Author Topic: Sorrento whole milk mozzarella cheese (Read 5240 times)

ZekeTheCat · « **on:** December 21, 2011, 06:42:05 PM »

The Sept / Oct issue of Cook's Illustrated Magazine has an article on pizza cheese and Sorrento whole milk mozzarella cheese (block style) was rated top's with them. I've been trying to find it locally here in Ohio but to no avail. it's supposed to be a national brand but seems to be in just certain parts of the country.

For those of you who can get it and have tried it - was wondering how you liked it and how it bakes up on a pizza ? Any pro's or con's ? Thanks for any info

Mmmph · « **Reply #1 on:** December 21, 2011, 06:46:58 PM »

Sorrento finished 5th out of 11 here:

http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2011/02/the-pizza-lab-the-best-low-moisture-mozzarella-for-pizzas.html

JimmyMak · « **Reply #2 on:** December 21, 2011, 06:49:50 PM »

I have used it & like it but also like using whole milk vs skim. I get at restaurant Depot

dmcavanagh · « **Reply #3 on:** December 21, 2011, 07:12:28 PM »

Sorrento was chosen tops by CI. After that report, I did a little taste test of my own with Sorrento, Polly-O, (the winner of SLICE'S poll), and Walmart's Great Value Mozz. Other then slight differences in saltyness and texture, there really isn't a helluva difference between them all. I always buy Sorrento in 5 lb. bricks from a restaurant supplier. I like Sorrento because it is firm and holds up to grating very nicely. None are overly special, the taste of all three are very similarly mild and creamy, but far from "blow you away" good. My conclusion, buy whatever is cheaper.

scott123 · « **Reply #4 on:** December 21, 2011, 07:46:33 PM »

First of all, after the CI author came to the forum a few months back, asked our advice, and then basically ignored it, I wouldn't trust CI on any matters relating to pizza as far as I could throw them.

Secondly, Kenji tested mozzarellas on french bread pizzas?! Really, french bread pizzas?!

Third, no mozzarella is even in the same universe as Grande.

Lastly, as you leave the Grande universe, I'm with Dave, there really is no clear cut winner. The most complicating factor to judging non Grande cheeses is that they're almost never the same. Polly-O and Sorrento have a little better quality control than private label, but even those will have vast fluctuations from month to month. Polly-O and Sorrento have never had the kind of opacity and creaminess that you get from private label at the top of it's game, but... they're a lot more stable. Private label, at it's best (opaque, firm), used within a day or two of purchasing, is the best, but that's not always feasible.

Baking cheese properly is, imo, more important than the brand. It should melt, bubble thoroughly and brown a bit, but not too much. This means sufficient heat from below (no parbaking crusts and thin enough thickness factors) and short, intense bake times.

Essen1 · « **Reply #5 on:** December 21, 2011, 07:50:57 PM »

Scotty,

What about the Supremo Italiano, Restaurant Depot's house brand? I'm currently testing a 6lb block and it's not bad at all.

scott123 · « **Reply #6 on:** December 21, 2011, 07:56:27 PM »

Mike, I would need to see more examples to know for certain, but, from the shots I've seen, it looks like it may be in the realm of a Grande clone- which would make sense, since Grande is the pizzeria standard, so it would only make sense that RD would offer something in that realm of quality.

I've been meaning to ask you- you had mentioned considering doing 75/25 whole milk/part skim. Did you try that on your last two pies?

Essen1 · « **Reply #7 on:** December 21, 2011, 08:01:22 PM »

Quote from: scott123 on December 21, 2011, 07:56:27 PM

Mike, I would need to see more examples to know for certain, but, from the shots I've seen, it looks like it may be in the realm of a Grande clone- which would make sense, since Grande is the pizzeria standard, so it would only make sense that RD would offer something in that realm of quality.

I've been meaning to ask you- you had mentioned considering doing 75/25 whole milk/part skim. Did you try that on your last two pies?

Scotty,

No, not yet regarding the 75/25 thing. I haven't had much time recently to do some experimenting/testing except for the couple of pies with Fazzari's formula. I'll try the 75/25 combo over the weekend.

RD's product isn't Grande, granted, but I think it comes close. The only thing I've noticed is that it's not as creamy as Grande and doesn't stretch as well as Grande does. Taste-wise, though, it's close.

norma427 · « **Reply #8 on:** December 21, 2011, 09:04:17 PM »

I haven’t tried Sorrento, but have tried Grande different times and can’t say Grande is the best cheese for pizza.

Norma

old_spaghetti · « **Reply #9 on:** December 21, 2011, 09:38:16 PM »

I usually stick with BelGioiso from Costco. I've tried fresh Buffalo mozzarella from Trader Joe's. bit its not worth the expense. Really the best mozzarella is in Italy, it tastes nothing like the imported or domestic here, but good luck in finding it.

chickenparm · « **Reply #10 on:** December 22, 2011, 01:16:38 AM »

Quote from: dmcavanagh on December 21, 2011, 07:12:28 PM

Sorrento was chosen tops by CI. After that report, I did a little taste test of my own with Sorrento, Polly-O, (the winner of SLICE'S poll), and Walmart's Great Value Mozz. Other then slight differences in saltyness and texture, there really isn't a helluva difference between them all. I always buy Sorrento in 5 lb. bricks from a restaurant supplier. I like Sorrento because it is firm and holds up to grating very nicely. None are overly special, the taste of all three are very similarly mild and creamy, but far from "blow you away" good. My conclusion, buy whatever is cheaper.

Thanks for posting that.I have a smiliar experience.

I cannot buy 5 lb bricks of any of those brands,but I can find them locally in 1 lb packages.Theres nothing special about any of them over another.In fact,I just buy the WalMart GV whole milk cheese when needed.Works just as good,I see no major difference paying more for a name brand,when using any of these cheeses.

That said,Im going to add something that might shock a few people.I prefer kraft part skim milk mozz cheese blocks over sorrentos whole milk.Not the bag,but the kind you have to shred.

The kraft to me,and others,hold up so much better,and taste better than sorrentos.Only problem with kraft,they sell small sizes and is very expensive,which is BS to me.Its not a cheese of gold either.

But it does beat some of the more expensive brands out there.

scott123 · « **Reply #11 on:** December 22, 2011, 06:58:24 AM »

My biggest problem with Walmart Great Value mozz, as I've mentioned before, is the saltiness. I've purchased it on 3 different occasions over a period of a year and each time it was noticeably more salty than any brick cheese I've ever tasted.

In order for the sauce only area of the pizza (near the rim) to taste right, my sauce has to have a decent amount of salt. With the salt in the sauce and the salt in the cheese, it's just overload. If you add pepperoni to the equation, forget about it.

I've checked the sodium levels on the packaging and compared them to other brands and was quite surprised that they were the same. My taste buds tell me differently, though.

chickenparm · « **Reply #12 on:** December 23, 2011, 11:21:02 PM »

Quote from: scott123 on December 22, 2011, 06:58:24 AM

My biggest problem with Walmart Great Value mozz, as I've mentioned before, is the saltiness. I've purchased it on 3 different occasions over a period of a year and each time it was noticeably more salty than any brick cheese I've ever tasted.

In order for the sauce only area of the pizza (near the rim) to taste right, my sauce has to have a decent amount of salt. With the salt in the sauce and the salt in the cheese, it's just overload. If you add pepperoni to the equation, forget about it.

I've checked the sodium levels on the packaging and compared them to other brands and was quite surprised that they were the same. My taste buds tell me differently, though.

You got me wondering,and Im going to do a few new taste experiments with the cheeses alone.That said,I often avoid adding any salt to my sauces.To me,they if taste right out of the can,I don't add any more.My wife says otherwise.She likes the sauces more saltier than I do.Maybe because I don't salt my sauces,the saltier cheese used,might balance it all in the end?

norma427 · « **Reply #13 on:** December 24, 2011, 01:59:27 PM »

The supermarket had some of the Sorrento part skim milk mozzarella on sale yesterday, so I bought a package to try on Tuesday.

Norma

dmcavanagh · « **Reply #14 on:** December 25, 2011, 11:56:59 PM »

Norma, I have always found the part skim to have a pronounced tendency to over brown, not appealing at all. Just a heads up FYI!

norma427 · « **Reply #15 on:** December 26, 2011, 07:10:41 AM »

Quote from: dmcavanagh on December 25, 2011, 11:56:59 PM

Norma, I have always found the part skim to have a pronounced tendency to over brown, not appealing at all. Just a heads up FYI!

dmcavanagh,

Thanks for the heads up about the part skim Sorrento.

I never tried whole milk or part-skim Sorrento, but am always interested in trying different cheeses to see what happens.

Norma

Fire-n-smoke · « **Reply #16 on:** December 28, 2011, 10:00:45 AM »

We have the Sorrento here in our local GIANT supermarkets. Maybe one can order from their online site?
Tom

norma427 · « **Reply #17 on:** December 28, 2011, 02:34:10 PM »

The Sorrento part-skim mozzarella was tried on a pizza yesterday and it did taste and melt okay. It wasn’t as creamy as my regular blend of mozzarellas, but my taster testers and I thought it was good. There was a nice balance of a salty note from using the Sorrento part-skim mozzarella. I am not sure if it was the deck oven that made the cheese not brown to much or not. The Sorrento part-skim mozzarella was put on a pie that the pie was a failed attempt, not the cheese.

Norma

ThePieman · « **Reply #18 on:** January 08, 2012, 03:50:37 AM »

In these parts, grocery store cheese is grocery store cheese. I've tried every one that is available here(including Sorrento) with great disappointment. One day, many years ago, I found out who was supplying one of my favorite pizzerias with their cheese. I bought some and was blown away. Then I began doing some research on where many of my favorite pizzerias get their cheese. I've tried them all with great enjoyment. Nothing to do with how it's shredded or diced. Nothing to do with my oven. Just great taste results down the board. No longer did my pies taste like amateur pies. Based on my experience, I am convinced that most consumer grade cheese will never give great results, in fact, in comparison to the commercial grade pizzeria cheeses I have tried, the grocery store cheeses are downright unacceptable.

dmcavanagh · « **Reply #19 on:** January 08, 2012, 08:34:59 AM »

Pieman

Mind telling us what cheese you use? Is it avaialble to the public?