Here's how to choose the right milk

The milk route: how to choose

The umbilical cord of human history is inextricably linked to milk, which has always been a staple in human nutrition.
Depending on specific local traditions, despite the widespread consumption of cow's milk, there is still a significant consumption of goat's milk, and sheep's milk primarily used for the production of cheeses.
However, buffalo milk holds a premium market thanks to the production of Mozzarella.
Talking about these three types of milk actually means telling the story of three different animals, and often, it is simplistically believed that this aspect can be overlooked, as if milk were a nutrient without differences.

Milk and all dairy products play a fundamental nutritional role in diet.
Thanks to their contribution of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and other trace elements, the main processes of metabolism and child development are activated. But let's see what we discover by analyzing them specifically.Cow's milk or bovine milk is produced by the cow, Bos taurus, and contains 87% water.
It is a white fluid of low density, with a fat content equal to one third of that found in buffalo milk.
It is a moderately light milk, so much so that it is well tolerated even in adulthood by the vast majority of the population, except for personal difficulties in absorbing lactose or allergies.
The lipid content can vary, and based on its percentage, whole milk contains between 2% and 4% fat.
It is used for cheese making, in fermentation for yogurt production, and even by the cosmetic industry for the production of beauty products.
It has a low energy content, mainly determined by the level of skimming.

Buffalo milk is produced by the buffalo, Bubalus bubalis, and contains 81% water.
The high fat content, about three times that of cow's milk, makes this milk denser, even visually, and more useful for cheese preparation.
As it is not a particularly widespread product except in a specific production area that coincides with specific climatic and environmental conditions, its cost is also higher.
Of course, buffalo milk can also be drunk raw, but the ancient Campanian tradition, handed down orally in the families of cheesemakers in the provinces of Salerno and Caserta, teaches that before consumption, the milk was left to rest for a few hours to facilitate the deposit of fats that condensed around the sides of the bottles, facilitating a kind of natural skimming of excess fats.
Furthermore, it was not preferred as weaning milk in favor of donkey milk, which is even lighter than cow's milk.
Recently, buffalo milk is also used for the production of yogurt and cosmetic products created by some dairies in the Salerno area that have launched lines of face and body creams.

The caloric intake also differs: while buffalo milk contains about  100 calories (Kcal) per 100 g, cow's milk is around 63 kcal per 100 g.

At the table, all differences are overcome. In the kitchen, despite an outdated tradition that only fiordilatte should be used on pizza, in Campania, Buffalo Mozzarella is considered a noble ingredient that increases the value of the final product and characterizes its connection to the territory. In addition to being a refreshing food in the history of regional Italian gastronomy, it is present in many recipes for preparing cakes, sweet or savory, from creams to béchamel sauce, from ice creams to puddings.

There are also many meat and fish dishes that use milk: from chicken with milk, to creamed cod, to mashed potatoes and potato gratin, to doughs for rustic pizzas. In post-war Italy, it was customary to prepare first courses with milk: tagliolini with milk, for example, with sugar and cinnamon, are an unforgettable dish, even reaching new generations, especially loved by children.