Romano cheese is an American and Canadian term for a class of cheeses, some of them Italian, including Pecorino Romano, a hard, salty cheese, suitable primarily for grating, from which the name is derived.
Per U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, Romano cheese can be made from cow, goat, and/or sheep's milk and must be aged at least five months.
Dry milk and water can be added. Milk can be bleached with benzoyl peroxide or a mixture of benzoyl peroxide with potassium alum, calcium sulfate, and magnesium carbonate. Safe artificial coloring may be added.
Rennet does not need to be used and any "suitable milk-clotting enzyme that produces equivalent curd formation" suffice.
Romano is often served grated on pasta as an alternative to Parmesan.
