What can you do with Parmesan rinds?

The rind of a wedge of Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano looks like the end of the cheese. It is really a slow-release flavour cube. Too hard to grate and too tough to chew with pleasure, it softens beautifully in a pot of something simmering and gives back a savoury depth that tastes like you cooked for longer than you did.

Is it edible?

Eataly's guide to leftover Parmigiano Reggiano rinds answers yes, technically: the rind is the protective outer layer that forms as the wheel ages, and it simply becomes too hard to chew. That is why we cook with it rather than eat it raw. Some other cheeses are sold with waxed or coated rinds, which are a different matter and do not belong in the pot. If in doubt about a particular cheese, leave the rind out.

Getting a rind ready

• Scrape it. Use a small knife to scrape away the outermost surface, including the stamped markings, and rinse it briefly.
• Cut it. Larger rinds release flavour more evenly when cut into a few pieces.
• Leave a little cheese on. When you get to the end of a wedge, don't scrape it bare. The thin layer of cheese still attached does a lot of the work.

Where they shine

Soups and minestrone

This is the classic use. Add the rind when the liquid goes in and let it simmer with everything else. By the end it will be soft and rubbery and the soup will taste fuller and rounder. It is especially good in minestrone (see how to make a good minestrone), bean soups and ribollita.

Beans and lentils

A rind in a pot of simmering dried beans or chickpeas seasons them from the inside. With tinned beans warmed in oil and garlic, a rind gives them a slow-cooked feel; let it bubble gently for a while before you take it out.

Broth

Collect several rinds and simmer them with onion, a carrot, celery, a bay leaf and some peppercorns for a cheese-scented broth to use for risotto, pasta in brodo, or a simple soup with pasta and greens. Eataly suggests saving rinds until you have enough for a pot of their Parmigiano broth. Strain it well. It will be slightly cloudy, which is fine.

Tomato sauce and risotto

A small piece in a tomato sauce adds depth without making it taste of cheese. In risotto, add it partway through cooking and remove it before you stir in the butter and grated cheese at the end.

What to fish out

Take the rind out before serving. By then it is soft, stringy and may be stuck to the bottom of the pot, so stir now and then while it simmers and use tongs to lift it out. Some cooks like to cut the softened rind into small pieces and eat it as a cook's treat. That is a matter of taste.

Storing rinds

The freezer is the easy answer. Keep rinds in a bag or box in the freezer and add them as they accumulate. There is no need to thaw them; they go straight from freezer to pot. Eataly also suggests keeping them in an airtight container in the fridge if you will use them soon. Either way, label the bag so nobody mistakes it for something else.

Other cheeses

Pecorino rinds work in the same way but are saltier and sharper, so use less and season the pot later. Grana Padano behaves much like Parmigiano (the difference between them is its own story). Soft cheeses, bloomy rinds and waxed rinds are not for this.