Comments on: Jamon Iberico

By: bagito

bagito — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 06:28:51 +0000

I finally tasted jamon iberico de bellota tonight. OMG! What a revelation. It was worth every penny. This meal was so memorable–had that and wagyu beef in the same meal. Talk about a gastronomic delight!

By: quiapo

quiapo — Fri, 30 May 2008 12:47:56 +0000

Jamon iberico de belota traditonally is not raised in pens, but roams free in the Extremadura area where there are both winter and summer acorns, hence the pigs feed on acorns all year round. The shepherd carries a long pole,and as the pigs forage, he hits branches of the oak tree with this pole, scattering more acorns for the pigs. The species used is an ancient one, and the black foot is left on the cured ham as evidence of origin. I understand Jabugo is a village in Extremadura which produces excellent hams. The mountainous region of Extremadura (where the conquistadors tend to come from) is shared between Spain and Portugal, so it is not surprising that Portugal also has similar quality hams. As I mentioned in another comment, Jamon Iberico de Belota costs $320 per kilo in Sydney, or about P12,000 a kilo. My daughter attended the wedding of a family friend in Navarre last year, where the bridegroom carried a Jamon Iberico from table to table giving out slices to all the guests.
Attempts in Australia to duplicate the flavour of the ham have been absolutely unsuccesful; there is no finer ham in all the world.

By: Marketman

Marketman — Thu, 18 Aug 2005 23:02:22 +0000

Alex, sounds like you are the resident jamon iberico expert…I just passed by Terry’s to check out the price for Gerry, up top, and it is PHP7,500 per kilo, a princely sum. But good things cost money, don’t they? Thank goodness 50 grams can cure a craving…

By: Alex Bernardo

Alex Bernardo — Wed, 17 Aug 2005 02:17:20 +0000

It’s indeed the best ham in the world. I’ve been muching on this ever since I discovered it in Paris at Casa da Rosa years ago. It’s expensive there as well, close to a grand for a whole leg. They usually have about 6 different kinds of pata negra or jamon Iberico there and it’s nice to do a degustÃ¥tion. Pata negra varies in taste and quality producer by producer. One time I was at da Rosa I tasted a pata negra from Portugal. It was amazing, too! Melts in your mouth kind of goodness. It’ll give the Spanish pata negra tough competition and it’s even slightly cheaper.
Last year I was at Girona in the Catalan region and also ate lots of pata negra there. I smuggled back to San Francisco a few ounces vacuum-sealed in a plastic bag. The vendor there told me to let it breathe for several minutes before attacking it. It was heaven to enjoy it with locally bought Acme bread.
Back in Manila a few weeks ago, I enjoyed a plateful at Segundo Piso above Terry’s gourmet store and deli. The producer they carry is excellent! The way they present it there is exactly how it should be. I like the slices of warm french bread they bring with the ham. And I washed it down with a cool glass of rosada (Spanish rose). Out of all the numerous times I’ve eaten pata negra, including in Spain, that’s the best I’ve enjoyed it! Byt the way, I just read in last Sunday’s paper that Gaudi is also serving it. Gotta try it there, too.
One last thing, I heard from folks in Spain that fat in pata negra is good fat. It’s actually used there, too for medicinal purposes.

By: Marketman

Marketman — Thu, 11 Aug 2005 07:39:32 +0000

I don’t know for certain what makes it oily, but I suspect because it is aged for SO long, say two years, all of the moisture or water has already been removed and the oiliness is exacerbated. But it is GOOD oil, no?