Everything You Want To Know About Prosciutto- Sorrento Food Tours

Everything You Want To Know About Prosciutto

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Prosciutto: A Delicious Slice of Italian History and a Modern Delicacy

While Italy is well-known for its cuisine, one of the most treasured items you’ll taste

during your visit is prosciutto. This cured ham dates back to pre-Roman times. Thanks

to the Celtic people in northern Italy’s San Daniele, these meats were cured with salt. In

Parma, the peasants kept up this practice.

Today, this traditional curing process is akin to a work of art, creating thin slices of

melt-in-your-mouth meat unlike anything else.

The Making of Prosciutto

In Parma, the pigs used to make prosciutto must be bred in one of the specific 10

northern and central Italian regions. The Large White, Duroc, and Landrace breeds of

pigs are the only ones that are permitted to be used for this extensive process.

It begins with drawing the moisture out of the meat. Salt is used to cover and press the

legs to get rid of the excess moisture. Several months pass before the salt is rinsed away

and the meat is hung to dry. It gradually becomes darker and harder before being

smeared with a mixture called ‘sugna,’ composed of rice flour, salt, and pork fat.

With this region in particular, the microclimate creates the perfect environment for the

drying of the ham. The air from the coast blows across the countryside, crossing the

Apennines, carrying it with it the aromatics of the vegetation it passes through, giving it

a distinctive sweetness unlike anything else in the world. As the meat cures, it may

remain in this way for one to two years.

Where the Best Prosciutto is Made in Italy

There are two cities that are best known for prosciutto. Parma in Emilia-Romagna and

San Daniele in Friuli-Venezia Giulia uphold this reputation because the process of

curing prosciutto has been a going on for a long time there.

While visiting Italy, you’ll see plenty of prosciutto for sale. It’s important to find the ones

that have a D.O.P seal Denominazione di Origine Protetta – P.D.O Protected Designations of Origin stamp on them. This

ensures the standard for making prosciutto has been followed as per tradition. It also

guarantees that the meat you’re enjoying is made from healthy pigs and isn’t cured with

nitrates.

Best Place to Try Prosciutto

There is nothing quite like getting a slice of prosciutto to taste right from the leg itself. In

this way, it is at its prime. You can have it sliced thin or thick as per your taste, though

with thin slices, they seem to melt with an exquisite flavor and texture on your palate,

allowing you to get the full spectrum of that complex contrast in sweet and salty tastes.

Want to taste prosciutto the way the Italians enjoy this delicate meat daily? The