Editing Provolone (section)

==History and varieties==
The term ''provolone'' (meaning 'large ''provola''<nowiki/>') appeared around the end of the 19th century, when it started to be manufactured in the [[Southern Italy|southern regions of Italy]] and assumed its current large size. The smaller sized variant is called ''provola'' ({{IPA|it|ˈprɔːvola|lang}}) and comes in plain and [[Smoking (cooking)|smoked]] (''affumicata'') varieties.

Provolone is a semi-hard cheese with taste varying greatly from ''provolone piccante'' (sharp, piquant), aged for a minimum of four months and with a very sharp taste, to ''provolone dolce'' (sweet) with a very mild taste. In ''provolone piccante'', the distinctive piquant taste is produced with [[lipase]] (enzyme) derived from goat. The ''dolce'' version uses calf's lipase instead.

Both ''provolone Valpadana'' and ''provolone del Monaco'' (meaning 'monk's provolone'; from the [[Naples]] area of Italy) have received [[protected designation of origin]] (PDO) from the European Union, meaning no country other than Italy may legally produce a cheese called that.

In [[Brazil]], [[Argentina]], [[Bolivia]], and [[Uruguay]] small discs of locally produced [[Pasta filata|pulled-curd]] provolone of {{convert|10|to|15|cm|abbr=on|0}} in diameter and {{convert|1|to|2|cm|in|abbr=on|frac=4}} in height are sometimes grilled until partially melted and eaten as a starter, often seasoned with herbs. The cheese when served this way is often called ''[[provoleta]]'' in Spanish.

Provolone makes up 2.5% of the cheese produced in the U.S. with {{convert|370|e6lb|t|order=flip|abbr=off}} of provolone made in 2023.<ref>[https://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/results/92FF62DE-D70C-3380-9F90-B2A26590B390 Quickstats], National Agricultural Statistics Service, United States Department of Agriculture, accessed March 12, 2024</ref>