Globally speaking, the Italian cuisine must be one of the most famous of them all. No matter where you live, what you do in your life or what food you like, chances are you’ve already tasted a pizza or a pasta at least once. And even though those two dishes are just a small part of the Italian culinary scene, they helped it become so famous over time. The ingredients used to make the most common pizza and pasta recipes are now just as famous as the dish they are used in and mozzarella is no exception.
Sure, French cheese might be the preferred choice of many true cheese connoisseurs. But when it comes to popularity solely, their Italian competitors – named Parmesan and Mozzarella – probably score better. Because there’s no pasta nor pizza which is complete without a little grated Parmesan, some molten Mozzarella or a combination of both. The more, the better if you ask us.
Of course, that also means someone has to actually produce those cheeses. Dairy farm La Caseificio Angelo, located near Naples, is one of many in the region creating mozzarella and is a true family company.
Brothers Giovanni and Umberto Angelo shared the company with their father until a couple of years ago but once he passed away, Umberto started looking for ways to really stand out from the crowd. Ways to make sure La Caseificio Angelo would be known globally, ways to differentiate themselves from all other producers in the region.
Thus, after learning about the idea of black bread, he suddenly felt the urge to create a black mozzarella. A great idea which needed a bit of work but nowadays, the Nera di Bufala is a fact and at La Caseificio Angelo, half a ton of the cheese is produced. And even though it looks completely surreal, there’s actually no need for synthetic ingredients to turn the mozzarella black: just a little active charcoal. Yes, the one you can use to filter your tap water and the same one that turns your toothpaste black.
At the moment, given the small quantities, the Nera di Bufala is only available near Naples. If you want to taste it, you’ll thus have to make a trip to the Campania region for yourself. However, in taste, black mozzarella shouldn’t really differ from its classic white counterpart. Reassuring and a little disappointing all at the same time, if you ask us.
