What can you use as a parmesan rind substitute to develop a cheesy depth in your soups and stews? Here’s a great recipe secret you must know to evolve your culinary experience.
Long ago, incorporating cheesy rind into the recipes was a sneaky trick to make things incredibly aromatic and deeply umami. But it became a usual practice nowadays and mainly contributed to soups, broths, sauces, and dips to make them deliciously complex.
But if you’re unable to use parmesan rind, what would be the best substitutes for parmesan rind similarly versatile and aromatic? Let’s know.
Parmesan Rind Substitute
For many people, parmesan rind is just an exterior of cheese with a firm chewier texture. And since it doesn’t melt on cooking, they usually discard it.
If you’re also one of them, don’t do this next time, instead, use it to infuse a new flavor spectrum to your ideal dishes.
For now, you can try the following alternatives for parmesan rind to stimulate your taste buds extremely.
1. Grated Parmesan
Grated parmesan is undoubtedly the closest alternative to parmesan rind. Although it’s not so flavorful and aromatic but can impart a comparable flavor to soups, stews, and casseroles.
It can change the final recipe texture because parmesan cheese tends to melt readily while parmesan rind doesn’t melt at all.
Add freshly grated parmesan to the dish either while cooking or when it is cooked and ready-to-serve for a perfect savory blend.
2. Pecorino Romano Rind
If available, pecorino Romano rind is the best substitute for parmesan rind in every recipe you want to add it to. Needless to say, Rind of one cheese can replace the rind of another because it’s the part where most of the mold and bacteria grow during maturation.
When added to soups, stews, casseroles, and sauces, it gives a similar savory depth and aromatic balance to the recipe as parmesan rind. Remember, pecorino Romano rind is a little bit tangier and saltier so you have to adjust the measurement of other ingredients in a given recipe.
3. Parmigiano Rind
Parmigiano rind is a perfect addition to soups and broths as a parmesan rind substitute. It seems quite hard to chew and possibly inedible but you can still get an incredible flavor profile from this leftover. It’s also a good non-blue gorgonzola alternative.
Simply, cut it into pieces and add to long cooking dishes such as sauces and stews, let it simmer for longer. It will thicken the sauces appealingly and infuse a complex savory aroma comparable to parmesan rind.
As the rind doesn’t melt throughout the cooking, so remove its pieces before serving a dish. This way, it will become your super recipe secret ready to delight everyone.
4. Gruyere Rind
Gruyere rind is also one of the great substitutes for parmesan rind in sauces and stews. It’s firmer, stronger, and enriched with complex savoriness and pronounced aroma.
Add it to the cooking dish and simmer for a while to draw all the flavor goodness out of the gruyere rind. It will boost the recipe flavor and make a satisfying cheesy, creamy, and umami meal. The aftertaste is also a perfect blend of sweet and salty sensations closer to parmesan rind.
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Vegan Parmesan Rind Substitute
Parmesan rind isn’t vegan because parmesan cheese uses animal products during manufacturing. Therefore, it becomes unsuitable for vegans and people who are on a vegan diet.
But there are some great vegan substitutes for parmesan rind you can try to get a similar flavor and aroma.
5. Soy Parmesan
Soy parmesan is more versatile in its use even than a parmesan rind. It can thicken your sauces, soups, stews, and broths. Moreover, you can add grated cheese to cooked food such as pasta, risotto, salad, pizza, sandwiches, and noodles for a stringy cheesy meal.
Soy parmesan is perfectly vegan cheese carrying a complex savory flavor as a parmesan rind.
6. Nutritional Yeast
You’ll be surprised to know nutritional yeast in this countdown of parmesan rind substitutes, but it does its job amazingly. Nutritional yeast is a staple ingredient in vegan kitchens as it can replace many non-vegetarian cheeses including parmesan.
So, add it to soups, marinades, dips, and sauces to get results quite comparable with parmesan rind. Personally, it’s a great easy method to substitute parmesan rind in recipes.
FAQs
Can I Use Parmesan Rind To Alfredo Sauce?
And the answer is yes, you can add parmesan rind to Alfredo sauce. In fact, parmesan rind adds a subtle tanginess, creaminess, cheesiness, and buttery goodness to Alfredo sauce.
Most often, grated parmesan is added to Alfredo sauce but if you’re a crazy fan of parmesan flavor, parmesan rind can give you a satisfying flavor punch. You can also add other parmesan rind substitutes to Alfredo sauce according to your tongue flavor.
What Is Parmesan Rind Made Of?
Parmesan rind is just an exterior of the parmesan cheese that tend to be hardened during aging and maturation process. It gets harder and thicker when cheese is frequently washed in brine. The salt draws out all moisture from the exterior of cheese giving rise to a thick shell named rind. Unlike other cheese rinds, parmesan rind doesn’t contain any wax or additive.
How Much Grated Parmesan Can Substitute Parmesan Rind?
There’s no particular measurement for replacing parmesan rind with parmesan cheese. But you have to use more grated parmesan cheese than rind in a recipe. This is because parmesan cheese is milder than rind. So, use 2:1 or 3:1 ratio according to your dish to which you are going to switch parmesan rind.
