Mozzarella Company 2023: A piece of Naples

DeliveryRank has the pleasure of chatting with Mauricio Travesí Salgarolo, the President of Mozzarella Company. Founded by Paula Lambert in 1982, this cheese-making haven nestled in downtown Dallas has been crafting award-winning cheeses by hand, the old-fashioned way, using fresh milk and the finest Texan ingredients. With over 100,000 pounds of cheese and a diverse range of over forty products annually, the commitment to crafting each cheese by hand remains unchanged. 

How has Mozzarella Company evolved since its founding by Paula Lambert in 1982, and what role has artisanal cheese-making played in this evolution?

After the company was founded in 1982 Paula met many influential Chefs who became her friends. These chefs across the USA became her customers and developed many dishes using her cheeses. Paula, in turn, was influenced by these chefs, their recipes and the ingredients that they used, and she developed cheeses for them.  

Mozzarella Company is known for its commitment to traditional, handmade cheese production. Can you share some insights into the art and craft of cheese-making and how it sets your products apart?

For the last couple of decades “Artisanal” became the trend. Mozzarella Company already had decades of experience being Artisanal, this brought us ahead of everybody else. 

What sets our product apart is that our cheeses are completely hand-made. We pasteurize the milk ourselves the old-fashioned way which is pasteurizing without killing the good bacteria in the milk, we stir and ladle the cheese by hand. We buy fresh herbs and chop them by hand. Every step of the process is done by hand. This gives our cheese a great artisanal hand-made flavor.  We also make sure we always follow the traditional recipes and do all steps such as waxing, packaging, and labeling by hand. 

Paula Lambert, the founder of Mozzarella Company, has received numerous accolades and awards. How has her vision and passion influenced the company's culture and approach to cheese production?

Paula was always involved in every step from creating the cheeses to making them. The employees would watch and learn throughout the years. All this enthusiastic, workaholic energy has been carried on in the tradition of hand-made cheeses. This has made everyone inevitably fall in love with and carry on the production of the best quality products possible.     

Mozzarella Company has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Cheesemakers in America by Food & Wine Magazine. Could you tell us about some of your most celebrated cheeses and what makes them stand out in the competitive world of artisanal cheese?

We have our Deep Ellum Blue cheese northern Italy which is soft, creamy, and mild Italian cheese typical of Northern Italy.  Paula originated the idea of washing the cheese with blue mold spores, so that the mold grows only on the exterior of the cheese. And then she named the cheese Deep Ellum Blue, to acknowledge the neighborhood where the cheese factory is located and the Jazz/Blues music that originated there. 

We also have the Dolce Habanero, that is Inspired by Wensleydale cheese in England and the Queso Fresco from Mexico It’s dolce from the sweet apricots that are mixed into the cheese and the habanero chiles that give a perfect amount of heat. 

The list could go on with Mozzarella Company’s more than 40 original cheeses and the hundreds of awards won throughout the years.  

The company's dedication to quality and tradition is evident in its artisanal approach. What can you tell us about some of your bestsellers?

Of course, our best seller is our traditional Fresh Mozzarella Cheese which is the cheese that inspired Paula to start her business in the 80’s.  Following we have our Deep Ellum Blue, Scamorza and Caciotta cheeses. Every year we create new cheeses, our latest is the Burrata with Basil Cream, a small ball of Mozzarella filled with Basil Cream.

If you would like to find out more about Mozzarella Company, visit https://www.mozzco.com/