Mozzarella is a soft, stringy cheese from the pasta filata family, which includes other cheeses like Queso Oaxaca and Caciocavallo. Pasta filata translates to “spun paste”, referring to the method of kneading and pulling used to create the distinctive mozzarella balls we find at the grocery store. All cheeses are made in the same general way. They start out their life as milk from a cow, goat, sheep, or even a buffalo, and once all water is removed it leaves behind a cheese. From there, different processes are used to create all of the cheeses we have come to know and love. Mozzarella is a fresh cheese, meaning that it is meant to be eaten fairly soon after being formed, and usually has a mild, slightly sour taste.
Mozzarella and Pizza: A Perfect Pairing
Mozzarella is the most prevalent cheese used to make pizzas, and there’s a very good – and very scientific – reason for that. You see, when the mozzarella is heated in the oven, all of its water content comes to a boil, and then evaporates. This process creates a bubble within the cheese that grows until it pops, releasing the newly formed steam and allowing the cheese to brown. Other types of cheese have either too much oil or too little water content to form the bubbles needed to allow the cheese to brown properly. The chemistry of mozzarella makes it an essential base for any pizza.
Mozzarella was first developed in Southern Italy as far back as the 1st Century A.D., although the earliest form of the cheese was most likely made using sheep’s milk. The story goes that it was first made on accident when a few cheese curds fell into a pail of hot water. There’s also a story from the 3rd Century A.D., in which the monks of San Lorenzo di Capua were recorded handing out bread to locals with a cheese they called “mozza”. We may never know how mozzarella cheese first got its start in Italy, but we do know that it didn’t leave that particular region until the 20th Century when refrigeration technology had advanced enough to allow the cheese to be transported around the world.
Types of Mozzarella Cheese
Did you know that mozzarella is one of the healthiest types of cheese out there? It’s low in both sodium and calories, and some variants even contain probiotics important to overall gut health. Traditional cow’s milk mozzarella – the type most of us are familiar with – is known as fior di latte, or “flower of the milk”. You may also have seen Mozzarella di Bufala listed on menus or at the grocery store. This type of mozzarella is made from buffalo’s milk and has a creamier texture. Both are equally excellent for pizza making. In the United States, there are also different mozzarella choices when it comes to moisture content. Mozzarella cheeses with low moisture content are specific to the U.S., and the kind usually distributed to pizza restaurants. They’re easier to transport and keep fresh. High-moisture mozzarella is available in grocery stores but has a much shorter shelf-life than its cousin.
The DOP Label
If you’re a particularly savvy grocery shopper, you may already be familiar with the DOP label. For those who don’t know what we’re referring to here, the DOP label stands for Protected Designation of Origin (Denoimazione d’Origine Protetta) and is meant to differentiate high-quality Italian products made in their region of origin from low-quality, imitation cheese, wines, olive oils, and other food products. When you see the DOP label on a mozzarella cheese this means that the cheese in question was made in Southern Italy and that the quality has been approved by a governing body. For most of us, this designation may not be very important at all, but it’s important to know what we’re buying when we shop.
Mozzarella at Trapper’s
At Trapper’s Pizza Pub, we do take our pizza making very seriously. We’ve even experimented with making our own homemade mozzarella cheese, just for fun, in the kitchen at Trapper’s. While it’s not something we plan on keeping up, it was a great experience, and gave us a real appreciation for the ingredients that go into making our signature pizzas so special. In addition to our pizzas, we also use mozzarella cheese on our Meatball Sub, Chicken Parmesan Sandwich, Baked Ziti, and in our Calzones and Strombolis. Fresh mozzarella also comes with our Make-Your-Own Pizza Kits, along with homemade pizza dough, sauce, and a topping of your choice.
To view more of our Food Menu, including all of our specialty pizzas, follow this link.
Christie Donato
Christie Donato is the Marketing Manager for Trapper’s Pizza Pub and a freelance writer. She’s a co-founder of Rogue Dialogue Productions and a writer on the podcast Windfall. Originally from Syracuse, she now resides in Queens with her dog, Piper. You can find more of her work here.
Mozzarella was first made in Italy near Naples from the rich milk of water buffalos. Because it was not made from pasteurized milk and because there was little or no refrigeration the cheese had a very short shelf-life and seldom left the southern region of Italy near Naples where it was made.
Our cheeses are made from only the freshest, all natural ingredients. They are so full of flavor, there's no room for additives, fillers or preservatives.
Mozzarella was first developed in Southern Italy as far back as the 1st Century A.D., although the earliest form of the cheese was most likely made using sheep's milk. The story goes that it was first made on accident when a few cheese curds fell into a pail of hot water.
Mozzarella is named after its specific production process. In Italian, the verb mozzare refers to the way the curd is hand-stretched in strips and then cut into balls. The term 'mozzarella' first appeared in Italy in 1570 in a cookery book by Bartolomeo Scappi, chef to the papal court.
This is a stretched curd cheese made from cow milk (fiordilatte) or buffalo milk, either spherical or braided. It has a smooth, shiny surface, a very thin skin and a porcelain white color.
The inventor of pizza is a highly debated topic amongst foodies and historians alike. Many people credit baker Raffaele Esposito from the Naples region of Italy for first creating the dish. Others believe that the history of pizza dates far further back than Esposito's era of the late 1800s.
All cheeses are made from milk, salt, enzymes, and bacterial culture, but it's the aging process that gives each kind its unique flavor profile. Aged cheese is essentially cheese that is left to cure for an extended period of weeks, months, or years so that it becomes more flavorful.
Due to the enormous demand, mozzarella is now virtually only produced from cow's milk. Mozzarella made from cow's milk is milder in taste than mozzarella made from buffalo's milk.
That honor goes to pule cheese (or magareći sir), a rare cheese produced in Zasavica Donkey Reserve in west central Serbia. The price? Around $600 a pound. To put this in perspective, a pound of Parmigiano Reggiano costs $15 to $25 per pound and up, depending on the producer and how many months the cheese is aged.
Boosts immune system: Mozzarella contains zinc, which helps support a healthy immune system. Improves heart health: The cheese is a source of healthy fats that can help lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. Aids digestion: Probiotics found in mozzarella cheese promote gut health and improve digestion.
Bocconcini, also known as mozzarella balls or pearls as their shape resembles that of cherries and cherry tomatoes, are one of the most present products in the Puglia cuisine.
The liquid that mozzarella or burrata rests in keeps the cheese from drying out. It can be straight water, but more often it's salted, creating a brine that also adds saltiness to the cheese. Sometimes it's whey.
Mozzarella. Perhaps the most well-known and popular pizza topping of all-time, Mozzarella is cherished for its near perfect consistency and straightforward flavour. ...
Legend has It that mozzarella was first made when cheese curds accidentally fell into a pail of hot water in a cheese factory near Naples…. and soon thereafter the first pizza was made.
By the time the 1980s rolled around, farmers had produced way too much of it, which was then turned into way too much cheese. Government cheese. In 1981, then-President Ronald Reagan declared 30 million pounds of American cheese would be distributed to food pantries, school lunch programs and other welfare programs.
During the aging process, the lactic acid breaks down and there is a build-up of CO2. The gas cannot escape through the rind that has formed. The pressure builds up and bursts, creating holes. And these holes get bigger as the cheese matures, especially if it's kept warm.
Mozzarella sticks most likely have their origins in the United States during the 1970s, through a combination of two factors, as per historian Joel Jensen: "the increasing availability of mass-produced mozzarella cheese beginning in the 1960s", and the development of new efficient frying technologies to be used in fast ...
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