Barcelona: The Ham Capital of the World
After three days in Barcelona, my family thinks I am going to turn into a ham. Not just any ham, but a jamón de bellota, made from the famous acorn-fed black-footed (pata negra) Spanish pigs.
In three days here, I have bought five different kinds of ham and ordered it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner in some form. Every morning, I go to the Boqueria and inspect the wares of the many ham vendors found at this wondrous market, which is every bit as great as advertised. I ask everyone I meet there where they buy their ham. Not many people speak English, and my Spanish and Catalan are nonexistent, so I don't really glean very much useful information from my queries.
So I'm forced to try the ham at every one that looks serious, which turns out to be every ham vendor at the market. There are at least 15 ham vendors at the Boqueria. That is why my family thinks I am going to turn into a jamón de bellota by the time I leave here. Of course if I do turn into one of these hams, I will not be allowed back into the U.S. But I might not care.
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4 Comments:
I live in Barcelona and actually run from there an internet-based shop of jamón ibérico de bellota. There are quite a few varieties of spanish ham; I'll try to give you a liitle advice...
First, if you want nothing but the best, you must look for the term "jamón ibérico de bellota". This means: dry cured ham coming from "iberico" (iberian) race pigs that have been raised in the wild in the traditional way (not in farms) in Spain's south-western pasturelands (Extremadura, Huelva), and that have been fed with acorns ("bellotas") and grass during their finishing period.
Second, you will have to choose which "ibérico de bellota" you want. The safest bet (to ensure a high consistent quality) is to go for a ham from a producer that is inscribed in a Denomination of Origin (DO). There are 4 "jamón ibérico" DOs in Spain:
Dehesa de Extremadura (Extremadura region)
Guijuelo (Salamanca region)
Huelva (Huelva region)
Los Pedroches (Córdoba region)
The one that is regarded for enforcing the strictest quality controls is the D.O. Dehesa de Extremadura.
Another option is to get yourself ham from one of the most reputed producers. Amongst them there are brands such as Maldonado, Joselito or CInco Jotas. These producers are not backed by any DO, but are regarded as some of the best jamón brands in Spain.
But remember, always look for "jamón ibérico de bellota", and you will be good.
Jose at 7:33PM on 03/09/07
"So I'm forced to try the ham at every one that looks serious" , Oh what a tough job you must have! Sigh, but someone's gotta do it huh? ;) Lucky you, I love La Boqueria! And I wish to go back someday. But then I'd probably turn into a ham too.
gypsysoul73 at 11:16AM on 03/11/07
You better bring some of that ham back, Ed.
Adam Kuban at 12:42PM on 03/11/07
Although this may be well known to many, it is helpful to have a handy map of the Mercat Boqueria in hand, when confronted with so many choices. Happily, they have a nice website, which includes this floorplan
http://www.boqueria.eu/Eng/index.php
When you rollover a booth, a window pops up displaying "what's there." If they had a cross reference, it would be superb, but it sure will come in handy for planning the quick visit.
cocopazzo at 12:02PM on 10/04/07