To be clear, I would never use pre-grated cheese. That’s disgusting.
I also am mindful of the (alleged, which I am happy to believe) superiority of “true” cheese from the correct point of origin. So parmesan must be Parmigiano Reggiano, and romano must be Pecorino Romano.
Beyond that, I’m ignorant. If I’m making a recipe that calls for Parmesan, but all I have is Romano … I will shamelessly substitute. Or the other way around. And I don’t care, to be honest. If I get a tasty result, I’m content.
But I’m happy to educate my palate, and understand why a Parmesan/Romano substitution could matter.
Brandwise, my options are limited by where I live (Hawai’i Island). Kirkland or Boars’ Head.
I’ve subbed Parmigiano-Reggiano in recipes that called for Pecorino Romano, and I honestly couldn’t tell the difference. They’re both hard aged grating cheeses that don’t really melt - the big difference, AFAICT, is that the latter is made from sheep milk instead of cow’s milk.
Google informs me that Kirkland brand is authentic imported Italian stuff. I’m not sure the same is true of Boar’s Head.
I’ve always been poor, but one thing I don’t scrimp on is decent parmesan ore reggiano cheese. NEVER the pre-grated shit, but parmesan and reggiano are almost identical to me for the dishes I’m making.
A side-by-side comparison will show the difference in the tastes. For me, Pecorino Romano is a bit more bold and stands out a bit more. I know people who will not eat it straight, even though they will eat Parmigiano-Reggiano straight. That said, I agree that substituting one for the other isn’t going to make a big difference.
For a recipe such as this one, there will be a taste difference, as the cheese is a big part of the overall flavor. It’ll still be tasty, IMHO.
There’s a taste and textural difference - Pecorino is saltier to my palette. But honestly, I doubt anyone but an Italian chef would notice the difference mixed into a dish. It’s noticeable if you eat them side-by-side from a cheese board.
I use a mix of both in carbonara, but if I’ve run out of one, I don’t sweat it.
I can get authentic imported Parmigiano-Reggiano at the grocery store I work at. For Grana Padano, I have to go to the bougie grocery store that has a Murray’s Cheese counter.
A major cheese label here sells imported Gran Padano, whole or in flakes, so it’s available just about everywhere. Pecorino Romano can be harder to find.
Yes, this. Romano is saltier and has a more aggressive flavor. I wouldn’t use it in a dish that has delicate flavors, like something with seafood in it (leaving aside that many Italians are horrified by Americans’ use of cheese with seafood). Parmigiano has a more refined flavor to it, less salty. I’d be less inclined to use it with something that’s got bold flavors in it.
That’s an overly broad generalization. You may be thinking of something like the green cardboard canisters (I think it’s Kraft brand) of so-called “parmesan” found on supermarket shelves that doesn’t even need to be refrigerated, but might be useful to make wallpaper paste.
But good parmesan is good parmesan, whether pre-grated or not. I often freshly grate parmesan, but not always. The stuff I buy pre-grated is a specific store brand of Parmigiano Reggiano DOP, imported from Italy and aged at least 24 months, available grated, shaved, or in blocks. It’s a quality, protected “designation of origin” (PDO) cheese sourced from the Parma region and is excellent even if pre-grated in the store. It has to be refrigerated and has a limited shelf life, but it can also be stored in the freezer.
Their pre-grated is also authentic imported Italian stuff, and it doesn’t contain cellulose (because it is grated larger, it doesn’t cake anyway). That’s what we buy.