The Monk’s Provolone: Campania’s Mountain Cheese Finds a New Home in Brooklyn

RADICCHIO & PROVOLONE DEL MONACO AT FLORA

In the Monti Lattari, perched high above the Amalfi Coast, Campanian shepherds began their descent to the markets of Naples. They carried their rounds of provolone and wrapped themselves in heavy wool cloaks to brace against the chill. By dawn, the Neapolitans mistook the shepherds for monks, for the way they appeared. The name stayed—del monaco, "of the monk"—and so did the cheese.

Centuries later, the tradition of cheesemakers continues. Provolone del Monaco DOP comes exclusively from the production zone in the Monti Lattari (the backbone of the Amalfi Coast’s famous cliffs) and at least 20% of the milk must come from the Agerolese cow breed. Cheese makers cut the curd into small grains using a sassa, a wooden tool, before it gets heated, cut into strips, and stretched by hand (really, how else?). The resulting pear- or melon-shaped cheese hardens in cold water, then hangs to dry before aging for at least six months (although the best wheels age up to 18 months or more).

At Flora, the Provolone del Monaco travels again—this time to Brooklyn. In our fall salad, the cheese meets blood orange, fennel, radicchio, walnuts, and Frantio Marco Rizzo extra virgin olive oil from Cilento.

The small dairies that produce Provolone del Monaco guard their methods closely. While we can't reveal their secrets, we can reveal our traditions. Emiliano and Rossella share more about why this cheese matters and why it deserves a place on your table.

Did you eat this cheese growing up? How was it served at home?

For us people from Campania, Provolone del Monaco isn’t just a cheese, it’s an institution, much like Parmigiano Reggiano for the Emilians. It is always present at family gatherings and Sunday lunches. You couldn’t end a proper meal without it, served with vino cotto, dried fruit, cured meats, and of course, a glass of homemade wine from our family’s vineyard.

Why do you think it remains such an essential cheese in Campania?

Because Provolone del Monaco is part of our story, a traditional cheese that carries the memory of southern families and the old connection with Naples, our cultural reference. When someone from the countryside goes to the city, they’d always bring back a piece of Provolone del Monaco (and in my case, maybe a vinyl rock record or two after giving them a long list).

What made you want to bring it onto Flora’s menu?

For years, we hesitated. It’s not easy to find the real one here in New York, the kind made with care and patience, and it comes at a really high cost. But now the time has come. We want our guests to taste this poem of milk, passion, and culture, an authentic taste of home, finally ready to be shared.

How did you decide what ingredients to pair with it?

The ingredients follow the rhythm of the season. We built an autumn salad, an evolution of our summer orange and fennel one. This version combines blood oranges, fresh radicchio trevigiano, walnuts, pomegranate seeds, and generous chunks of Provolone del Monaco. The flavors dance between spicy, bitter, sweet, and deep—perfectly balanced by nature itself, just like autumn: a season that holds both sweetness and melancholy in every shade.