An Italian hard, granular cheese made from the unpasteurised milk from cows grazing on fresh grass and hay. The name 'Parmesan' is often used generically for the same cheese made outside the traditional areas of production in Italy. Both the proper name Parmigiano-Reggiano and the 'translation' Parmesan are PDOs.

True Parmesan cheese has a natural rind and a straw coloured interior which is hard, dense, crystalline and grainy in texture with a strong aroma and with a fruity and nutty flavour.