Blog Jack Extra: About Spanish Dry-cured Ham by Owner Husband

Hello! And it's easy to forget when you're here, but it's been a new year in Japan since yesterday. I think it was a transition period in various life such as entering the school, advancing to the next grade, repeating a year, joining the company, transferring, and retiring. Sincerely from Barcelona! congratulations! And I sincerely wish you all the best in your future endeavors.

Well, last time I posted Part 1 of "Why I moved to Barcelona". the reaction. . .

It wasn't much. Sweat

So, for the time being, I would like to take a break this time, and write about my favorite prosciutto ham , which was the reason (?) for moving here! I have a feeling that who would be interested in such a thing, but the word ham is quite deep, so if you have even a little interest, time and patience, please keep in touch! smile

When you think of Spanish ham, the first thing that comes to mind, or perhaps you've heard of it, is Jamon Serrano . In Japan, I have the impression that this is marketed as a luxury item. But don't be fooled! In Spain, serrano is a cheap ham that is usually used as a sandwich sandwich or stir-fried with something. Jamon Iberico , which uses Iberian pork, which is well-known in Japan, is considered to be high-class and delicious. There are various grades of Jamon Iberico, so let's dig deeper.

Jamon Serrano is made from a common white pig, and the easiest way to identify it is by its white hooves. The taste is also significantly lower than that using Iberian pork.

On the other hand, Iberico pig is actually the name of the breed, and it is a black pig of the original Spanish breed. Jamon Iberico is a ham made from this pig. Black pigs have black hooves, so they can be easily distinguished from Serrano pigs. The taste is much more delicious than Serrano, and you can see that the quality of fat and aroma are completely different. However, in general, jamon refers to the back leg , and the ham made from the front leg is called Paletta . Paletta has more fat and is said to have a stronger punch, but I personally think it is a little salty and lacks umami. Jamon, on the other hand, has just the right amount of fat, has a strong umami flavor, and is not very salty, so it tastes like tuna fatty. Personally, I'm an overwhelming Hamon faction. And in the market, the same pig jamon and palletta are traded at twice the price of the jamon. This is probably because jamon is generally considered to be more delicious.

The biggest influence on the taste of these hams, yes, is the diet. Have you ever heard of a ham called Iberico Bellota ? Bellota means "acorn" in Spanish. Ham made from acorn-fed pigs is called Iberico Bellota. Of course, acorns are natural, so pigs can graze outside and grow without stress. I believe there was a strict regulation that allowed only a maximum number of animals per hectare to be shipped under the name of Iberico Bellota.

Conversely, for example, a half-acorn, half-fed pig is called an Iberico Recevo, and a completely forage-fed and barn-fed pig is called a Sebo.

However, acorns do not fall around all year round, and can only be eaten in autumn, so in other seasons, it seems that pigs for Iberico Bellota are actually fed. However, in the autumn before shipping, the pigs are fed with 100% acorns, and the delicious acorns circulate through the pigs before they are shipped.

As you can imagine, the Iberico Bellota, and of course the hind legs, are the most delicious and fetch the highest prices. It is said that the fat content is almost the same as that of olive oil, and the fat has a low melting point, so it melts just by placing it on the palm of your hand. When you eat it, the fat melts and spreads in your mouth the moment you put it in your mouth, and it's delicious. It's acorn fat, so it's very light and you can eat as much as you want.

In Spain, it sells for just over 20 euros per 100g, but in Japan, it sells for more than double the price of department stores. It was quite difficult to get my hands on this, so I bought a whole leg at a reasonable price in Japan. Lol However, if you buy a whole one, it will be very difficult to cut it. wry smile

As an aside, when you buy a whole bottle, the storage method is difficult. After eating the day's portion, apply olive oil and wrap it in plastic wrap, or cover the surface again with a chunk of fat that you have cut off and saved to dry. must be prevented. Personally, I think it would take at least 3 or 4 months to finish eating all of it, but according to an expert, it would be best to finish eating it in 2 weeks. So the only way to eat it deliciously is to do hampa.

In addition to feeding, the aging period is also important, but the basics are aged in a warehouse for 24 months before shipping. A long one is 36 months, and recently I've started seeing 60 months (whiskey!).

In fact, I wanted to know the origin of the deliciousness of this ham, so in November 2018, I persuaded my wife and son to go on a family trip to the city of Jabugo in the southern part of Spain, and visit an Iberian pig farm and a ham factory. I had a valuable experience such as interacting with pigs, watching the manufacturing process, and comparing tastes. There were a lot of new discoveries.

It's too maniacal, but by the way, Jabugo is one of the two major ham producing areas in Spain, along with Extremadura . I'm a Jabugo person.

picture? what about the rest of the legs? What? That's a tough question! The other parts are also salted and processed like so-called ham, or sold as raw meat. However, so-called Iberico Bellota (100% acorn) raw meat is rarely available outside of production areas, so the loin steak I ate there was surprisingly delicious. What's more, in Spain, quality control is very strict when it comes to good pork, so it's safe to say that people eat rare pork steaks.

And I wrote something too maniac indifferently, so if you've read this far, please stand up (Eminem style). I'm assuming it's one or two people. wry smile

However, I think that you will be able to eat more delicious ham in the future!

If you want to know more about ham, click here .

If you press ↑, you're already a fine ham addict! This was also a fake button. smile

Next time I will send you "Why did you emigrate series Part 2". stay tuned!

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