Frico Friabile

Name: Frico Friabile
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Friulana
Ingredients: 150 g montasio mezzano pdo cheese; 100 g montasio stravecchio pdo cheese; 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper

Frico friabile is a delicate, crunchy Friulian cheese crisp made purely from aged Montasio. Known simply as frico croccante in Italian, it is the ancestral version of the dish.

🇮🇹Italy· Friuli Venezia Giulia

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 15 min
Total: 25 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: Easy
Calories: 240 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 3 gathered

Servings

150 g montasio mezzano pdo cheese — aged 6 to 10 months, coarsely grated
100 g montasio stravecchio pdo cheese — aged over 12 months, finely grated
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper — optional, coarsely cracked

Equipment

•Non-stick frying pan (20 cm)
•Box grater
•Thin metal spatula
•Paper towels
•Small bowl (for shaping)

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 240 kcal
fat: 20 g
carbs: 0 g
fibre: 0 g
protein: 16 g
calories: 240 kcal

Instructions

1
Toss both grated Montasio cheeses together evenly in a mixing bowl.
2
Heat a small non-stick frying pan over medium heat without adding any oil.
3
Scatter one-quarter of the cheese evenly across the pan base in a thin, circular layer.
4
Cook gently until the cheese melts, bubbles vigorously, and releases its natural fats.
5
Tamp the surface lightly with a spatula to keep an even thickness.
6
Cook for roughly three minutes until the underside turns a deep golden colour.
7
Flip the cheese wafer carefully with the spatula.
8
Fry the second side for one minute until crisp and golden brown.
9
Lift the wafer out and drain briefly on paper towels to remove excess fat.
10
Drape warm over an inverted bowl to form a basket, or cool flat into a crisp round.
11
Repeat the process with the remaining cheese to make four separate wafers.

Chef's tips

Use aged Montasio rather than fresh cheese, as younger cheese contains too much moisture and will become rubbery instead of brittle. Keep the heat moderate so the cheese fat renders out steadily without scorching.

Ingredient substitutions

Montasio mezzano → aged Piave PDO or aged Asiago d'Allevo
Montasio stravecchio → Grana Padano or Parmigiano Reggiano

Storage

Store completely cooled crisps in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to two days.

Reheating

Reheat for two minutes in a dry hot pan or a warm oven to restore crispness.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Using fresh young cheese, which turns chewy and greasy rather than brittle.
•Piling the grated cheese too thickly in the pan so it cannot crisp through.
•Flipping before the underside has formed a rigid, golden crust.

Serving suggestions

Serve alongside a slice of warm, soft yellow polenta.Break into shards as an accompaniment to a glass of Friulano wine.Shape into a shallow basket while warm and fill with sautéed wild mushrooms.