In Ham Heaven

Pepe Feijoo rips open an oblong box, grasps a Spanish ham by the bone and shows it off to a visitor as though he was unveiling a work of art.

In a sense, this imported ham — jamón Ibérico de bellota — is a masterpiece, the Spanish food world’s equivalent of a Picasso. The ham is named for the black-footed Iberian pig breed and for the acorns — bellota — that these free-range animals eat in the forest. And the ham is considered a delicacy — known for its nutty flavor, deliciously creamy white fat and a deep mahogany-color meat.

“This pig is not too fat but tall”, says Feijoo, holding the bone-in ham, which measures about 2 feet. The prized ham is on the menu at Feijoo’s family-owned Costa del Sol restaurant in Hartford and for sale in the restaurant’s imported-food shop.A native of the Galicia region of Spain, Feijoo grew up eating jamón Ibérico but, until this month, could only enjoy it during trips home. Imports to the United States are now allowed because USDA-approved production facilities are in operation in Spain. The Spanish company Embutidos Fermin, which began building a slaughterhouse in 1995, is the only company approved to export the ham to the United States. “There are only limited amounts coming into the U.S.”, Feijoo says.

Spain is known for two kinds of cured ham. Jamón serrano, which is widely available in the United States, comes from grain-fed pigs. The meat is cured for seven to 16 months.

There are different types of jamón Ibérico, which is cured for 14 to 36 months. Some ham with this label is made from pigs fed with grain or a combination of grain and acorns. The bellota style of jamón Ibérico, which is cured for closer to three years, is made from pigs raised in southwestern Spain and allowed to roam freely in the countryside. The producers “put GPS on the pigs to know where they are,” Feijoo says.

The animals feed on acorns from the oaks that dot the landscape. “They’re not the acorns that we know here”, Feijoo says. “They are much bigger”.

The diet contributes to the ham’s smooth flavor. Another feature of the ham is the balance of salt, just enough for flavor but not enough to fight with the taste of the cured pork.

While serrano ham often is served with Spanish cheeses and sausage as an appetizer or snack, jamón Ibérico should be served by itself, Feijoo says.

“You don’t want bread or anything else with it, to take away from its flavor”, Feijoo says. Wine is the only exception — a red wine with a medium body will complement but not overpower the ham.

The ham is best when sliced by hand, which requires some skill to shave the paper-thin, almost translucent slices. “If you slice it on a machine, it doesn’t taste the same”, Feijoo says. “It’s an art to cut it”.

“In Spain, restaurants have a waiter whose specialty is slicing the ham”, says Feijoo’s brother and Costa del Sol’s executive chef, Javier Feijoo.

Locally, the delicacy doesn’t come cheaply. At Costa del Sol, customers can order a platter of jamón Ibérico for about $8 an ounce. Two ounces of the thinly sliced ham will cover a dinner plate.

Pepe Feijoo says customers have been asking about the ham. “There are some who read about it and asked when we were going to get it”, he says, “but others don’t know much about it. When I tell them the price, they say, ‘For a ham?’ But they are not familiar with the delicacy and quality”.

To Feijoo, splurging on a delicacy such as jamón Ibérico is a matter of perspective — and national pride. “You can pay $200 for 2 ounces of beluga caviar”, Feijoo says. “I would prefer to pay that money for jamón ibérico”.

Source: Courant.com