Next stop on our Parma tour was a traditional producer of Proscuitto di Parma. The buildings used for production are identifiable by their long windows, opened for part of the aging process of the ham. This modest building contained over $3 million worth of ham that we could see!The ham is a DOP product, meaning that production techniques and origin of the ingredients are tightly controlled. All pigs used are grown in the Parma area and are fed a special diet, including Parmesan cheese! All the legs are the hind legs from male pigs.
The aging process mimics the conditions of the annual seasons. The legs are first salted and kept in a cooler just slightly above freezing. Here they are held for about a month before being resalted and moved to a warmer cooler to be aged for several months, where the humidity is also tightly controlled.
It takes twelve months to cure a leg of proscuitto, and part of that is done at a cool room temperature in an aging room. The proscuitto is painted with a paste of rice flour, salt and black pepper to keep the exposed area from rotting- 100% natural- no preservatives or chemicals! A horse bone is used by expert producers to check the quality of the hams, before they can be branded as certified Parma ham. It is inserted along five places, quickly and successively, and the scent lets the producer know that the aging process worked.
Pictured:
Janene LOVES proscuitto!
The group in the aging room.
Meat slicer by Porsche.
Picnic at a Tuscan farmhouse.
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