Description and method of making Burrat cheese, calorie content and composition. Benefits and harms when consumed, recipes. The history of the variety.
Burrata is a double soft Italian Mozzarella cheese made with buffalo (or cow) milk. The shape of the head can be compared to a bag of soft cheese mass, inside which is delicate cream. In pre-sale preparation, the farm version is wrapped in banana or asphodelia leaves, and made in a dairy factory is wrapped in cling film. The texture is creamy, the color is white, the taste is delicate, sweet-salty, creamy. There is no crust. It is made in the form of a ball or a bag with a diameter of 7-10 cm and a weight of 100 to 700 g.
How is Burrata cheese made?
The raw materials are buffalo milk and cow's milk cream. In farms, the whey left over from the last batch is used for curdling. As a preservative - rock salt and calcium chloride (optional). The latter addition is necessary if, deviating from the original recipe, cow's milk is used at home.
How to make Burrata cheese:
- The feedstock is heated to 32 ° C and the rennet diluted with cooled boiled water is poured in, mixed and left to rest until the calcium is formed.
- The curd curd is compacted after 1-2, 5 hours, after which the curd grains are cut with edges of 1.5 cm. When the curd mass sinks to the bottom, slowly heat the contents of the container by 2 ° C for 5 minutes to 38 ° C, and then leave under the lid until the cut kernels sink to the bottom.
- A slotted spoon is covered with gauze and half is scooped out in a colander, and the whey is collected. It can then be used to bake pastries or the next batch of cheese.
- The cheese grain, from which the whey has been removed, is mixed with cream (Italian farmers mix the ingredients in equal parts) and salted to taste.
- The rest of the curd is heated to 80-85 ° C, stirred until it is compacted and becomes viscous and stringy. This is how a shell is prepared for Burrat cheese, forming it from the curd mass after heat treatment.
- A lump is formed from the elastic dough, the index finger is inserted into it and the hole is enlarged, gently stretching the shell, and the filling is poured into it. The edges are pulled together and sealed. The largest heads weigh 700 g, that is, they are formed from the resulting intermediate raw materials, without separating it. But more often the viscous mass is divided into several pieces and small heads are made - 150 g each.
- Opinions are divided over maturation. Some cheese makers leave it to “rise” at a temperature of 18-20 ° C for 24 hours, having previously lowered it into cold water until it cools completely. There is another way - the heads are placed in a cold unsaturated brine and left for a day.
At home, you can use pre-sterilized berries, dried fruits or crushed nuts for Burrata cheese. Just take into account: if you need to eat soft cheese with cream within 48 hours - it will not be stored longer, then when using "taste improvers" this time is halved. Therefore, in culinary experiments, it is desirable to form small heads - weighing no more than 150-200 g.
Composition and calorie content of Burrat cheese
For those who have not come across this fermented milk product, it seems that its energy value is so high that if it is necessary to control weight, it is better to refuse to consume it. But this is a misconception.
The calorie content of Burrat cheese is relatively low - 300-330 kcal, of which:
- Protein - 18 g;
- Fat - 25 g.
There are so few carbohydrates that they can be ignored.
Vitamins per 100 g:
- Retinol - 250-300 mg;
- Choline - 15.4 mg;
- Beta Carotene 240 mg
Mineral composition per 100 g:
- Calcium - 150 mg;
- Phosphorus - 600 mg;
- Sodium - 85-250 mg, depending on the preparation technology.
In the composition of Burrata cheese, despite the high calorie content of the feedstock, only 20 mg (per 100 g) of cholesterol. In addition, it should be borne in mind that this substance does not have a negative effect on the human body, but contributes to the dissolution of already accumulated deposits in the lumen of blood vessels. Also fermented milk product is rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
The recommended daily "dosage" for the use of an exquisite delicacy is 50-60 g for women and 60-80 g for men. Having eaten this amount of Burrata cheese, they provide themselves with 32% calcium, 10% vitamin A and 8-16% sodium and chlorine.
Useful properties of Burrata cheese
The nutrients and minerals of the product have not undergone heat treatment, which means that the body is replenished with easily digestible milk protein, which has not undergone transformation, which is necessary for the formation and regeneration of cells.
Benefits of Burrata Cheese:
- It accelerates the growth and restoration of bone and cartilage tissue, prevents the development of rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults, and accelerates metabolic processes at all levels.
- Replenishes energy reserves, helps to recover from anemia, after operations and serious illnesses.
- Cell membranes become stronger.
- Increases the body's defenses.
- Normalizes acid-base and water-electrolyte balance, stops fluid loss.
- Strengthens the myocardium, normalizes the heart rhythm, stimulates the dissolution of "harmful" cholesterol.
- Increases the adaptation of the optic nerve, facilitating the perception of changes in light conditions.
- Improves the quality of skin, nails and hair.
- Maintains blood pressure levels.
- Stops the development of age-related changes.
- Stimulates the regenerative properties of epithelial tissues.
The variety is safe for pregnant women, lactating women, young children and the elderly. Creates favorable conditions for the development of beneficial intestinal flora, is easily absorbed, does not increase the load on the digestive organs.
With active training, it helps to strengthen the muscle corset and form the desired volumes. This product is most useful for men: regular introduction into the diet has a beneficial effect on the production of male hormones and increases libido, helps to become more confident and calm.
Contraindications and harm of Burrata cheese
There are no restrictions on the age and status of the organism for inclusion in the daily menu of this variety. It is not a product of long-term storage, and when it starts to deteriorate, you can smell and taste it. The likelihood of intoxication is minimal.
Eating Burrata cheese can cause harm in case of individual intolerance to milk protein and the sudden development of an allergic reaction. It is worth temporarily abandoning a delicate creamy delicacy in case of exacerbation of chronic diseases of the digestive organs, the appearance of symptoms of pancreatitis or heartburn after eating. If you are obese or you need to keep track of your weight, you can only taste this variety, but it is better to refuse from regular input into the diet.
Overeating should also be avoided because of one more unpleasant feature of fatty creamy cheeses made from non-pasteurized raw materials. It contains a chemical that resembles morphine in structure and action. This compound is produced by the liver of cattle. Because of him, they "addicted" to cheese like a drug. Daily consumption of a delicacy is replaced by overeating, which quickly leads to obesity.
Burrata Cheese Recipes
The variety is served on its own, with homemade wines and mild light beers, but lovers prefer dry white wine and honey. To fully reveal the "velvety" taste, after being taken out of the refrigerator, it is left to warm up to room temperature for 40-50 minutes.
Italians do not put tender slices on a cheese plate, but offer them with tomatoes - fresh or sun-dried, pickled olives and sliced fresh herbs. It is customary to collect the flowing cream with slices of toasted bread, grated with garlic.
Burrato Cheese Recipes:
- Quick snack … Zucchini is cut into thin strips 3-4 cm wide and baked in the oven for several minutes until they become soft. You can sprinkle it a little with sugar. Lubricate the strips with Burrata creamy mass, roll them into a roll, and spread sun-dried tomatoes on flat surfaces, securing them with a toothpick.
- Cheese with sauce … 2 large tomatoes are baked, cut into pieces, at a temperature of 65 ° C and left on convection mode, or by opening the oven door. Grind 2 more tomatoes with a half shallots, 1 clove of garlic and 1 tsp with a blender. olive oil. Parmesan, 40 g, rub on a coarse grater and fry in butter until chips form. Pieces of Burrat are laid out on a plate, poured over with tomato sauce, garnished with sun-dried tomatoes, cheese chips and basil.
- Zucchini flowers with cheese … Tough sepals are removed from 8 large inflorescences of zucchini, immersed in cold water and spread on a paper towel to remove moisture. The pestle is carefully removed. Dried tomatoes are cut into 2-3 parts, without getting rid of excess oil, knead 80 g of Burrata with a fork. Mix the ingredients and lay them on the petals, leaving loose ends. They are screwed tightly so that the filling does not leak out. Knead in ice strongly carbonated water, 100 ml, the dough, pouring it into wheat flour - 100 g, drive in an egg. The dough should turn out to be liquid, like on pancakes, and bubbles should appear on the surface. Refined sunflower oil is boiled. The stuffed flowers are doused in flour, then dipped in the dough so that it sticks on all sides, and deep-fried. To avoid damaging the bud, hold it with a silicone spoon. When a ruddy crust appears, the flowers are blotted with a paper towel and laid out on a plate. Served hot. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Light salad … Mix 1 cucumber, cut into circles, 5 cherries, halved, thin rings of 1 onion, 1 crushed garlic prong and 200 g of Burrata slices. You do not need to remove the cream filling. Sprinkle with a little cilantro and 2 tbsp. l. pine nuts, dried in a pan. Season with olive oil.
See also Leiden cheese recipes.
Interesting facts about Burrata cheese
Surprisingly, this delicate, almost "airy" delicate product was made from the leftovers of Mozzarella, which could not be realized, and did not have time to eat. The leftovers were fused into balls, used for their own needs, ground with cream and salted until the Byakini farm (in 1920) figured out how to make a double cheese. Some of the pieces were crushed and digested, forming cheese bags, and the second was mixed with cream, salted and placed in these "packages". By 1950, such a semi-finished product gained popularity throughout Italy, it began to be produced in several regions - Basilicata, Campania and Puglia.
In 1956, Lorenzo Biancino, who worked on the Piana Padula farm, developed the technology for making Mozzarella sacks, filling them with a creamy filling. In the future, they offered various options for the delicacy, putting Mozzarella with cream, Manteca peanut butter, berries, nuts and even liquid chocolate into a cheese bag. At the same time, the process of cheese making was also accelerated, using rennet for curdling.
They began to cook Burrata cheese on purpose, and Ricotta was prepared from the surplus of whey. At the same time, the main "idea" of the variety was preserved - the bags were made from the remains of the cheeses of the Pasta Filato group. At the same time, the cream cheese recipe was patented and Burrata di Andria gained widespread acclaim.
The taste of the product made on different farms differs. This is explained by the fact that it has not yet been possible to automate the processes, and each cheese maker brings something of his own. For curdling, rennet, citric acid, whey from the preparation of Mozzarella are used. Farms in California and the southern regions of Russia offer their varieties of the variety.
The cost also changes. In their small homeland, a head of Burrata cheese 500 g costs 7-9 euros, in the USA - 10-12 dollars. In Russia, the price range for cream cheese is 500-940 rubles. It is interesting that in Italy they try to sell only fresh product, but Russian manufacturers put cheese in vacuum packaging and sell it within 10 days, like many brine varieties.
Determining the freshness of a Burrat is very simple. If, when cutting, the filling flows and there is no smell of sour milk, there is no need to doubt the quality of the product. You won't get poisoned with dried cheese, but you won't be able to enjoy the delicate taste. But with a sour smell, it is better to postpone the tasting. In the tender pulp, the activity of pathogenic bacteria rapidly increases. If this product begins to deteriorate, it is advisable to refuse to use it.
Watch a video about Burrata cheese:
