Tips for buying your best Iberian ham
At Ibericomio we have been bringing the best Iberian ham direct from the producer to the consumer for almost five years now.
The experience of more than 40,000 hams sold with about 30,000 customers and registered users gives us wings to give you some keys to buy your best Iberian ham online.
How to choose your best Iberian ham?
Until a few months ago, the best way to choose a good Iberian ham was simple.
When it comes to buying ham, the most common hams in supermarkets and hypermarkets are a cebo ham or a cebo campo ham. And if you wanted to buy a good acorn-fed ham or an authentic pata negra – 100% Iberian acorn-fed ham – you would go to a gourmet store or a specialized delicatessen.
In both cases, you touched the ham, slid your finger across the piece to check the smoothness and proportion of the fat, you had the opportunity to perceive its smell. With all this information you were already orienting yourself to select the best Iberian ham among all those you had seen and you were making the master purchase of a good Iberian ham…
Since the pandemic has changed everything, we have begun to rely more on the online sale of Iberian hams. Ibericomio.es plays a very important role here. We have managed to group, possibly, the largest offer of Iberian hams in Spain and we continue working to bring you the best proposals of Iberian hams that exist in the market.
In this new environment, we have become the leading portal for online sales of Iberian hams in Spain, thanks to the guaranteed hams offered by our producers, the continuous offers of hams we have and our customer service.
The role of ibericomio in the sale of Iberian hams and sausages is not limited to presenting very nice pictures of hams with very attractive prices. At Ibericomio you have a team of Iberian ham professionals who will help you with the best advice on how to buy a good Iberian ham or shoulder ham. You have us at your disposal in an online chat attended by people and not by robots, a direct phone to our customer service, WhatsApp, e-mail or Social Networks.
Now we will take the opportunity to give you the basic keys to buy the perfect ham for your taste and pocket.
First:
How to identify an Iberian ham?
It sounds silly but it is not. We all think that if it has a black hoof it is an Iberian ham. But this is not always the case. There are certain hams that, without being Iberian, due to the characteristics of their breed, have a black hoof. There are also Iberian hams that may not have a black hoof. Specifically, the Iberian breed is characterized by the fact that its hooves are not black. Therefore, the black hoof would be a valid indicator but not the only one.
A legally established differentiating factor is the minimum curing period of the ham. All Iberian hams must be cured for a minimum of 24 months. Serrano ham does not usually reach such a long curing period. Cured ham, bodega ham or reserva ham and gran reserva ham are cured for a minimum of 7, 9, 12 and 15 months.
In general, an Iberian ham leg with a high percentage of racial purity tends to be stylized and very thin in the part before the hoof. Finally, given the long curing time required for an Iberian ham or shoulder, the covering fat left on the freshly trimmed leg will always be greater.
Once you know how to distinguish an Iberian ham from a non-Iberian ham, you can choose one of the 4 main Iberian ham production areas in Spain. Let’s go therefore with the:
Ham origin
The orography, the climate, the feed, the type of extensive or intensive rearing, all affect the final quality of the Iberian ham or shoulder.
The Iberian pig can be raised intensively on farms throughout the country. However, what makes Iberian hams exclusive is when they come from extensive breeding in the Dehesa.
The Iberian pig has its natural habitat in the Iberian Dehesa, a unique ecosystem where humans, livestock, hunting and agriculture coexist. La Dehesa is an example of environmental sustainability with extensive livestock farming. In addition, it allows the development of hunting in its area of influence.
In Spain there are four Iberian ham production areas par excellence that also have their own Protected Designation of Origin – PDO.
Extremadura – Dehesa de Extremadura
Extremadura has the largest wooded areas of extensive pig farming in Spain. The climate and orography in Extremadura varies notably from the north of Cáceres to the south of Badajoz. That is why Iberian hams from producers in Cáceres or Iberian shoulders made in the south of Badajoz can be very different.
Córdoba – Los Pedroches
The production of Iberian ham in the province of Córdoba is highly localized in the municipalities of the Pedroches Valley. Hence the creation of the Valle de los Pedroches PDO. The youngest of the 4 Iberian PDO’s but not the least demanding. The Iberian ham from Los Pedroches is highly recognized and appreciated by the most demanding palates.
Huelva – Jabugo
The tradition of ham in the province of Huelva is ancestral. In the Sierra de Aracena and Picos de Aroche are located municipalities as well known as Cumbres Mayores, El Repilado, Aracena, Higuera de la Sierra, Santa Olalla del Cala and the internationally renowned Jabugo, which gives its name to the Jabugo PDO.
In this article about the Jabugo PDO, we take a closer look at it.
Salamanca – Guijuelo
Guijuelo is synonymous with Iberian ham. On many occasions we have heard “how delicious Guijuelo ham is”. Many customers also tell us directly “I want to buy a Guijuelo ham”. Everything has a meaning. The Guijuelo Ham Designation of Origin is the pioneer and oldest of the 4 Protected Designations of Origin for Iberian Ham.
What we can call Guijuelo ham must be very carefully defined. The Guijuelo Protected Designation of Origin has existed since 1986. The oldest PDO of Iberian ham in Spain with more than 35 years of history. This Denomination of Origin covers the Iberian product elaborated in the PDO protection zone following the requirements established in the specifications of the Guijuelo PDO. Therefore, we can only call Guijuelo Ham that ham that has been certified by the Guijuelo PDO. So not all hams produced in Guijuelo can be called Guijuelo Ham. This privilege and honor is only reserved for a select group of producers associated with the Guijuelo PDO. If you want to to buy an Iberian ham from Guijuelo you can find it at ibericomio.es.
Not all Iberian ham can be protected under the PDO Guijuelo. Only Iberian hams with a racial purity of 75% or 100% and only those belonging to the Cebo de Campo and acorn categories will be eligible. Therefore, you will never be able to buy a Jamón Ibérico de cebo de Guijuelo, or in other words, an Iberian ham with a white flange.
One last curiosity about the origin of Iberian ham; Iberian ham from Guijuelo has also had the privilege of having its own postage stamp. In September 2017, Correos de España launched a limited series of stamps with a face value of €2 featuring a spectacular and tasty slice of Guijuelo ham on a background of Iberian pigs grazing in the Dehesa.
Finally, in addition to these 4 PDOs for Iberian ham, there is a PDO for Teruel Ham and finally the PGI Jamón de Trevélez in Granada and the PGI Jamón de Serón in Almería.
What are the Iberian ham seals? Labeling of Iberian ham What categories does Iberian ham fall into?
Since 2014, R.D. 4/2014 established the current nomenclature for the marketing of Iberian ham and loin. In order to make it easier for consumers to identify the different categories of Iberian ham, four colors of seals have been established – in some cases they are called flanges because they are tamper-proof – to identify the different commercial categories of Iberian ham and loin.
These four categories are defined on the basis of the animal’s feed, management and breed purity.
The Iberian ham standard contemplates the following commercial presentations for hams, shoulders and loins.
1- Ham, loin or Paleta Ibérica with white seal: From animals raised intensively on farms or feedlots. Fed on feed and cereals. It is independent of the animal’s racial purity and therefore may be 100% Iberian, 75% or 50% Iberian. Therefore, to the question: Can we find a 100% Iberian ham with a white seal? The answer is Yes. It is true that this is not usual, but it is provided for in the standard. In this case on the seal
2- Shoulder, loin or Iberian Ham with green seal: It will come from animals that, although they have been able to take advantage of pasture or field resources, have been fed with fodder, consisting mainly of cereals and leguminous plants. This category is probably the broadest in terms of management possibilities. Article 7 of RD 4/2014 details all the management conditions for animals that can be categorized as “field fattening”. In this case they may also be 50% Iberian, 75% Iberian or 100% Iberian. Is it common to find 75% or 100% Iberian cebo campo ham? Yes, it is not the norm on farms, but there is a breeding line that is committed to a field fattening ham of greater racial purity, which is why we can buy 75% Iberian field fattening ham, as in this case. The case of 100% Iberian field-fed ham is less common but it is also found. These are usually animals from farms where all the animals are 100% Iberian but for one reason or another do not meet the conditions to reach the category of 100% Iberian acorn-fed acorn-fed ham. The 100% Iberian country ham is a true Delicatessen that can sometimes be presented at a very good price.
3-Paleta, jamón or Caña de lomo with red seal. Category reserved for pieces from animals slaughtered immediately after the exclusive use of acorns, grass and other natural resources of the pasture, without supplementary feed. The pastures where these animals are raised are perfectly defined and identified in the Geographic Information System of Agricultural Plots (SIGPAC) as Montanera plots. The maximum number of animals that can be raised in each Dehesa will be defined according to the wooded area or availability of acorns in each vintage. The red seal allows pieces 50% Iberian and 75% Iberian.
4- Black leg or black seal. This is the top category of Iberian. These are the pieces that meet the conditions for free-range management as stated in the red seal, but in this case only 100% Iberian animals are allowed. The protection of 100% Iberian acorn-fed acorn-fed ham is such that the term pata negra may only be used for 100% Iberian acorn-fed hams. A pata negra ham can only be called a 100% Iberian breed acorn-fed ham.
