Locorotondo & Mozzarella fresca!!!

For five nights in Locorotondo, we were hosted by a fabulous couchsurfer, Antonio. He and his fiancee, Paola, treated us to wonderful food and conversation. We ate local cheese and wine; his mother cooked a fantastic dinner; we had potatoes baked in the oven with melted fresh-smoked mozzarella (amazing!!), and Paola made us risotto with saffron. And, last but definitely not least, we tried Antonio's homemade cognac and mirto - a liquor made from myrtle berries.

The incredibly fantastic highlight of our stay was to go behind the scenes at a local cheese shop. We were able to see the whole process of mozzarella making, which they make fresh each day. There are actually five types of mozzarella, ranging from very small balls, to larger fist sized pieces.

To make the mozzarella, the curds are added to a large basin, and very hot water is poured in, along with a pitcher mixed with hot water and salt. The cheese-maker stirs the mixture around, and then stretches it on a traditional wooden paddle. Over about 15 minutes, he can get the cheese to stretch above his head. Then, they put it into an extruder machine, which allowed them to pull off manageable chunks to form the smaller mozzarella types.

The mozzarella was incredibly stringy, moist, and sweet - not anything like what we call "mozzarella" in the states. Really, the US mozzarella does not deserve the name - what we ate here was heaven. The shop also makes a smoked mozzarella and some other aged cheeses. 

At about 6pm each night, local restaurants and shops come by to pick up their portion to sell. The mozzarella is put into tubs of water to keep it fresh. This was mozzarella made using cow milk (instead of water buffalo milk, which is made more in the Napoli area where it's wetter).

We intend on passing on our knowledge of how to make the best damn mozzarella when we come back! Yum....