Smooth on the outside and soft on the inside, mozzarella is undoubtedly Italy's most popular cheese. With a millennium-long history in the Campania region, it’s beloved all over the world – as is burrata. So here's a look at the differences between them.
Two kinds of cheese
Both are fresh cow’s milk cheeses made using the pasta filata (stretched curd) method. But while mozzarella, also known as fior di latte, has been produced in Campania since the 12th century, burrata was first produced in Andria, Puglia, invented by Lorenzo Bianchino in 1956. A heavy snowfall rendered the transport of dairy products difficult, so the cheesemaker decided to use the stretched curd from mozzarella as a casing to store the cream. And so burrata was born.
Mozzarella vs. burrata
Mozzarella is produced from curd, which you get by adding lactic ferments and rennet to pasteurized cow’s milk. The next steps involve cutting the curd and extracting the whey. At this point, the curd is cut into strips and kneaded in boiling water, manually or mechanically, to make it “spin” or “stretch,” thus transforming it into pieces of mozzarella. The final phase is cooling the pieces in water.
Burrata is also made from the stretched curd of the mozzarella, but in this case, it’s not the main substance of the dairy product – instead, it serves as a casing. Inside, there is a soft and creamy filling: stracciatella, frayed pasta filata mixed with cream. While mozzarella has a more delicate taste and a more elastic texture, burrata is softer and more flavorful – but also, due to the cream, higher in calories.