Buffalo mozzarella vs. regular — the difference you can taste

The difference between our Margherita and our Bufalina is one ingredient: the mozzarella. Everything else is the same dough, the same tomato, the same oven. It is the clearest side-by-side comparison on our menu, and it is worth understanding before you order.

Fior di latte — cow’s milk

Fior di latte means “flower of the milk”, and it is mozzarella made from cow’s milk. It is mild, milky and slightly sweet, with a firmer curd and lower moisture than the buffalo version.

That lower moisture is a real advantage on a pizza. It melts evenly, browns lightly, and does not release much water into the base. It is also the more forgiving of the two cheeses, which is why it goes on most of our pizzas — the Diavola, the Margherita Salame, the Provola e Pepe, the Collina.

On a Margherita, fior di latte lets the San Marzano tomato lead. The cheese supports; it does not compete.

Mozzarella di Bufala — water buffalo milk

Made from the milk of water buffalo raised in Campania and Lazio, and DOP-protected in the same way San Marzano tomatoes are. Buffalo milk has roughly twice the fat of cow’s milk and considerably more protein, and the cheese that results is a different thing entirely: softer, wetter, richer, with a distinct tang that fior di latte does not have.

Cut into it and it weeps slightly. That is correct and is a sign of a good one.

Why it changes the pizza

Higher moisture means it behaves differently in a very hot oven. It does not brown the way fior di latte does, and it releases water — which is why a Bufalina comes out looking wetter in the middle, with pools of milky liquid around the cheese. That is not a fault. It is what the cheese does, and it is why the pizza has to be eaten quickly.

The flavour swings too. Where the Margherita is balanced and tomato-forward, the Bufalina is cheese-forward. The tang cuts through and becomes the thing you notice first.

Why it costs more

The Margherita is $18 and the Bufalina is $20. Water buffalo produce far less milk than cows, the herds are small, the DOP zone is limited, and the cheese is highly perishable — it is at its best within a few days of being made and it is flown in rather than trucked. The premium is supply, not positioning.

Which should you order?

There is no correct answer, but there is a useful way to choose:

• Order the Margherita if you want the classic balance, if you are judging the kitchen, or if you are sharing with someone who is unsure. It is the benchmark for a reason.
• Order the Bufalina if you want the cheese to be the thing you remember, or if you already know you like buffalo mozzarella from a caprese.

If you are with someone, order one of each and swap halves. It is the fastest way to understand a distinction that is difficult to convey in writing.

Where else it turns up

Buffalo mozzarella is also in our Caprese antipasto ($18) — sliced tomato, fresh basil, olive oil, nothing cooked. With no oven involved, the cheese has nowhere to hide, and it is the purest way to taste it on the menu. It appears again in the Saltimbocca Oasi, with sliced tomato and Parma prosciutto.

Storing it, if you buy some

Buffalo mozzarella comes packed in its own brine, and it should stay there until you use it. Draining it and wrapping it in plastic — which is what most people do — dries the surface and dulls the flavour within a day.

It also should not be eaten straight from the refrigerator. Cold mutes it badly. Take it out twenty or thirty minutes before you plan to eat it, and let it come up towards room temperature in its brine. The difference between a fridge-cold buffalo mozzarella and one that has been allowed to relax is larger than the difference between brands.

Use it within two or three days. It does not improve with age the way a hard cheese does; it is a fresh product and it behaves like one.

A note on what it is not

Two things get confused with buffalo mozzarella often enough to be worth separating out.

Burrata is a shell of mozzarella filled with cream and shreds of curd. It is usually made with cow’s milk, and it is considerably richer than either cheese discussed here. We make ours fresh and serve it with prosciutto di Parma.

Stracciatella is the filling from inside a burrata, on its own — torn curd in cream. It is what goes into our mortadella sandwich, and it is the reason that sandwich eats the way it does.

Both are on the menu, and there is more on our pizza page.

Hungry yet?

Neapolitan pizza, Roman pasta and an Italian deli at 2500 E Commercial Blvd, Fort Lauderdale.