Eating and Savoring Jamón

Antonio Gazquez Ortiz

There are pleasures in gastronomy only brought by taste; the mind knows them by intuition. One of those pleasures is jamón ibérico, ham from free-range pigs fed in the pastures of Spain. Both ibérico (from the Iberian Peninsula) and pasture are the key words here, since those make the definition of a good jamón. Unfortunately, my dear readers, only a few are privy to the true secret of the true acorn-bred jamón ibérico de bellota.

People always say that you have to get to know things to appreciate them. To this end, I intend to write several articles on the secrets of jamón, so they cease to be secrets -- and I hope to succeed -- and become a pleasure, not only for the palate but also for the mind. My first explanation will verse on the meaning of eating ham and savoring ham, two very different facts that however do not rule each other out; they both have their place at the table and in our palates.

The act of eating means "putting foods and delicacies in our stomachs;" that is, it is a synonym of nourishing oneself. Therefore, pleasure is not a must to achieve this task; the important part is giving our bodies the necessary principles to develop itself and comply with its biological tasks. But this act of putting foods through the mouth does not need to be a crude event; it can also be a pleasant one. We do need to feed ourselves, but why wouldn't we use good foods for it? The answer is obvious; therefore, if we extrapolate this principle to our jamón, we can say that eating a jamón sandwich, eating a meal with a garnish of finely chopped jamón or using it as part of a dish is an act of eating -- in this case jamón. I think that for this gastronomic event there are a variety of jamones, those from the cellars or the ones called serranos. They all have very appetizing gastronomic characteristics, and comply with the premise of gastronomic pleasure.

But savoring, that's something else. We understand by savoring the search for the essence and the pleasure in a particular food. To find pleasure in jamón there is nothing better than a jamón ibérico from a free-range pig grown in his last growth and fattening stage in a Spanish pasture, from the months of November to February. In these pastures, the Iberian pig will find grass, acorns and an excellent habitat to infuse his muscles with fat, where the volatile principles of flavor and aroma are kept. This jamón must be eaten in wafer-thin slices and surrounded by good company and wine. Savoring jamón equals starting a wordless conversation between the jamón and our sensations. In other words: a jamón serrano or one from the cellar is to be eaten, but jamón ibérico de bellota is to be savored.

Therefore, when one eats jamón the only aim is to nourish him/herself as well as possible, and any white or mixed pig's jamón will provide that; but to savor it, only a jamón from an Iberian pig fed in the pastures will do.

However, jamón is a live food; it keeps on maturing and seeking aromas and flavors, even after it finishes the curing stage in any cellar or plant. It needs to be kept or put in our home or restaurant in a place where it is not enduring temperature changes or humidity. Therefore, do not ever think that when a jamón is bought, its life has ended. It only ends in the eater's stomach, and a good jamón ibérico lives long in the gourmet's memory.