Cacio e Pepe Frico
- Total Time
- 15 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- ¾cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 2 ounces)
- ¾cup freshly grated pecorino cheese (about 2 ounces)
- Freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 400 degrees, and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, gently toss together the cheeses.
- Step 2
Arrange heaping tablespoon-size mounds of the cheese mixture on the baking sheets, spacing them at least ½ inch apart. Using your fingers, gently pat down each mound to flatten. (It’s O.K. if there are holes — the cheese will melt into a web.) Grind pepper over each round.
- Step 3
Bake until golden and crisp, 4 to 6 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheets until crisp, then transfer to a serving plate using an offset spatula.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
I’ve made these for years and they’re a wonderful standby for serving with a glass of wine. They keep well in an airtight container for up to a week. A sprinkle of Herbes de Provence is a nice variation as is some chopped rosemary.
I make these in a hot cast iron skillet. Works perfectly and you can tell how brown they are.
I add some chopped walnuts to the cheese. Recipe from Carla Hall. Delicious and always a crowd pleaser!
I made these with cheddar cheese. My first batch did not turn out. They were chewy, not crunchy at all. Why? 1. I put the cheese on too thickly. 2. I did not let the crackers cool on the pan. Once I corrected these things, they were better. However they were NEVER so good as when I made them with Parmesan. I think that the cheddar is just too fatty/greasy to give an ideal result. Will only use Parmesan in the future.
After reading the notes, I made the recipe as stated and loved them. Did put one batch in for 10 minutes instead of 6 and liked them more as they were more cracker-like. So easy and tasty.
FRICO s crisp better if using tinfoil rather than parchment.
We served them tonight, rolled into cigars. When we ran out of pita, they became baba ghanouj dipsticks! Sacrilege? Nope. It was the Lebanese nontraditionalist who created the combo!
Just made these. Used herbs de Provence vs. pepper. They turned out perfectly. Like a few others, i think they’re a bit salty, so next time, maybe 1 cup parmigiana and 1/2 cup pecorino. Psyched to bring them to friends.
These are a staple in low-carb and keto households.
Mix in a tiny, tiny pinch of cayenne. Don’t need the wasteful parchment osper. Just let them cool for a moment, then remove fron the sheet with a thin, flexible spatula. Cool on rack.
Used half Parmesan and half pecorino, and yes, too salty, and honestly a little too greasy. However, I could see them chopped up and sprinkled on a Caesar Salad. They would also make an excellent vegetarian substitute for bacon on a classic wedge salad.
This was a big hit with our guests. I loved the easy win! Parmesan only worked just fine but the combo was yummy too.
This is a great recipe for frico croccante (crunchy frico) not to be confused with the other type of frico, frico di patate, which is a crisp patty of onion, potato, and Montesio, also found in northeast Italy. I always heap up the cheese but not press it down; it should melt into a crisp with a slightly gooey center that way. Helps if you use a cast-iron instead of a baking sheet, whether stovetop or in the oven. Also, I second the walnut idea - not traditional but really tasty!
Can also be made larger (about 6" diameter), and when just cool/firm enough to transfer with a spatula, gently drape over an inverted bowl and leave to droop and then cool completely (10 minutes), ending up with an elegant toasted cheese bowl in which to serve risotto. People love this presentation and it is super-easy. Irregular shape is more interesting than a perfect circle. Also: I always skip the parchment paper and use instead a silicone mat on top of a sheet pan.
Parm is the best cheese for this, in my experience. Freshly grated rather than pre-grated makes a visible difference (taste-able difference too)!
I love these so tried recipe for book club. Had a terrible time with sticking to the parchment paper. Finally tried it directly on a cookie sheet and they still stuck. Had to throw them out. Any suggestions?
Cook until you get some browning on the edges. Six minutes was about right. I also used a screw on canning lid as a form.
I made these according to the recipe, except that I used herbs de provence instead of pepper. They were chewy and a bit greasy. I shredded my own pecorino, but used "fresh" shredded store-bought parmesan. I also used a bit more parm than pecorino given the comments about salt.
Do NOT use wax paper. They stick.
These are better done in the oven than in a frypan . Also easier on parchment. Lift right off.
Oh boy! Guests coming and didn’t feel like cooking. Made these little discs of Italian sunshine. EASY. DELICIOUS. BEAUTIFUL. Got a standing ovation and had to explain 3 times how easy it was.
Might be my oven, but I had to leave them in closer to 7 minutes. Big hit.
A bit chewy, but I'm fine with that. Tasty and perhaps the easiest app that goes in an oven.
I baked the first batch for about 6 minutes at 375 on convection, the second batch 5 minutes at the same temp and used Parmesan only. They were not as crisp as I would like, so will play with time and temperature. I loved the bite from the fresh-ground black pepper! Note: if you use foil instead of parchment, use the non-stick variety or you will spend minutes peeling the foil from the crisps - that was the first batch. Crisps simply lifted off Parchment I used for second batch.
Very good, but very salty.
These were ridiculously easy, and a huge hit with my friends. Based on comments, I used 1 c. parm and 1/2 c pecorino--and they were plenty salty. Also used non-stick foil. They looked like a literal hot mess as they were baking, but separated into something like cracker-shaped when they cooled.
Can also be made larger (about 6" diameter), and when just cool/firm enough to transfer with a spatula, gently drape over an inverted bowl and leave to droop and then cool completely (10 minutes), ending up with an elegant toasted cheese bowl in which to serve risotto. People love this presentation and it is super-easy. Irregular shape is more interesting than a perfect circle. Also: I always skip the parchment paper and use instead a silicone mat on top of a sheet pan.
I've been making these for the past few years as a keto substitute for traditional crackers.
I’ve found that using packaged thinly pregrated cheese, all Parmesan, works well because of the small amount of cornstarch that has been added to keep the cheese from clumping.
Perfectly fine, even better if you spread a thin layer of cheese on an 8" non-stick pan and cook over medium heat until the bottom is melted and crisp. Then a quick flip to brown the top. Drain off any released oil. Break up into several small jagged pieces or use the whole thing to top eggs, chili, soup, salad.
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