Is Spanish ham delicious? Why is it so expensive?

It’s delicious, so it’s expensive.

Jamón, the Spanish name for Spanish ham, is not all expensive. In many taverns in Spain, ham is used in many cheap tapas. So, let me first tell you about the grading of Jamon. .

First of all, the word Jamón refers only to ham made from the hind legs of pigs. If it is made from the front legs of pigs, the Spanish name is Paleta or Paletia; The difference between the two is that the front legs of pigs have less meat, more tendons, and are harder, while the hind legs of pigs are fatter and richer in fat, so the ham produced tastes better.

Chinese people generally believe that Spanish ham is only Iberian ham. However, Jamón is divided into two types from the perspective of raw materials, one is ordinary Jamón Serrano (Serrano ham), and the other is made Fine Jamón Iberico. The difference between the two types lies in the raw materials. The more common Serrano ham is made from white pigs or other mixed-blood pigs, and is relatively cheap; while Iberian ham has strict requirements on pig breeds and is made from more than 75% of the blood. Made from local black-hoofed pig (Pata Negra).

What you need to know here is that there are actually black-hoofed pigs in other European countries, but the reason why Spanish black-hoofed pigs are famous is because of their slender hind legs and their thin and narrow black hooves. The hoof is also known as an important factor in identifying the quality of a ham. If the hoof is too thick, it may have impure blood.

Iberian ham is divided into three grades according to the farming method. I will introduce it to you in order from low to high:

Jamón ibérico de cebo is an ordinary raising level. Pigs are raised in pig farms and fed with grains.

Jamón ibérico de recebo is a pig that is raised in the fields and is supplemented with acorns. However, the proportion of edible acorns does not reach the legal labeling level. It is said that this level will gradually be eliminated because it is difficult to determine.

Jamón ibérico de bellota Acorn grade, this is also the top quality Iberian ham (Spain has strict regulations on this grade). What’s interesting is that in addition to grazing in the fields, each pig must also ensure that there is at least half a hectare of oak forest. During the acorn ripening season (October to January), at least 50-65% of the pig’s food is acorn. fruit. And during this period (also called the fattening period) the weight increases from 80-105 kg to 150-180 kg.