Cheese Database

Salva vs Stracchino

Salva

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-hard
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
Italy
Place
Lombardy

Salva is a washed-rind cow's milk cheese from Lombardy in Italy. Makers form it into thick square blocks, and they wash the rind as the cheese ages. The paste is ivory, compact, and a little crumbly, sometimes with a few small holes. The name comes from the idea of saving surplus milk by turning it into a cheese that will keep. A young piece is milder, and a longer-aged piece is more aromatic and savory.

Stracchino, field guide plate
Stracchino, photographed

Stracchino

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Soft
Type
Fresh
Rind
No rind
Country
Italy

Stracchino is a soft Italian cheese made from cow's milk and sold very young. The paste is pale, moist, and creamy, and most pieces have no real rind. Crescenza is the freshest form of the same family, and shop labels often use the two names for one product. It is a spreading cheese rather than a long-aged wheel. The usual taste is mild, milky, and a little tangy.