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Iberian ham comes from the limbs of the Iberian pig, an animal bred only in the Iberian Peninsula with physiological traits that are different from other breeds of pig, and which make it unique in the world, such as its exclusive capacity to infiltrate fat into the muscle, among other differences. As a result, its meat is very juicy and tasty, resulting in a ham that is incomparable to any other on the market. Thus, it is recognised worldwide as a gastronomic jewel that is produced exclusively in Spain. We explain everything you need to know if you want to try and buy Iberian ham.
Did you know that Iberian ham corresponds to the hind leg of the authentic Iberian Peninsula pig? Let's start at the beginning, investigating a little more about this ham based on three variables that allow us to differentiate it perfectly: the breed, the diet and the origin.
The Iberian pig is a unique species with characteristics that differentiate it from other animals of the same species, such as, for example, the ability to infiltrate fat into the muscle. Physically speaking, these animals have a well-proportioned head and a pointed snout, unlike other types of pigs, the Iberian pig has a powerful neck, a drooping dewlap, medium-sized ears in the shape of a visor and a large belly. Its limbs, the ones we are most interested in when talking about ham, are slender.
Another of the most important variables to take into account in order to differentiate Iberian ham, and above all 100% Iberian ham from the rest, is, as we say at Enrique Tomas: "the cooking". This cooking is nothing more and nothing less than the conditions in which the leg is preserved, in the amount of salt, the storage temperature and the curing time. In short, a ham is cured with time, wisdom, care and salt.
In the case of Jamón Ibérico, it can take five years from the time the animal is born, when the whole process is finished and we buy it. For the curing, the Jamón has to be salted and left to cure at an exact temperature. This curing process lasts between thirty-six and forty-eight months, depending on the weight of each piece.
The types of Iberian ham are obviously determined by the breed, which will always be Iberian, the place or places where it has been reared and, most importantly, the type of feed it has been fed as an adult.
An exclusively farm-raised Iberian pig has been fed on feed and cereals, also as an adult. These are usually 50% Iberian breed pigs. That is, 100% Iberian mother and non-Iberian father.
· The result is a Jamón de cebo Ibérico
This Iberian pig usually has a breed percentage of 50% or 75% Iberian breed and has been reared partly on the farm where it has fed on feed and partly in the countryside where it has grazed freely and fed on wild fruits and herbs.
· The result is a Jamón de Cebo de Campo 50% Ibérico (with url).
These Iberian pigs have been like the rest raised on the farm and have fed on feed, but when they reach adulthood, due to their quality and the percentage of Iberian breed, the farmer decides that they should do the Montanera.
The Montanera is a period of 4 months from autumn to winter in which the Iberian pigs graze in total freedom in the Iberian pasture, a place where the holm oaks are at their peak to give the best fruit that the Iberian pig needs to produce the most prized Iberian Ham in the world, the Bellota Ham.
These pigs are not only going to eat acorns (Bellotas) and everything natural they can find, but they are going to drink water from the rivers and therefore they are going to do a lot of exercise, which is going to contribute to a good musculation of their limbs. All of this will contribute to the production of the best ham in the world, the 100% Iberian acorn-fed ham or popularly known as Pata Negra, i.e. a ham that comes from a 100% Iberian father and mother. But there can also be the Jamón Bellota 50% Ibérico, where the mother must also be 100% Iberian but the father is not of Iberian breed.
· Jamón de Bellota 100% Iberico, 5 Stars Premium, Enrique Tomás
· Jamón de Bellota 50% Ibérico, 5 Stars, Enrique Tomás
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