cave cheese from the Carso

La Tur

buttery 3 milk cheese from the Alta Langa

Latteria

Friulian cow's milk cheeses

Macagn

creamy buttery cheese

Maiorchino

a sporty Sicilian sheep cheese

Marcetto

sheep cheese with little worms

Marzellina

goat's and sheep's milk cheese

Marzolino

a Tuscan sheep cheese

Marzotica

Pugliese sheep's milk cheese

Mascarpone

thick cream cheese

Maschèrpa

Alpine ricotta

millefoglie

many layered dessert or cheese

Molana

fresh white goat and cow's milk cheese

Montasio

iconic mountain cheese

Monte Veronese

cheese from the Lessini mountains

Montebore

'castle cheese'

Morlacco del Grappa

cow's milk cheese from the Grappa hills

mozzarella

Muffato

boutique blue cheese with a special rind

Murazzano

rich sheep's milk cheese

Murianengo

Piedmontese cheese, similar to gorgonzola

Murtarat

'firecracker' cheese from Piedmont

Musulupu

fresh sheep and goat's milk cheese

Nostrano Valtrompia

hard cheese aged in mines

Occhione di Carnia

cow's milk cheese

Ol Sciur

'the boss' cheese

ont

butter melted until all the water is removed

Ossolano

cow's milk cheese from Lake Maggiore

Padraccio

goat cheese from Pollino National Park

Paglierina

cow's milk's 'straw cheese'

Pallone di Gravina

aged Puglian cheese

Paltufa

Gorgonzola with black truffles

panna

cream

Pannerone

'white gorgonzola'

Panuzzu Affumicato

Smoked cow's milk cheese balls

Parmigiano-Reggiano

Parmesan cheese

Pecoricco

pecorino plus

pecorino

sheep's milk cheese

Pegorin

sheep's milk cheese

Piacentinu Ennese

sheep cheese flavoured with saffron

Piave

nutty cow's milk cheese from the Dolomites

Pizzocorno

strong and square

Plaisentif

mountain violet cheese

prescinseua

curdled milk

Primo sale

fresh sheep cheese

Provatura

mini-mozzarella

Provola

cheese from Campania and Sicily

Provolone

one of Italy's famous cheeses

Puzzone di Moena

smelly cheese from the Dolomites

Quartirolo Lombardo

soft cow's milk cheese shaped like a brick

Ragusano

A DOP Sicilian cheese

Raschera

semi fat cooked cow's milk cheese

raspadura

cheese shavings

Raviggiolo

fresh cheese

reblec

fresh mountain cheese

Rebruchon

Piedmont's answer to reblochon

Ribiola

spreadable sheep's milk cheese

ricotta

soft whey cheese

ricotta salata

'salted' ricotta

Robiola

soft white cheese in many forms

Rocchetta

soft mixed milk cheese

Roccolo Valtaleggio

'bird snare' cheese

Rosa Camuna

rose-shaped cow's milk cheese

Salato

cow's milk 'salt' cheese

Salignon

spicy ricotta, Piedmontese style

Salva Cremasco

'saved' cheese

Saras del fen

Piedmontese ricotta in hay

Scamorza

similar to mozzarella

Schiz

soft fresh white 'cooking' cheese

Scimudin

soft white cheese from the Valtellina

Scoppolato di Pedona

'Big foot's' sheep cheese

Scuete fumade

smoked ricotta

siero di latte

whey

Silter

traditional alpine cheese from the Val Camonica

Slattato

raw cow's milk cheese from the Marche

Sola

intense cow, goat and/or sheep cheese

Sottocenere al tartufo

a Venetian cheese aged in woodash

Spressa delle Giudicarie

traditional alpine cheese

Squacquerone

soft Romagna cheese

Stanga di Dobbiaco

a cow’s milk cheese you can grill

Stelvio//Stilfser

semi hard cow's milk cheese

Stracchino

fresh, creamy cow's milk cheese

stracciatella

egg drop soup or ice cream or cheese

Strachitunt

Bergamo's layered blue cheese

Tabor

cow's milk cheese from the Carso

Taleggio

DOP cheese from Lombardy

Testun

cheese aged in chestnut leaves or Barolo

Toma

hard or semi hard cow's milk cheese

Tombea

Alpine cow's milk cheese

tomino

soft cow's milk cheese

Torregio

complex cow's milk cheese

Tosella

fresh cow's milk cheese

tosone

fresh Parmesan off-cuts, usually fried

Trentingrana

hard cheese from Trento

Tuada

'cellar' sheep's cheese from the Garfagnana

Tuma

a Sicilian cheese that travelled far

ubriaco

'drunken'

Valle d'Aosta fromadzo

cow's milk cheese from Aosta

Valtellina casera

cow's milk cheese from the Alps

Vastedda

DOP sheep cheese (or bread) from Sicily

Vezzena

cow's milk cheese from Trentino

yogurt

yoghurt

Ziger

cheese made from goat's milk whey

Zoncolan di Capra

goat's milk cheese from Friuli