Because I was in Ohio over the weekend, I missed out on some good pizza stories in the New York Times. Fortunately Slice has alert and thoughtful readers [thanks, Tien!] who send us links, such as this story about makers of fresh mozzarella cheese and how state inspectors are on their case as of late:
[Customers] come for a taste of something old-fashioned and handmade, and Mr. Caputo does his best to deliver, but it is not so easy anymore. He learned the old ways from his parents, then watched those traditions vanish within their lifetimes. At 42, he has seen enough, and he is making his stand at the shop's pride and joy, the fresh mozzarella, which state inspectors are urging him to refrigerate.
"Then it's not fresh mozzarella," he says. His refusal is partly a matter of pride and of taste, but it is more personal than that. In a city of immigrants and blurred cultures, it is a matter of identity.
Those of you who have been to a good Italian grocery or pork store know that they often leave the plastic-wrapped cheese balls on the counter. As the story goes on to explain, the mozzarella is sold so fast that there's no chance for bacteria to grow in the recently made cheese, even though the cheese isn't kept at a temperature of 41 degrees or below, as required by state law. Inspectors of old used to turn a blind eye to the practice, but younger inspectors from a more squeamish generation aren't looking the other way.
Why not just refrigerate, you ask? Again, from the Times:
Whatever the cheese's origin, the people who make it and wait in line for it say that fresh mozzarella, gooey and milky and wet, loses something with refrigeration.
"The taste, the texture," said Grace Singman, 71, who gets hers from Joe's Dairy on Sullivan Street. "The other things taste like glue compared to this."
PIZZERIAS GET IN ON IT Two pizzerias we know of that make their own fresh mozzarella in house are Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix and, closer to home, Fornino, in Williamsburg.
I am in full agreement. There's nothing like really good fresh mozz on a pizza. I get mine from a variety of stores in Park Slope, which I would normally mention by name but won't, not with these lurking inspectors around. (You never know who's reading Slice.)
As we've mentioned before, making mozzarella isn't as difficult as you might think. While I'm no expert at it and can't make anything nearly as good as what you might find in an Italian grocery or pork store, I've been happy with my results. You just can't beat a homemade pizza topped with cheese you've made in your own kitchen.
If you'd like to try your hand at mozzarella making, check out the New England Cheesemaking Company, which is where I order my supplies from. There's a basic mozzarella-and-ricotta kit for about $25. You'll need to supply the milk—you'll need a full-cream, non-ultrapasteurized milk (Ronnybrook Farms has worked well for me, even though it gets a bit expensive). It takes about an hour and a half if you're new to the process, but the reward is well worth it.
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Those of you who have been to a good Italian grocery or pork store know that they often leave the plastic-wrapped cheese balls on the counter. As the story goes on to explain, the mozzarella is sold so fast that there's no chance for bacteria to grow in the recently made cheese, even though the cheese isn't kept at a temperature of 41 degrees or below, as required by state law. Inspectors of old used to turn a blind eye to the practice, but younger inspectors from a more squeamish generation aren't looking the other way. 
2 Comments:
that top photo looks like he's making sausage or something
Slice rachelle at 1:30PM on 10/27/04
Were you able to find any decent pie in Ohio? If you found anything in the Cleveland area, please let me know.
Slice Melissa at 10:28PM on 10/28/04