Wondering what to do with pecorino cheese? This guide covers how to pick it, cook it, store it, and swap it, plus 18 recipes to put it to work.

What is pecorino cheese?

Pecorino is the family name for Italian cheeses made from sheep's milk. The word comes from pecora, Italian for ewe. That sheep's milk gives pecorino a sharper, saltier edge than a cow's-milk cheese.

The one most cooks mean is Pecorino Romano, a hard, dry grating cheese aged at least five months until it is firm enough to shave into curls. It is bright white and intensely salty, the classic grating cheese of central and southern Italy.

Other pecorinos exist, from soft young table wheels to the nutty aged Pecorino Toscano, but if a recipe just says pecorino, it almost always means the sharp Romano.

How to use pecorino

Pecorino Romano is built for grating. It is too hard and salty to eat in big slabs, but shaved fine over a hot plate it dissolves into a salty, savory hit that defines Roman pasta.

It is the soul of carbonara.

Tossed with egg and rendered pork off the heat, finely grated pecorino emulsifies into a glossy, sharp sauce, the whole point of a 20 Minute Penne Carbonara for Two or a classic Penne Carbonara.

It also seasons from the inside. Worked into a stuffing or braise it brings salt and depth at once, the way it lifts an Italian Braised Lamb & Potatoes.

The trick with any cheese this salty is to add it off the heat and taste before you reach for more salt, since pecorino is doing both jobs.

Pairing and common mistakes

Pecorino loves bold, rustic company. Black pepper, garlic, cured pork, and fava beans all suit it, and a wedge with a drizzle of honey or a ripe pear makes a fine end to a meal.

The most common mistake is salting a dish as if the cheese were not there. Pecorino is much saltier than parmesan, so a pasta seasoned normally and then finished with pecorino often ends up too salty. Hold back on the salt and let the cheese carry it.

The other slip is melting it into a hot sauce too fast. Like any hard aged cheese, pecorino clumps and turns stringy over high heat, so pull the pan off the burner and stir it in gradually with a little starchy pasta water.

Substitutes

Parmesan is the obvious swap, milder, nuttier, and less salty than pecorino. Use a little extra to make up the flavor and add a pinch of salt only if the dish needs it. The two are close enough that many cooks blend them.

Aged asiago or a dry, sharp grana also stand in for grating, each a touch gentler than Pecorino Romano. None will be quite as pungent, so taste and adjust.

For a true sheep's-milk character, an aged manchego from Spain is the closest cousin, drier and a bit sweeter but unmistakably made from ewe's milk. It grates well over pasta and roasted vegetables.

Buying and storing pecorino

Buy Pecorino Romano in a wedge cut from the wheel rather than pre-grated, since the pre-shredded tubs lose punch fast and often hide fillers. Look for a firm, bright-white paste and the stamped rind that marks the real thing.

Genuine Pecorino Romano is one of Italy's oldest cheeses, a staple ration of Roman legions, which is part of why it travels and keeps so well.

Wrap a wedge in wax paper or parchment, then loosely in foil. Store it in the warmest part of the fridge.

Because it is hard and low in moisture, pecorino keeps a month or more this way and freezes well for grating. Save the spent rind to simmer in a soup or sauce, where it melts slowly and leaves behind a deep, savory richness.

Quick facts

Where to find pecorino cheese: Pecorino cheese is usually found in the cheeses section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

In Chinese

羊奶酪

British (UK) term

Pecorino cheese

en français

fromage pecorino

en español

queso de oveja

Recipes using pecorino cheese

There are 18 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 18 recipes