Puzzone di Moena ✦

Puzzone di Moena

What it is

Ladin speakers call it spretz tzaorì, the tasty cheese; Italian settled on puzzone, the big stinker. The smell is made on purpose — the wheels are washed in warm water every week for at least three months, which keeps the rind wet and the bacteria responsible for the reek alive.

In the kitchen

The reek sits in the rind, not the paste — cut it away and the cheese underneath is far milder than your nose promised. Melt it over polenta on low heat; above a simmer the fat splits out.

Goes with

Stone-ground polenta Potato Butter Speck Alto Adige Onion Rye berries Cumin Apple

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