Toma vs Tomme
Toma
Facts
- Texture
- Semi-hard
- Type
- Pressed
- Rind
- Natural rind
- Country
- Italy
Toma is a family of Italian pressed cheeses, not one wheel with a single fixed recipe. The name covers rustic rounds with a natural rind, a pale interior, and a mild to nutty flavor that depends on age and the maker. Most are firm enough to slice, and some grow harder and more savory as they mature. Italy is the home of the style, and dairies use the word for this kind of cheese. It is a table cheese and a cooking cheese, not a fresh spread.
Tomme
Facts
- Texture
- Semi-hard
- Type
- Pressed
- Rind
- Natural rind
- Country
- France
Tomme is a French cheese word more than a single recipe, and it usually means a round, flat wheel with a natural rind. The paste is pressed and not cooked the way a very dry grating cheese is cooked, so the texture stays semi-hard and supple. Many tommes were traditionally made from milk that had already lost some cream. The word covers farm cheeses across France. A label that says only tomme names a style, not one fixed cheese from one valley.