Parmesan cheese, balsamic vinegar advice

Lynne Rossetto Kasper has become an expert on two of her favorite foods: true Parmesan cheese and balsamic vinegar.

Here’s her advice on these exciting ingredients.

Parmigiano Teggiano

Tasting: "With every cheese, taste before you buy. If there’s any hint of overly salted, bitter, sharp or sawdust flavors, it’s an inferior cheese or it hasn’t been handled properly or it’s too old. If it leaves an unpleasant aftertaste, it’s not good.

"The trick to remember is whenever you’re tasting any food that’s loosely fermented ö cured meats, cheese, wine, any food that has been processed and goes through maturing, ripening or fermentation - swallow and count to 10. If there’s an unpleasant aftertaste in your mouth it tells the story of the life of the product. It may have been perfectly sound and fine at inception but it didn’t ripen properly and it will show up in the aftertaste. Trust your mouth."

Buying: Parmigiano reggiano is available in most supermarkets and in good-sized pieces at Costco. Look for "parmigiano reggiano" stenciled in lower case letters all around the rind.

"The dry portion of the cheese near the rind should not be more than € inch of darkened color. More than that and the cheese has not been handled properly. If the cheese is dry and dusty - there should not be any mold - don’t go near it and foul your palate with it," recommends Kasper.

Parmigiano reggiano can cost up to $20 a pound, so it’s a cheese that one must weigh carefully. If you can’t find it or can’t afford it, following are some alternatives suggested by Kasper.

"If you can only find a lousy parmigiano reggiano, don’t spend the money."

Grana padano: "It’s a similar style cheese that comes from the Po River plain, the larger area of in which parmigiano reggianos is made. It’s not aged as long, but it’s an OK, sound cheese."

Assiago: "If you’re really up a creek, try domestic or imported assiago. Vella from California and Stella are quite good."

Fontinella: Made by Stella. "It doesn’t taste the same, but it has a similar quality to parmigiano reggiano and it won’t insult the dish."

Avoid: American and Argentine parmesan and the stuff in the green box. "Use the stuff in the green box to soak up greasy spills."

Aceto Balsamico

In her book "The Splendid Table," Kasper advises that the vinegars most readily available in the United States are "acidic and straightforward, begging to be blended into dishes." These commercial balsamic vinegars, at their best, are a blend of wine vinegar, cooked grape must, young balsamic vinegar and possibly some caramel. At their worst, balsamic could be wine vinegar with caramel and herbs with no balsamic vinegar or must at all. "A well-made commercial balsamic has sweetness accentuated by tartness and a deep brown taste."

Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale de Modena, a 1,000-year-old tradition, is a whole other product. "The taste of a good artisan-made balsamic is that of a fine liqueur, rather than anything you would put on a salad. It resembles a mixture of old port and full-flavored brown sauce, backed by a little acid." Some balsamic can cost up to $100 for a bottle but is sipped as liqueurs or drizzled over finished dishes.

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