Prosciutto's American cousins are worthy of a certain amount of respect
If a prophet is without honor in his own country, sometimes a pig is, too. Or at least a ham.During the decade-long craze for all foods Italian, Americans have come to appreciate the many virtues of prosciutto and have learned to handle it with a certain amount of respect.
But when it comes to America's own dry-cured, aged country hams, a curious kind of culinary inversion seems to prevail. The same knowledgeable cooks who prize the rich, complex flavors of prosciutto tend to think of its American cousins as if they were watery canned hams, fit only for boiling or baking and eating in thick slices.
This lack of gustatory respect is quite unwarranted, since the best American hams are produced with the same delicate care, using the same procedures as the other great dry-cured hams of the world: the Yunan hams of China, the serranos of Spain and the Westphalian hams of Germany, in addition to prosciutto.
There is, however, one American ham that has been considered worthy company to these others: the Smithfield ham of Virginia. Part of this ham's appeal is its pedigree, which is enforced by a 1926 Virginia law that makes it illegal to call a ham "genuine Smithfield" unless it has been dry-cured, then aged for a minimum of 180 days within the Tidewater town of Smithfield. Country hams from elsewhere in the South are cured in the same way but may not necessarily be aged as long.
Even Smithfield fans, though, shy away from eating it uncooked, as they would prosciutto. Over the years we have argued - to any ham devotee who would listen - that the Smithfield, along with its lesser-known compatriots from Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky, is a world-class ham fully capable of being used as their more revered international compatriots are: added uncooked to dishes as a kind of flavoring agent, rather than served in slabs as a hearty entree. Used this way, Smithfield ham can add layers of complex flavor to a whole range of dishes.
Curiously, the fine aged hams of the American South are most appreciated by diners abroad and in immigrant communities in the United States whose culinary heritage includes other long-aged ham.
Larry Santure, the vice president of V.W. Joyner & Co. (757-357-2161), a major ham producer in Smithfield, says many of the company's finest hams are shipped to Asian restaurants in California as a substitute for Yunan hams, or flown to Europe bearing the Spanish label "tipo serrano," that is, serrano style.
Samuel W. Edwards III, the president of S. Wallace Edwards & Sons (800-222-4267) in Surry, Va., which sells Smithfield-style country hams aged for 180 days or more, said that his longest-aged hams are often shipped to New England, where Portuguese-Americans eat them uncooked, as they would the presuntos of their native country.
"Really, the way to get the full, intense flavor of these longer aged hams is to eat them uncooked," Edwards said.
To create any of these hams, the hind quarter (leg and shank) of a hog are dry-cured in a salt mixture, rather than wet-cured in a salt brine, a quicker process that results in blunter flavors. The hams may then be smoked, usually over hickory. They are then air-dried for at least six months, a process crucial to the final flavor.
A 15-pound Smithfield-style ham will cost $50 to $60.
The flavors of these artisanal hams used to be attributed to the hog's particular diets: peanuts for Smithfield hams, beechnuts for prosciutto, and so on. Today most hogs are fed a uniform diet scientifically designed to produce leaner, faster-growing hogs.
"In addition to the curing mixture, the smoking time and material, and the aging time, you also have natural bacteria and flora in each location that influence taste," said Edwards, the curemaster for his family company.
This means that the curemaster's "individual sense of touch, smell, taste and sight is crucial," he added.
In a quest for a deeper understanding of these hams - and to be absolutely sure that our position on not cooking them was correct - we once cured our own.
After eight months, the shriveled ham was completely covered with a greenish-blue mold and had a sharp, cheesy smell. But when we scraped off the surface mold and cut the first slice, it had a fantastically rich, complex flavor that rivaled any prosciutto we have ever tasted.
When substituting Smithfield or other aged country hams for prosciutto, keep in mind that the American hams are slightly denser, which makes them more difficult to slice very thin. If presentation is important, a butcher can slice the ham for you.
And remember that these hams are quite salty, so add less salt to the recipe than you ordinarily might.
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RECIPES
PASTA WITH COUNTRY HAM, SEARED EGGPLANT AND PEPPERS
Total time: 35 minutes
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small to medium eggplant, diced small
1 small red onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 to 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
12 ounces penne or other tubular dried pasta
1/2 pound Smithfield or other dry-cured, aged country ham, julienned
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup roughly chopped mixed herbs, any combination of parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme or basil
In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over high heat until hot but not smoking. Add eggplant, and saute, stirring, until well browned and a bit softened, about 4 minutes. Add onion and bell peppers, reduce the heat to medium high and cook, stirring frequently, until onions are softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute. Remove from heat, season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
Meanwhile, put 11/2 quarts of salted water in a large stockpot and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Add the pasta, bring the water back to a boil, and cook 7 to 10 minutes, or until pasta is tender but not mushy. Drain, and place in a large bowl.
Add reserved eggplant mixture and ham to bowl with pasta. Add lemon juice, olive oil, herbs, salt and black pepper to taste. Toss well, and serve at once.
Yield: 4 servings.
- Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 700 calories, 35 grams fat, 40 milligrams cholesterol, 720 milligrams sodium (before salting), 20 grams protein, 75 grams carbohydrate.
PAN-SEARED PORTOBELLOS AND FIGS WITH COUNTRY HAM ON GREENS
Total time: 35 minutes
4 large (about 6 inches in diameter) portobello mushrooms, cleaned and stems removed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
4 fresh figs, halved
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 bunch mustard greens or other spicy greens, washed and stems removed
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
8 thin slices or 1/4-cup diced Smithfield or other dry-cured, aged country ham
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place a large cast-iron skillet or ovenproof nonstick saute pan over medium-high heat, and let heat for 2 minutes. Meanwhile, rub mushrooms with vegetable oil and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Place mushrooms in pan, and saute, moving around frequently, until nicely seared, about 2 minutes a side. Place pan in heated oven for about 3 minutes or until mushrooms appear moist all the way through, rather than dry at the center. Remove mushrooms from pan, and set aside.
Place figs, cut side down, in the same pan over medium-high heat, and cook until slightly seared, about 2 minutes a side. Remove, and set aside with the portobello caps.
In same pan, heat olive oil over high heat until hot but not smoking. Add garlic, and stir a few times, cooking only about 5 seconds. Immediately add greens, vinegar and sugar, and toss vigorously with tongs until greens are just wilted, a minute or so. Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper.
Place greens on a platter or individual serving plates. Top with mushroom caps (either whole or sliced), figs and ham, and serve warm.
Yield: 4 servings.
- Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 260 calories, 20 grams fat, 5 milligrams cholesterol, 100 milligrams sodium (before salting), 6 grams protein, 20 grams carbohydrate.