Prosciutto: what it is, the nuances and features of its use in Italian cuisine. Prosciutto: what is it and how is it prepared? Prosciutto Recipe Homemade Prosciutto Recipe

Parma ham is a leg cured on the bone for 2 months. If its size is smaller, then it can be preserved for a shorter period.

Authentic Parma ham is one of the most famous Italian foods and is often counterfeited. This method reproduces the original exactly, just follow it. It is imperative to follow it and make full use of the ingredients to avoid product spoilage and food poisoning!

Prosciutto with your own hands.
To make Parma Ham you will need:
1 pork leg. Shank, ham, brisket or even undercuts are also good!
Our "Cure Style Parma Ham" that only needs canning and seasoning!

1 Refrigerate the meat overnight.
2. Rub the meat with half of the preservation mixture.

Compound:
Sea salt
brown cane sugar
Ground black pepper
Dried juniper berries
garlic powder
Preservatives (sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite). ATabout France, such ham is made without nitrates.

When using meat on the bone, rub the mixture thoroughly into all crevices.

3. Wrap the meat tightly in cling film or seal in a Ziploc bag or vacuum seal. Leave in the refrigerator for 15 days.
This procedure is designed to ensure that the juice does not flow out. It turns out an average - between dry and wet - methods of salting meat.

4. Remove meat and repeat step 2.
Add the rest of the spices and spices for preservation.

5 Leave the meat to preserve in the refrigerator for another 15 days.

6 Put the meat in warm water for half an hour. (This will remove the salt).

7. Hang the ham for 6 hours in the refrigerator or in a drafty cool room.

8. Hang the ham in a warm room for 3 days.
The drying cabinet is ideal.

9. Thoroughly brush the meat side of the ham with a mixture of lard and black pepper.

10. Hang the ham for at least 30 days at 15 degrees Celsius and 70% relative humidity.

Here is a recipe. It does not contain only the percentage composition of the mixture.

We salt at the rate of 13% of salt by weight of meat.
Grate abundantly (rub thoroughly) the ham with vodka, especially carefully in the places where the bone comes out and rub well with a mixture of salt and sugar (900 g of salt, 5 g of sugar and 50 g of ground pepper, where the ratio of salt and sugar can vary and various herbs can be added to the mixture (herbes de provence)), especially places not covered with a skin. Then rub generously with ground black or hot pepper uncovered areas.
Saltpeter should not be used, so this article is not a guide to action, but simply an illustration of how it is done in the world.

Do you believe that only from the castrated Durok breed hogs, which were fed exclusively with chestnuts with fruits and soldered with whey from the production of parmesan, only in one single place on earth where "an ideal microclimate creates all the conditions for the ripening of dry-cured hams" and where "the breeze blows from with a certain speed and strength, without which it is impossible to obtain a real Parma ham, will it be possible to make the best ham in the world?

Taken from aquatek_philips in

It is possible or not, it is not for me to judge, but the masters of the production of prosciutto, as the famous Parma ham is also called, claim that it is exactly as stated above. Only the right boars, only the feeding of delicacies and only in the town of Langirano with its perfect breeze...
And then you get the best and most famous ham in the world.

Well, let's leave the breeze and the diet of wild boars to specialists, it's better to see how the ham itself is made, when the wild boar is already grown, fattened, sent to the country of eternal hunting and two hams have already been cut off from it ...

2. I will leave all my skepticism beyond the scope of this post and tell what we were told at the production of Parma ham, so to speak, without cuts ..
Prosciutto specialists say that the most important thing in their business is the microclimate of the Parma Valley and the experience developed over the centuries to produce the best ham in the world.
This zone, stretching all the way to the Apennines, is located 22 kilometers south of Parma, near the small town of Langirano. Only here the unique microclimate creates ideal conditions for the ripening of dry-cured hams.
There is no single producer of Parma ham. Several ham producers are concentrated in the vicinity of Langirano, and only their products can be called Prosciutto di Parma.

3. To see the production of ham, we arrived at the Salumificio La Perla factory.
Despite the fact that this is the neighborhood of Parma, the workers are vehemently rooting for Turin's Juventus! But I digress...

4. To be called Parma ham, the product must comply with the conditions fixed at the legislative level, namely: Parma ham can only be produced in the Parma region, from the meat of pigs that were born and raised in Italy, 100% natural products must be used in the production of ham Ingredients.
For the production of ham, pigs aged 9-10 months are used, grown in the regions of Emilia-Romagna, Piedmont, Veneto and Marche. The breeds are called Duroc or Landrace. They are fed cereals, chestnuts and whey from the production of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

5. The weight of the pig should be 100-130kg, and the weight of the leg should be 15-16kg. If the weight of the leg exceeds 16 kg, then it is cut and placed in parts in a net - a slightly different prosciutto will already be made from them.
First of all, the meat is salted. Before salting, pork legs are cooled: they are kept in the refrigerator at a temperature of 2 degrees during the day. Salting is carried out in two stages and takes place manually, which allows you to evenly distribute salt over the entire surface of the carcass. The first stage of salting lasts a week, after which the salt is carefully removed from the product and salted with sea salt for twenty days. After this period, the salt is removed completely.

6. In more or less large industries, salt is removed using brushes on special equipment

7. After salting has passed and the meat is cleaned of salt, it is hung on special frames and sent to the refrigerator to rest.

8. Wash the meat...

9. ... and hang up

10. The hams rest in a refrigerator with a temperature of + 5-6 degrees for about 100 days.

11. By the end of the rest, it looks like this: the fat edges become yellowish, and the cut line is a hard crust

15. Of great importance here are windows that open every day at different distances and at different angles depending on weather conditions.
Meat should be blown by the same breeze!

16. After seven months, the unskinned part of the pig's feet is smeared with a special paste called sugna ("fat"). It consists of fat, salt, rice flour and pepper.

17. And after that he will hang for another 5 months ...

18. ...everything is still indoors with windows that open according to a given schedule to start the right breeze

21. In rooms where hams are hung, temperature and humidity are carefully controlled. These parameters are essential for proper maturation.

22. It is interesting that in many enterprises for the production of Parma ham not only the hams of the enterprise itself hang, but also the meat of customers is dried. They bring "their" legs, put special stamps on the hams, and then work with them according to the general algorithm, along with other client and their own hams

24. And here comes the most important moment: the prosciutto is checked for quality.
This is done by a special inspector and only he has the right to decide whether the ham can be labeled as "Parma ham".

25. They check the ham for maturity with a special bone stick-needle, which was mine yesterday mystery .
The pork leg is pierced at five specific points, and by the smell remaining on the sticks, the inspector determines whether the product can be called Parma ham.

26. If the inspector considers that everything is in order and the ham is ripe, it is branded in the form of a crown with the inscription "Parma".
Naturally, each leg is checked without exception!

27. Now hams can be returned to customers, sent to customers and ... eaten)

28. Well, the classic form of serving Parma ham - with melon and cool Lambrusco ...

The famous name of prosciutto can be carried by dry-cured ham, created exclusively in Italy. Its cooking technology has been carefully preserved and observed since the time of the Romans.

Prosciutto is prepared in different regions of Italy according to a similar recipe. But the difference in seemingly insignificant nuances makes it possible to significantly differ in taste the ham cooked, for example, in Parma, from the Jambon Valle d’Aosta.

Jambon is also dry-cured ham, just the proximity of the region to the French territories gave it such a sonorous name.

Most varieties of prosciutto in their names have the mandatory postscript DOP, Prosciutto di Parma DOP, Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP, Prosciutto di Modena DOP, Prosciutto Toscano DOP, Prosciutto Veneto Berico-Euganeo DOP, Prosciutto di Carpegna DOP, Valle d'Aosta Jambon de Bosses DOP.

This abbreviation is used to protect products of national brands. This is a kind of guarantee that prosciutto is made only in the place stated in the name, with the strictest observance of technologies and cooking features.

Cooking prosciutto: the secrets of technology

The technology for preparing prosciutto in all regions is generally identical, but it also has its differences. The taste of the dish is affected by:

• pig breed,
• her pasture,
• fattening diet,
• weight and age of the carcass at the time of slaughter,
• used set of spices,
• salting and ripening period,
• even the peculiarities of the climate of the area where the ham was cured.

Prosciutto at home: is it possible?

At first glance, it may seem that you can easily cook prosciutto at home on your own. This is not true. Of course, such meat has no right to be called prosciutto, but it’s quite possible to cook a good homemade dry-cured pork ham.

To do this, the meat is rubbed with dry sea salt, and very plentifully. The salting period depends on the weight and age of the ham - on average, this is a period of 10 to 20 days. Then the meat is washed and allowed to rest.

It is advisable to put the meat under the press - so the excess moisture will come out of it. Then the open cut, not protected by the skin, is smeared with a mixture of softened lard, pepper, preferred spices and dried herbs. A light Italian touch of taste will give the meat a mixture of Provence herbs.

Then follows the drying process, which is considered the most responsible: slight fluctuations in humidity can easily turn all efforts into ashes. The ham can simply bloom, which most often happens. That is why not every cook gets dry-cured meat. That is why few people are engaged in such a business, only true experts in this matter undertake to prepare real prosciutto.

The ripening of the ham should occur gradually, with a slowly but surely rising temperature and decreasing humidity in the room. The drying period, again, is a matter of taste: it can be 10 months, or maybe two years.

What kind of prosciutto to choose?

prosciutto cotto

For the first experience of self-cooking ham, it is better to experiment with meat that is cooked. In Italy, such ham is called prosciutto cotto, and there is no particular specificity in its preparation.

It's just a good tasty habitual ham, with which it is customary to cook delicious sauce to carbonara spaghetti, to be included in the list of ingredients for many prosciutto salads and appetizers. The popular pizza "Prosciutto e fungi" is prepared with cotto ham and mushrooms.

It is worth noting here that the ham that is sold in our stores at a price that does not reach the price fresh meat, not only cannot be compared with prosciutto cotto, but by and large should not be called ham.

Prosciutto crudo

Prosciutto crudo is cured meat. The method of preparing crudo all over the world is associated with the very name of prosciutto, so it is somehow not customary to mention this. Only one variety of prosciutto has this designation in its name - Crudo from Cuneo (Crudo di Cuneo DOP). Thus, it was singled out from the general list of dry-cured ham.

The fact is that this is the only variety of prosciutto where vinegar is used in cooking. Only at the beginning of our millennium did it receive the DOP designation and the long-awaited recognition.

The taste of all varieties of prosciutto crudo is subtle and self-sufficient - it does not require improvements or additions, so most often this product is served as an independent dish.

Prosciutto di parma

The most popular and beloved all over the world variety of prosciutto for a very long time is the product from Parma. The legendary Prosciutto di Parma DOP has its own characteristic, pronounced and unique taste, about which there is actually a legend associated with the great and terrible Carthaginian commander Hannibal, who lived in the second century BC.

The age of the Parma prosciutto recipe is no less impressive than its delicate, delicate and slightly sweet taste.

Usually these are the thinnest translucent slices with crostini or fruit. Although experts do not recommend eating melon during and after meals, but it was in combination with melon prosciutto di parma that conquered the world.

Prosciutto and jamon: the difference

Many connoisseurs of meat delicacies are wondering what is the difference between jamon and prosciutto?

Naturally, such a product as prosciutto cannot but have analogues in other countries. The Spaniards perfectly cook the no less famous jamon, which, like prosciutto in Italy, is a national treasure of Spain and has its own special marking for the uniqueness of cooking and taste.

The general principle of preparing prosciutto and jamon is very similar, but a huge number of distinctive nuances makes them still different products. Connoisseurs easily recognize the difference between jamon and prosciutto not only by the color and texture of dry-cured pork: the meat of animals fed on acorns of century-old cork oaks has a special, unforgettable and incomparable taste.

When visiting Italy, do not deny yourself the pleasure of trying a real Italian delicacy - prosciutto. Arrange an unforgettable holiday of taste!

Among the culinary novelties mastered by our compatriots, the leading place is occupied by the delights of Italian cuisine. Probably, the inhabitants of this bright country are close to us, if not in spirit, then in food preferences. Even if someone does not like pizza, he is quite able to choose some delicacy in Italian cooking that will conquer the fussy for the rest of his life.

Prosciutto is one of those gastro-conquering discoveries. What it is, not everyone knows, but meanwhile, very many would be happy for themselves if they tried it.

Italian fat

Of course, to call this delicacy that way is rude and unfair. Prosciutto is not worth the name. That it is a type of bacon or ham is beyond doubt, but it is a very distinguished ham.

The history of prosciutto is lost in the darkness of centuries. It is known for sure that it already existed in the days of Ancient Rome, but since then it has greatly improved in taste. Some analogues exist among many nationalities: the Spaniards praise jamon, the French consider jambon to be the pinnacle of ham taste, but only the Italians have really reached perfection.

Manufacturing features

Subtleties and tricks begin with the maintenance and fattening of livestock going to prosciutto. That this affects the taste of the final product is beyond doubt. For any kind of this ham, the pigs are fattened on fruits and acorns, but in every province that makes prosciutto, there are secrets even in the diet of the animals. One of the secrets revealed by Parma is that pigs are fed there with the whey that remains during the production of Parma cheese. As a result, the prosciutto of this province has a completely different taste from other areas.

The same goes for spices. While Parma makes do with sea salt only, in other places they use pepper and garlic, and in still others, specially selected herbs.

Varieties of prosciutto

Based on the main technological differences, it can be of two types. When a prosciutto ham called crudo is cooked, the pork leg is smoked raw. Moreover, for this variety of pigs, they are fed mainly with corn and fruits. Smoking, on the other hand, takes at least eight months, and in some cases drags on for up to two years. Among this category of hams, Cuneo prosciutto stands apart. That this is also cool is undeniable, but this bacon is made using vinegar, although there is not much of it.

The second type of Italian bacon is called cotto. It is first steamed (or fried, depending on the place of manufacture) and only then smoked, and the second stage is much shorter than in the case of prosciutto crudo.

How to buy quality prosciutto

First of all, when buying Italian fat, you need to carefully study the labeling. The packaging must be marked PDO Prosciutto. If it is not there, most likely it is an imitation, not even made in Italy. Many of these fakes cannot be eaten without frying, and they don’t even remotely resemble prosciutto in taste.

It is also advisable to buy it not in a vacuum bag: the taste in such a package is quickly lost, but the appearance remains the same. As a result, you will not get what you were striving for.

If we ignore the inscriptions and packaging, then the prosciutto should have a thick layer of fat, and this fat should be white, turning pink at the transition to meat. The meat layer is not brown, not bright pink and tender even in appearance. Give it a try, don't hesitate. If you feel an unpleasant taste of rancidity, you should not take the product or stored it incorrectly, or the expiration date is nearing its end, or this piece has been removed from the vacuum film.

Can Italian ham be homemade?

Once you try the famous prosciutto, you really don’t want to refuse it. In stores, it is often not of very high quality; it is necessary to store such ham in compliance with certain rules. Therefore, many people have a question about whether it is possible to make prosciutto at home? There is only one answer to it: absolutely not! Remember how dried ham begins with a properly fattened pig. And if you don’t have your own pig farm plus oak forests for harvesting acorns, plus the secrets of Italian masters, you won’t be able to get the right meat for prosciutto. Even in his homeland, not all provinces are entrusted with fattening cattle for the beloved bacon.

Yes, and for the production of dry-cured pork, you need a smokehouse and skills to work with it. Without a doubt, you can learn, try, acquire the necessary equipment and, as a result, get high-quality ham, far superior to store-bought varieties. But for prosciutto only to Italians!

What to eat with prosciutto

Usually it is used just like ham in thin slices with something. The nuance is that along with prosciutto, kiwi, figs or melons are served, which emphasize and set off its taste.

However, the Italians use their bacon in complex dishes e.g. in soups. In this case, it is added at the very end of cooking, so that it does not lose its unique flavor and does not boil out.

Prosciutto also goes into pizza, which becomes almost festive dish. If it acts as a meat component of the dinner, boiled vegetables like peas or asparagus become a side dish. An interesting dish with prosciutto, the recipe of which was already liked by our people: they wrap it like a sausage, for example, veal, or, on the contrary, hide the prosciutto itself in a straw of bread or a small melon.

This wonderful ham is also part of salads. One of the most delicious with arugula, tomatoes and parmesan. To prepare it, the cheese is rubbed so that an air mass is obtained. The arugula is laid out artistically, the tomatoes are cut into thin slices and placed on top. The slide is sprinkled with cheese, and prosciutto is already laid out on it in stripes. All this wealth is flavored with mustard sauce, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, herbs, salt and pepper. Delicious until you lose your pulse!

A full-fledged dish is such a prosciutto: a recipe with potatoes and mushrooms. Prepared for him mashed potatoes, fried on butter mushrooms (what are), after which garlic, wine and mustard are added to them. In this form, the mushrooms should be stewed for a couple of minutes, then add the cream and a couple more minutes. Beef steaks are wrapped in thin slices of prosciutto and fried in vegetable oil for 3 minutes each side. Then the steaks are wrapped in foil, under which they languish on the table for several minutes until you set the table. With mashed potatoes, mushrooms and lettuce, just a great dish.