Ham in its many guises forms one of the cornerstones of Spanish gastronomy. First of all, there is cooked ham or jamón york as it is known in Spain. This is of course similar to cooked hams all over the world and is not really noteworthy.  We then go on to ham that has been salt cured. These hams can be from different species of white pig and are then known as jamón serrano or mountain ham. They can be very good and are comparable to fine salt-cured hams from other parts of the world.  However, the salt-cured ham that reigns supreme comes from the cerdo ibérico or Iberian pig. This native breed of pig is more closely related to the wild boar than other breeds. It is normally brown in colour, has long floppy ears  and a long snout. It is bred mainly in the west of Spain from the province of Salamanca southwards and you are most likely to see them rummaging around in the cork and holm oak forests, or dehesa as this is known in Spanish. There are four demarcated areas or denominaciones de orígen ,  D.O. Jamón de Huelva, D.O. Guijuelo. D.O. Dehesa de Extremadura  and D.O. Los Pedroches

The Iberian pig lives in a semi-wild state which means that it gets plenty of exercise. This is very important as it helps in the infiltration of fat into the muscles of the animal, one of the most important factors in producing fine Iberian ham and a physiological process not shared by other breeds of pig.  One of the other important factors is the diet of acorns from the cork trees and holm oaks during the montanera, the period when acorns fall onto the ground. This period extends from mid October until the end of February.

The pigs after being weaned are given a diet of vegetable feed, ideally to an age of around 14-15 months when they will have a weight of about 90-100 kilos. Large areas of land are now needed for the montanera as each pig will eat around 500 kilos of acorn! This means there needs to be on average around 1 hectare of land per animal!  So, the Iberian pig will live like a king until it reaches a weight of 150-160 kilos having followed a diet principally of acorns. Then, all the fun stops as it´s off to the slaughter house The hams which come from the pig are divided into back legs, jamones, and front legs, paletas. After the excess fat has been trimmed off they are initially covered in coarse sea salt where they are left for around 1-1˝ days per kilo. The excess salt is then washed off and the hams are put into a environment where temperature and humidity are controlled for several months to allow the salt to penetrate through to the bone. The hams then pass to the cellars. The front leg hams are left to cure for around 18 months and the back legs around 30 months, during which time they will develop their wonderful flavour, part of which will come from the fact that the ham has been attacked by the penicillin mould!  Between the start and end of the process a ham will lose around 35% of it’s weight.

As has been mentioned the finest ham comes from Iberian pigs that have had a near exclusive diet of acorns during the monatera. These hams are classified as jamón ibérico de bellota. If the diet of acorns has to be supplemented with feed then the ham is classified as jamón ibérico de recebo. This classification is made is by measuring the quantity of oleic acid in the ham. This acid comes from the acorns and is the same as that in olive oil.  In fact, some people have said that the Iberian pig is an olive tree on legs! So as well as tasting wonderful, Iberian ham is also good for you. Too good to be true!

So, having heard about the process and having our appetites whetted, how do we eat fine ham? Anyone who has frequented Spanish bars will have seen lots of hams hanging up, and behind the bar a stand with a ham clamped in it horizontally. You will probably have watched how carefully thin slices of ham are cut with an extremely sharp knife. The pieces should be translucent and have a sheen on them from the oil they contain. If it is very cold the plate you put the ham on should be heated previously so that the ham ‘sweats’ releasing flavour. The ham is usually accompanied by small slices of bread or breadsticks and  for a great drinks match a glass of fino or amontillado. ˇBuen provecho!