Prosciutto no. 2

[grisell]

Grisell

We call the paw the 'trotter' here. Legendary French chef Pierre Koffmann's signature dish is Braised pig’s trotter with morels.

Phil

Thanks!

[grisell]

Update: it's now 7,700 grams which corresponds to circa 25% weight loss. I moved it to the balcony a week ago since the weather is favourable. I keep it wrapped in a pillowcase.

A disappointment was that when I unwrapped it today, I found two fly chrysales and one dead maggot on the bottom of the pillowcase! The mother of those must have flown through the open window and through the minimal opening in the fridge. I made a thorough check of the ham, trimmed off the hard outer layer, checked with a magnifying glass and torchlight and found nothing. Neither does the meat show any sign of deterioration. I hope I have seen the end of that! I checked the Internet and found that maggots are used to treat wounds, and some cheeses are intentionally infested with them in the maturing process. Although a little disgusting, I don't think (hope!) that they pose a threat to the result. The fact that the maggot was dead shows that my prosciutto wasn't good for him.

I really hope this one succeeds. As said above, I trimmed off the hard outer layer, and OMG what a scent! I wish there were some way to transmit that to you guys. I will keep the ham on the balcony until it reaches 27-28% weight loss (2 weeks maybe), then cover it with a lard mixture and let it mature over the winter.

Below is a picture of it after the hard layer was removed.

[grisell]

So, the ham has been drying for 2½ months now, and no more maggots. It weighs 7,540 grams which corresponds to 28 percent weight loss (if my assumption on the bone weight is correct). Thus, it's about time to give it a protective layer of lard mixture to prevent excessive dehydration during the long maturing period. This is how it looks:



200 g lard (from the same pig), 100 g wheat flour, 30 g sea salt, 20 g black pepper:



Covered the exposed flesh and all cracks with the mix:



And back to the balcony over the winter, wrapped in a pillowcase in order not to attract birds. I expect to try the ham in May or so. If there will be serious frost, I'll move it inside, otherwise it will hang there all the time.

(I couldn't get the picture right when uploading it, sorry!)



Quoting the late Keith Floyd: 'The next time you see it, we'll be eating it!'

[grisell]

So, I couldn't keep my promise about not showing it before eating it. Here it is, two months into 'maturation':



The lard is on, with a one-inch wide area kept free (got that information from a fellow member, thanks Ryan!). Weight is 7,505 g (31% weight loss). I have poked a stick into two places and it shows no sign of deterioration as far as I can notice. Now it's only a matter of waiting. I hope I can keep my hands off it for a few months more. That's the hard part.

[grisell]

The weight is now 7,310 grams. I had to try it today. I have an excuse: I have ordered three more hams to dry and must know if I have to change anything. I cut a little deeper on the side this time. The colours on the pictures below are nearly true.





The colour is much brighter than it used to be. The scent is quite intense, like a good cheese. The taste is clean, discrete and mild with a palpable tone of hazelnuts. The aftertaste is long and somewhat bitter (I'm confident that it will mellow with maturing). The fat is deliciously soft, aromatic, and shows no sign of rancidity. In short: very promising. The only changes I will make are to reduce or even exclude the sugar next time and use HQ sea salt. I think that that will give an even purer taste.

I hope I can keep my hands off the ham for 3-4 more months now.

[BriCan]

Looks good grisell, I am having to wipe off the key board and it takes me all the time not to lick the screen.

I myself am going down this road, with Christmas just about on us I just cannot sit still. Two legs already been salted and starting the drying stage, two more are salted and will be ready for the drying stage in a couple of weeks.

Never done anything like this before .... but it seems that I have the magic touch

[grisell]

Thanks! Keep us posted! I have the impression that the experience of making dried hams is quite limited on this forum compared to sausages (no offense to anyone!). Since it's very difficult to get first-hand instructions from the manufacturers because of the secret nature of the craft, it's important that we share each others' experiences, flaws and successes.

[quietwatersfarm]

it's very difficult to get first-hand instructions from the manufacturers because of the secret nature of the craft

I wouldnt overstate the 'secret nature' bit too much. In my experience this is mainly about local marketing and protectionism.

I think alot of what guys on this forum and other small producers are doing is far more authentic and in the spirit of those who traditionally pioneered 'famous' hams and other products.

If you visit the Po Valley, or Bayonne etc you will find huge factory sized operations that use climate controlled sheds to 'reproduce' the famed seasonal variations, with intensively reared pigs fed on imported feeds. It could be being done in Iceland or Australia for all the relationship it has to the 'local' traditions.

Out and about though you find the small producers who are still true to the spirit, rather than the letter of the law, and you dont see alot of their product exported (they would no doubt fail some minor regulation or another).

Its like the organic certification. Loopholes (or even changes in the rules) to suit big producers to give a product that is 'technically' organic but about as far from the true aims of those early folks as you could be, just a neat marketing excercise, jealously guarded.

Rant over

At least most of the DOP's etc tend to ban the use of antibiotics and other drugs which you really need to ensure if you want good cured meat (note to readers when sourcing!)

[BriCan]

Out and about though you find the small producers who are still true to the spirit

It is because they have the love and passion that they uses/bring/employ while making their products, but most of all it is a little bit of our hearts that we place in what we create that sets us apart and not part of the mystic arts.

rather than the letter of the law

And that my friend is the ramifications of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four

[BriCan]

Thanks! Keep us posted!

I will as time permits.

I have the impression that the experience of making dried hams is quite limited on this forum compared to sausages (no offense to anyone!). Since it's very difficult to get first-hand instructions from the manufacturers because of the secret nature of the craft, it's important that we share each others' experiences, flaws and successes.

It is not (in my opinion) that hard to find/get first hand instructions from the source. Granted in the old days we did keep the recipes away from the general public as what we practice is a time honoured art and craft and out of the many there was/is a handful that posses the gift of being able to see the end product before it is finish.

I was privy some years ago to be in York for the day, it was getting late on in the afternoon and after walking around the city I commented to my other half that it was time for a liquid lunch. Stopping in a cafe/restaurant that was no more than a hole in the wall (so to speak) along the Shambles I placed my order for a pint of bitter with a Baggett with ham.

For the life of me I cannot tell you what type/name of beer I had, but the ham I will remember for the rest of my life. Upon enquiring with the waitress where hence the ham came from I was dually told from Scott’s of York.

I went hence to the establishment and upon looking in the widow noted that there were at least half a dozen punters, so leaving the misses outside (she did not want to go inside) I joined the line of customers. When it was my turn to be served I enquired after the owner who arrived in a short time.

Upon explaining where I came from and where I was now living and having the ham for my lunch I enquired about the whys and wherefores of how the hams/bacon was produced. I was invited into the back to see the production of the hams and bacon with an explanation of how they were made. Well over an hour later I joined the misses outside the shop.

We will part with our secrets/recipes; but ......................

[grisell]

I know it's not ready until Spring and that I should wait, but I was a little worried about its condition and you know, eh, well, it could have oxidized and, eh, the low humidity during Winter could have caused problems and, well, anyway I thought that it was best to try it already now...

You know how it is...

Anyway, some photos (the last one in nearly true colors):





The taste is delicious, but the ham would benefit from three-four months' further maturing, at least. Let's see if I can make it...

[Ryan C]

Ha-ha! Nice one Andre! Looks absolutely bloody marvellous! I had the same problems when I tried to make a ham once, every time I closed my eyes I could see it, just hanging there, lonely, wondering how it tasted. It didn't make it past six months, had to cook the last bit as it was still raw in the middle

After seeing those photos I think I might give it another go . I should maybe keep it at someone else's house though.

Keep up the good work

Ryan

[MikeF]

grisell,

What a masterpiece you have their

That prosciutto just looks so good. I had some of my proscuitto i made last year and it wasn't too bad i think it had too much salt and was a little dry. It was my first ham I'll learn for next time. Yeah I'm sure if you wait even longer to eat it, it will taste better like wine.

Congrats grisell on a great ham!
Thanks for posting the pictures, you did an excellent job.

[grisell]

I'm bowing! Thanks guys!

[grisell]

Update: Tasted it again. It has improved, but I think it's too soft. I should have dried it longer. I now removed the lard paste and will let it hang for a month more.