Dry-cured ham
Encyclopedia
Food preservation
Food preservation is the process of treating and handling food to stop or slow down spoilage and thus allow for longer storage....
. Through dry-curing
Curing (food preservation)
Curing refers to various food preservation and flavoring processes, especially of meat or fish, by the addition of a combination of salt, nitrates, nitrite or sugar. Many curing processes also involve smoking, the process of flavoring, or cooking...
, the ham
Ham
Ham is a cut of meat from the thigh of the hind leg of certain animals, especiallypigs. Nearly all hams sold today are fully cooked or cured.-Etymology:...
can be stored for several months. The processing technology is based on traditional knowledge passed from one generation to the other. The raw materials and the ripening conditions have a significant influence on the final texture and flavour.
Air dried
Air-dried hams are made throughout southern Europe, and most of these traditional products now have some kind of protected designation of originProtected designation of origin
Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
.
- ProsciuttoProsciuttoProsciutto |ham]]) or Parma ham is a dry-cured ham that is usually thinly sliced and served uncooked; this style is called prosciutto crudo in Italian and is distinguished from cooked ham, prosciutto cotto....
- various types of Italian ham - PresuntoPresuntoPresunto is the name given to dry-cured ham from Portugal, similar to Spanish jamón or Italian prosciutto crudo.Among the wide variety of presuntos in Portugal, the most famous are presunto from Chaves, produced in the north of Portugal, and that from the Alentejo, in the south, made from local...
in PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
- Its name also derives directly from the Latin perexsuctum, like prosciutto. - Bayonne hamBayonne hamBayonne Ham or Jambon de Bayonne is an air dried salted ham that takes its name from the ancient port city of Bayonne in the far South West of France, a city located in both the cultural regions of Basque Country and Gascony...
, from the French Basque country - Jambon de Pays as called in the rest of southwestern France, in places like TarnTarnTarn is a department of 5,758 km2 in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France, named after the Tarn River. It was formed in 1790 of the three dioceses of Albi, Castres and Lavaur, belonging to the province of Languedoc. In 1906, the population was 330,533...
, AudeAudeAude is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother...
, AveyronAveyronAveyron is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.- History :Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790....
and Haute-GaronneHaute-GaronneHaute-Garonne is a department in the southwest of France named after the Garonne river. Its main city is Toulouse.-History:Haute-Garonne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Languedoc.The...
and all over most of OccitaniaOccitaniaOccitania , also sometimes lo País d'Òc, "the Oc Country"), is the region in southern Europe where Occitan was historically the main language spoken, and where it is sometimes still used, for the most part as a second language...
. It is usually darker and saltier than Bayonne hamBayonne hamBayonne Ham or Jambon de Bayonne is an air dried salted ham that takes its name from the ancient port city of Bayonne in the far South West of France, a city located in both the cultural regions of Basque Country and Gascony...
and cut in thicker slices when served. The Occitan word is Cambajou. - Elenski butElenski butElenski but , sometimes translated as Elena round or Elena leg) is a dry-cured ham from the town of Elena in northern Bulgaria and a popular delicacy throughout the country...
, made in the town of ElenaElena, BulgariaElena is a Bulgarian town in the central Stara Planina mountain in Veliko Tarnovo Province, located 42 km away to southeast from the city of Veliko Tarnovo. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Elena Municipality. The area is a popular mountain resort also known for the typical...
in BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east... - JamónJamónJamón is the Spanish word for ham. In English it refers to certain types of dry-cured ham from Spain. There are two primary types of jamón: Jamón serrano and Jamón ibérico ....
, SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... - Njeguška pršutaNjeguška pršutaNjeguška pršuta is a specialty of Njeguši, a village in Montenegro. A dry-cured ham, served uncooked, similar to Italian Prosciutto. Its particular flavor and aroma are, according to manufacturers, the result of the mixture of sea and mountain air and wood burned during the drying process....
, from MontenegroMontenegroMontenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the... - Užička pršuta, from SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
- in CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
:- Dalmatian dry-cured ham (dalmatinski pršut), from DalmatiaDalmatiaDalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
in CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, especially from the area of ZagoraZagora (Croatia)Zagora , sometimes also called Dalmatian Zagora , is the southern inland region of Croatia. The name Zagora means "behind hills", which is a reference to the fact that it is the part of Dalmatia that is not coastal....
- may be more or less salty, with darker and drier meat. The ham from the town of DrnišDrnišDrniš is a town in Croatia, located in inland Dalmatia at halfway between Šibenik and Knin. Its municipality population is 8,595 , with 3,332 in the town itself and the rest in two dozen surrounding villages...
is one of the best known. - Istrian dry-cured ham (istarski pršut), from the Croatian peninsula of IstriaIstriaIstria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
; its saltiness and dryness is between Karst dry-cured ham and Dalmatian dry-cured ham.
- Dalmatian dry-cured ham (dalmatinski pršut), from Dalmatia
- Karst dry-cured ham (kraški pršut), from KarstKrasKarst ; also known as the Karst Plateau, is a limestone borderline plateau region extending in southwestern Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies between the Vipava Valley, the low hills surrounding the valley, the westernmost part of the Brkini Hills, northern Istria, and the Gulf of Trieste...
, SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
is generally less salty, less dry and with a gentler taste. - Littoral dry-cured ham (primorski pršut), from the LittoralSlovenian LittoralThe Slovenian Littoral is a historical region of Slovenia. Its name recalls the historical Habsburg crown land of the Austrian Littoral, of which the Slovenian Littoral was a part....
region, SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of... - Jambon, (Jambon afumat, if smoked), in RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
; mostly referred to as Şuncă in TransylvaniaTransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
. - Adbum ta Derick, (Derbum), from AdelaideAdelaideAdelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
- Jinhua hamJinhua hamJinhua ham is a type of dry-cured ham named after the city of Jinhua, where it is produced, in the Zhejiang province of eastern China. The ham is used in Chinese cuisines to flavour stewed and braised foods as well as for making the stocks and broths of many Chinese soups...
, from ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Smoked
- Black Forest hamBlack Forest hamBlack Forest ham, or Schwarzwälder Schinken in German, is a variety of smoked ham, a pork product, produced in the Black Forest region of Germany. Ham is the thigh and rump from the haunch of a pig or boar....
from GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - Country hamCountry hamCountry ham is a variety of cured ham, typically very salty, associated with the Southern United States. Country ham is first mentioned in print in 1944, referring to a method of curing and smoking done in the rural parts of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, Kentucky and other nearby...
in the southern United StatesSouthern United StatesThe Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States... - York Ham From EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...