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Air-Dried Hams
Appears in
By Ole Mouritsen and Klavs Styrbæk
Published 2014
The practice of air drying hams is common in many parts of Europe, based on folk traditions that go back for centuries. They are both found as staple homemade products in country markets and sold as luxury goods of the highest quality. Three of the most famous ones come from the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, and France.
Jamón serrano is air-dried mountain ham made from the meat of Landrace white pigs and black-footed wild pigs. The most sought after is pata negra, also called jamón iberico de bellota, as it comes from free-range pigs that forage in the forests of Spain and Portugal. Because the pigs eat great quantities of acorns, the combination of fats in their meat mirrors the content of unsaturated fatty acids in the wild oak nuts. As a result, the fat is softer and the texture and mouthfeel of the ham are more pleasing.