I remember the first time I tried Bufala Mozzarella… it was a party in my mouth! and I thought, “where have you been all my life!” There’s no going back to “other” mozzarella after you experience bufala. If you enjoy bufala as much as I do, you also know that it’s not very easy to find unless you live in NYC, LA, Chicago or another major city. The problem with makers of good bufala is that they are very proud of their mozzarella and they safeguard their reputations to the fullest extent.
True story: I had 2 colleagues when I lived in Bologna, one was from Battipaglia and the other from Caserta (both located in Campania) and both cities are very well known for their bufala mozzarella. Every time one of them went home to visit family we would ask them to pick up some bufala mozzarella. On several ocassions they would fail to produce, not because they didn’t try but because they answered incorrectly when they were asked questions from the seller. “Where are you taking it?” “When will you arrive?” “When are you planning to eat it?” If your plans didn’t include eating the bufala within a few days of purchase they wouldn’t sell it to you!
So when I returned to the US bufala mozzarella was usually a special find on a high end menu or something to look forward to when I went to Italy but a few years ago I started seeing it at Costco of all places. It’s not always available and not as good as the ones we used to eat from the mom-n-pop shops in Caserta or Battipaglia but it sure is delicious! The brand is “Fattorie Garofalo” from Capua (CE) in Campania and imported by Arthur Schuman Inc. in New Jersey. It comes in a little tub with 5 bufala mozzarella balls.
With tomatoes still in season and loads of basil still in the garden, it’s a great time to make a delicious Caprese Salad. So next time you’re in Costco… keep a look out in the cheese section for bufala mozzarella and impress your dinner guests with a little taste of Campania.
Caprese Salad:
Slice the bufala and fresh tomatoes into 1/4 to 1/2 slices, arrange them on a plate and drizzle some good extra virgin olive oil over them, add salt, pepper and fresh basil. (you can add balsamic vinegar too if you want… but I think it takes away from the bufala.) Enjoy and buon appetito!
