WHEN SPAIN’S MYTHICAL Iberian ham was first imported to the U.S., in 2007, it was heralded as the best in the world. Turns out, in spite of the fanfare and sky-high prices, much of what was then labeled ibérico wasn’t…entirely. Now, more and better hams are coming to the U.S. market, prices have dropped and companies are specifying pedigree in preparation for upcoming legislation in Spain that will require them to do so. The world’s best pork is finally getting a stateside debut we can applaud unreservedly.
Ibérico is a stupendously umami-rich, silken ham that leaves Italian prosciutto and Spain’s equivalent, , in the dust; fresh meat from ibérico pigs is juicy as rib eye and tender as filet mignon. In Spain, an acorn-fed ibérico ham on the table is the ultimate status symbol.
But for all its exquisiteness, the ibérico tradition has been beset by the same boom-and-bust syndrome, and accusations of fraud, that have plagued Spain recently. To understand, one must first go back thousands of years to Phoenician times, when black-hooved pigs (another name for the breed is , or black hoof) were introduced to an oak-grove ecosystem in southwestern Spain known as the dehesa. Pigs thrived there, gorging on acorns for months prior to slaughter. Cured hams and fresh meat from these pigs, at first a regional specialty, became, over the centuries, Spain’s most prized national delicacy.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: Wall Street Journal