Jamon - what is it and how is it prepared in Spain. All about jamon - what is it and what is eaten with What is jamon in cooking

Greetings, dear readers of my blog! Do you know what is in the photo below? This is jamon, tasty, nutritious and not accessible to everyone. However, I found out about this much later, after eating it for breakfast at my friend's for a whole month. My friend is not at all rich, how could he afford such a delicacy?

Who doesn't love delicious food? I think that there are such people, but they definitely will not read this article. The temptation is too great. But gastronomic gourmets will probably be very interested to know how jamon is prepared. Real Spanish.

Jamon - what is it

Jamon is a cured ham. The Spaniards do not attach much importance to this name. Why do we, at the sight of such an impressive piece, have food hallucinations and a desire to definitely taste this product? Everything is simple. This is due to its relative inaccessibility. Let's just say - on holidays and a little.

Meanwhile, the Romans ate a similar product more than 2000 years ago. This is confirmed by the mention of him in the manuscripts of Martial and Diocletian. Already in those days it was a special dish, the guests of the emperors were treated to the foot and the victories in the conquests were celebrated. After the fall of the Roman Empire, jamon appeared in the monastic diet. And in order for the Jews and Arabs to live in the country, they had to accept Christianity and publicly taste a piece of it.

There are no facts about the creator of the jamon in history. But there is a legend according to which the Pyreneans thought about cooking nutritious and long-term stored meat after a drowned pig was caught from the salty water of one source. After some thought, they found the key to a product that would not deteriorate in a long trip and perfectly saturate and restore strength. And it was not necessary to invent anything supernatural: everyone bred pigs, and nature itself gave salt.

In the II century BC. in the book "De re agricola" Marcus Porcius Cato describes the method of salting pork feet. In fact, this was the first official recipe for making jamon. Since then, it has practically not changed, and the state "supervises" the production technology.

How jamon is made in Spain

It all starts with pigs

Pigs of 2 breeds, honored to become jamon, 10 recent months of their lives graze on spacious pastures with juicy wild fragrant under supervision. In their diet, cork oak acorns give the meat a unique taste.

From the ham of a white pig, jamon is obtained - serrano, from a black ham - Iberico.

The cooking process begins with cutting off excess fat and keeping the pork meat in sea salt for 2 weeks. Then, the hams are washed and hung to remove moisture and uniform salting. This stage lasts from six months to two years. The future jamon ripens in special cellars with a special microclimate. After a while, the meat acquires a distinctive taste and aroma. It is on them that the product is classified for further sale. The readiness of the meat is checked with a thin long needle. A professional expert pierces it in three places and issues a verdict on the completion of the process.

Interestingly, in Spain, an order for ham often starts with unborn pigs. The buyer waits for his product for 2-3 years and, if desired, can admire his maturing property. Most of the ordered copies hang on hooks with plaques bearing the names of the owners.

The taste of Spanish jamon is enjoyed not only by the Spaniards themselves. The product is successfully exported to other countries, including Russia (if not for the crisis and economic sanctions). It can even be ordered through the right online stores. Such a tidbit costs from 15,000 rubles on average. Of course, in retail it is not sold as a whole, but by weight. 100 g of ham will cost you about 500-700 rubles. Tasty, but not enough for one.

However, there is a workaround to make Spanish ham a regular on your table.

How to prepare jamon at home

You can also cook jamon at home, unless, of course, there are rooms for its “ripening”: a well-ventilated attic or cellar.

We start with the choice of meat. Ideally, you need to find a "master" of the pig, who feeds them with natural feed, and not with special additives. The taste of the "Spanish" jamon will turn out if the pigs were fattened with acorns.

WE WILL NEED:

• PORK HAM KILOGRAM FOR 4-5;
• A LOT OF SALT - UP TO APPROXIMATELY 20 KG (LOAR AND SMALL) AND BETTER SEA;
• BIG WARE;
• RESERVE PATIENCE FOR 1.5 YEARS.

Cut the skin and fat from the ham, sprinkle with salt and leave for 2 weeks. Then rinse with plenty of water and hang on a hook in a ventilated area to dry. It is necessary to gradually increase the air temperature. So excess moisture will come out of the meat and at the same time the volume of the piece will greatly decrease. After six months, move the meat to the attic or place it in the cellar, where there is better ventilation, and leave it for at least 12 months. At the same time, do not forget to check if the ham is intact and intact.

The finished dry-cured ham is not stored in the refrigerator, just hang it in the kitchen and cut it into thin slices.

By the way, in Spain, he is professionally engaged in cutting jamon - jamonero, a person with special cutting skills and special tools for this.

What is jamon served with?

At home, you can experiment with jamon, combining its taste with other products. Lots of videos on YouTube channel, here is one of them:

The only advice is to add ham to the dish shortly before it is fully cooked, its taste deteriorates from heating.

leg as it is

Jamon - useful or harmful?

Eating jamon is not only tasty, but also healthy. Being a dietary product, it can be consumed at any age. For 50-70%, the fat of such dried meat consists of an acid indispensable for our body - monounsaturated oleic. Only she is able to cleanse our blood of cholesterol.

People suffering from hypertension, atherosclerosis and diseases digestive system you can eat jamon, but little by little. And with intolerance to pork - the product is contraindicated.

On this, friends, I end my story, although there is still a lot to tell about jamon. As usual, I look forward to your comments. If the article is useful, you liked it, subscribe to new interesting articles on the blog. I would be grateful if you share the information with your friends on social networks.

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Jamon is a real gourmet dish. This is not lard with garlic! There are a number of rules for eating cured Spanish ham. After all, it is so breathtakingly expensive that it would be truly a pity if you do not feel its delicious aroma in full.

What helps to “reveal” the taste of jamon? Oddly enough, it's a fruit. Take a piece of ham and wrap a fig or melon in it. Pieces of pear or dates will do. Pierce the roll with a skewer. After making several of these rolls, put on a plate on the table. You can put several large olives on the dish - for beauty.

Of course, alcohol must be served with ham. Just what is it? It would be natural to serve Spanish wine with Spanish ham. White or red? It's a matter of time of day. White wine can be drunk during the day, but dry red wine in the evening. Sherry and even traditional Russian vodka, as well as grap, are also suitable.

Do not think, however, that only Spanish and Italian wines can be consumed with jamon and prosciutto. Moldavian or Crimean wines are not bad. The main thing is to choose a quality bottle.

A glass of red Bardot or Amontillado sherry will perfectly complement the festive aroma of ham. Do not take too expensive wine. A simple taste of alcohol is able to bring out the taste of ham in the best way. After all, fine wine requires special attention, while the ham itself is a bouquet of aromas. Another point: if you try the Sareano ham, you can choose almost any wine. Champagne sparkling will also not be superfluous. But Iberico is a completely different matter. A piquant aroma can drown out the taste of sweet wine. So choose something low in sugar. The strength of the drink depends on your preferences - and the time of day, of course.

In order not to be “boring” on the table, you can make a salad. Also, using jamon. To do this, you will need lettuce, cucumber and pear. It is necessary to pull out the core of the pear, cut it into slices. Cucumber should be cut into "rings", chop the lettuce coarsely. No need to stir the salad, put it on a dish in layers and decorate with "buds" of ham. Drip some lemon and olive oil.

Jamon is a unique delicacy of Spanish cuisine, rightfully considered one of its main calling cards. Often, knowing the name jamon, what it is, we can hardly imagine. And this is the name of pork cooked using a special technology, more precisely, the hind leg of a pig.

Due to the long production process, the climatic conditions of the country of origin, a unique taste of the product is achieved, which, once tasted, cannot be confused with anything else, unless, of course, it was a real jamon, and not a fake.

By the way, using a similar technology, the Spaniards prepare the product from the front legs of the pig, but the difference between the finished products in all respects is so great that they even assigned a separate name to what is obtained from the front leg - a pallet. This option is also good, but the real jamon is obtained only from the pork ham from the back leg.

What kind of finished product should be obtained as a result of the production cycle depends on the breed of the pig and its fattening.

It is customary to distinguish two varieties of jamon:

1. Serrano jamon, or mountain jamon.
2. Jamon Iberico ("black leg").

Visually, they differ from each other in the color of the hoof: in Serano it is white, in Iberico it is black.

In turn, serrano is divided into the following subspecies:

• curado;
• reserve;
• bodega.

Between themselves, they differ in the aging period: respectively, seven, nine and twelve months.

Iberico has two varieties:

• de cebo;
• belloto.

The difference in their preparation is determined by the fact that pigs for the first option in Spain are fattened with acorns and fodder, and for the second option only acorns are suitable for the animals' diet.

The breed of the pig also matters. For the preparation of Iberico, animals of the same breed are used, the meat of which has a unique texture. For a cheaper serrano, outbred individuals are also suitable.

How do Spaniards prepare jamon?

The technology for preparing the national Spanish delicacy consists of six long stages:

1. Salting.
2. Flushing.
3. Salting.
4. Drying.
5. Maturation.
6. Tasting.

At the first stage, excess fat is cut off from the pork leg, after which it is covered with abundant sea salt and left for a couple of weeks in a cool room. During this time, excess moisture is removed from the ham.

At the end of the process, excess salt is washed off the meat under running water and hung vertically.

When the water drains, the meat is placed in special chambers with a special temperature regime, which ensures an even distribution of salt throughout the entire volume of the future product. This process takes up to two months.

But the most interesting is yet to come. Then the jamon is hung out to dry. It lasts from six months to a year, and during this time subcutaneous fat is absorbed into the meat.

And then the half-finished product is placed in a cellar with a special microclimate, which ensures the ripening of the meat and what the manufacturer wants to get at the exit.

In general, the production of high-quality jamon can take up to three years.

The tasting process ends. The manufacturer pierces the meat with a special bone needle and evaluates how ripe it is by smell.

As you can see, this process is not easy and slow. So, no matter how strong the interest is, how to cook jamon at home, perhaps it is worth delegating these powers to professionals. Of course, you can try to make it on your own, but how authentic will the resulting product be?

Besides great importance in the production of jamon have climatic conditions, and we have them very different from Spanish. Therefore, even if everything is done correctly and strictly according to technology, nothing can be guaranteed. In addition, it is not enough just to cook the product, it is important to know how to store jamon. Whether to start home-made jamon production is up to everyone to decide.

Where can you try jamon?

Since ham is a premium product due to the exclusivity of its manufacturing technology and high taste, you can’t expect it to be cheap.

Yes, and it is not easy to get it in today's conditions. Indeed, as a result of the events of 2014, he, like many products produced in the EU countries, fell under sanctions and was banned from being imported into Russia.

However, even before the sanctions and the fall of the ruble against the euro, the price of jamon in Russian supermarkets was considerable - up to 15 thousand rubles for one leg weighing about 8 kilograms.

It will not be cheap if you try it directly at home, that is, in Spain. You can buy it without any problems business card local cuisine is sold in any butcher shop or large supermarket. But the price, adjusted for the current exchange rate of the ruble, is impressive - from 150 euros per leg of the simplest variety to 300 and more for Iberico.

However, for the sake of the first sample, you can take not the whole leg, but order some chopped jamon at a local restaurant. And he is in Spain in every self-respecting institution. And how much it costs there is determined by the level of the cafe or restaurant, and the type of product.

It must be borne in mind that in Spain it is produced in all provinces, except for those located directly by the sea. The quality of the product in the country is very reverent, each province marks its products with a special sign and strictly monitors that manufacturers do not harm its reputation. If you decide to open your own business, then you will need second-hand technological equipment for restaurants and cafes, it can be purchased on the website - bu-horeca.com.ua.

How to eat jamon

Jamon is important not only to cook in compliance with the technology, but also cut properly. How to cut jamon is a whole science.

Gotta cut it very thin slices. Only in this form it can preserve the whole range of flavors. This requires a cutting board and a special knife.

Naturally, it cannot but arouse interest with what jamon is. And this question is not idle. For example, familiar to us when eating meat products bread is not recommended. Spaniards themselves like to use it in combination With figs or slices of ripe melon. It is believed that their sweetness sets off the taste of the product itself in the best possible way.

Jamon analogues in other countries

The closest gastronomic, so to speak, relative of jamon is an Italian dish. porsciutto. It is also called Parma ham, but this is only partly true. To be completely accurate, it fully corresponds to ham in the sense we are used to, only one variety of porsciutto - cotto. Before salting and drying, Italian culinary masters boil it.

And here is the variety crudo prepared according to a technology similar to jamon, with the only difference being that the Italians dry it for a maximum of 14 months. And some difference in taste with Spanish jamon is provided by the breed of pigs, the technology of their feeding and climatic features Italy.

Being on a par with such delicacies as black caviar and truffles, Spanish jamon is considered a true gastronomic symbol of its country.

The word jamón in translation simply means "ham". But all over the world it is known as a unique dry-cured delicacy with a unique taste and aroma. Below we will tell you what kind of meat jamon is made in Spain and where you can try it.

What is ham

Specialized establishments in Barcelona where you can buy Spanish jamon:

• Jamonarium(Passeig Sant Joan, 181) with different varieties meat, cutting and storage accessories, . The price of a package of Serrano variety is 3.20-3.85 €.
• Casa Alfonso(Roger de Lluria, 6) - here you can have lunch and see with your own eyes how jamon is made in Spain.

How much does a spanish delicacy cost

They sell dried ham in supermarkets, butchers or markets. In Spain, the price of jamon directly depends on the type of meat and the producer. For example, cutting jamón serrano (200 g) in a chain supermarket costs from 2 €. On the market, a kilogram of jamón serrano can be bought for 8-9 €, jamón ibérico for 25-30 €.

In butcher shops and hamoneriya the price will be different. Jamon is sold sliced ​​​​and whole hams there. Sliced ​​jamón serrano (100 g) - about 4 €, jamón ibérico (80 g) - from 12 to 25 €. The price of 7 kg hams is 90-100 € (serrano) and 225-850 € (ibérico, depending on the variety).

The rarest and most expensive jamon, Manchado de Jabugo, is produced by Dehesa Maladúa. approximate price"precious" delicacy - 4100 € per ham.

Cooking jamon is a complex and time-consuming process, which explains its high cost. But you will not find the best souvenir in the country, because you will bring an authentic piece of Spain as a gift to friends and family.

Alexander Gushchin

I can't vouch for the taste, but it will be hot :)

Content

Spanish jamon meat is not ham, but dry-cured pork. It is a delicious homemade delicacy made from the hind leg of a pig that has been salted, dried and then cured. The dish contains practically no cholesterol, you can eat it every day. It differs from Parma ham (prosciutto) in that the taste of dried ham is more salty due to the difference in production technology. Every Spaniard knows what jamon is.

Spanish jamon

Jamon - what is it? In Spain, these types of jamon are made:

• Serrano - inexpensive with a white hoof. It is obtained from the meat of white pigs, and it ripens from seven months to a year.
• Iberico - will cost more, with a black hoof. Black pigs of the Iberian breed with early age fattened with corn, then graze in the mountainous expanses, taking a photo. Before slaughter, they feed acorns for several months, achieving a special smell and taste. The most expensive beyot and resevo. Buying outside of Spain is difficult.

How is jamon made

What is jamon made of, how is it salted and ripened:

1. The dish is made from the back leg, removing excess fat, covered with sea salt for two weeks. The process takes place in a cold room, at a temperature of 0 to + 8°C. It is important to know how to prepare the foot for the next process.
2. Then they are washed from excess salt, dried, shaped and hung vertically.
3. Then they are dried and the degree of salinity is equalized in a humid chamber from 1 to 2 months.
4. Drying completes the main process of the recipe: the hams hanging vertically ripen. The suitability is determined by piercing with a beef bone needle, a conclusion is made according to a special aroma.

What do you eat jamon with?

The product is considered a diet food, contains healthy fats, low calorie content. What is jamon with? Olives, herbs, cheeses (delicious with curado) are suitable for the dish. Spaniards stew ham with shrimp, add it to salads, because it gives any dish a unique taste and aroma. Small daily portions of ham are considered a diet when it comes to cooking. put before a professional: it is delicious with red dry wine, beer. Thinness for cooking hot dishes - adding at the end of cooking so that the fat is slightly melted.

How to make jamon at home

How to cook properly dried homemade ham? To cook it at home, you need to choose and buy fresh piglet meat (hind leg), a well-ventilated cool room. It is important that the pig is fed acorns, then the dish will be called jamon. The type of ham will add color to Spain, fill the room with a pleasant aroma. The preparation of the dish takes a long time, almost like beef, and it is expensive to buy such a ham.

Ingredients:

• Ham;
• sea ​​salt is 3 times the weight of the ham itself, a little ordinary salt.

Cooking method:

1. Clean pork ham from fat, sprinkle with salt.
2. Keep for 2 weeks in a cool room to evenly salted.
3. Rinse off excess salt, shape.
4. Hang in a well-ventilated area to dry. Periodically change the temperature from lower to higher so that the sweating process occurs (excess fat and moisture are removed).
5. After that, the ham is taken out to the cellar for ripening, for about 12 months. After that, you can cut the meat.