火腿告急!西班牙火腿成中国餐桌新宠
Having discovered the joys of French wine, caviar and truffles, China’s new rich are turning to a new gourmet delicacy to satisfy their demand for luxury goods from the west: Spain’s jamón ibérico, or Iberian ham. But demand is now threatening to outstrip supply, leaving Spaniards facing steep price rises in their most prized Christmas delicacy. The recent lifting of import restrictions has allowed top-of-the-range ham to find its “rightful place in the market, alongside caviar and truffles”, René Lemée, the head of exports for the famous Cinco Jotas brand, told El País newspaper. The Chinese, pork lovers par excellence, have now been seduced by jamón ibérico. The problem is that the best ham takes years to produce and, as demand outstrips supply, it is pushing up the price by as much as 10%. A 7.5kg leg sells at between €150 and €600.
顶级的伊比利亚猪在山地放牧期间每天奔跑14千米并拥有着2公顷自由放牧面积。这样广泛的运动一方面造就猪皮紧实的外观以及细长的脚踝(脚踝越修长则种族越纯正)。另一方面,100%伊比利亚猪的徒步走动使脂肪渗透肌肉,产生了红白相间且不滑腻的肌内脂肪,脂肪质地一触即可知。橡实喂养也使肉里除了火腿的鲜香,还有更为复杂耐嚼的气息。 Not only are there relatively small areas of dehesa – mostly in north-west and western Spain – but each pig needs about two hectares to fulfil its needs. Once slaughtered, the animals’ legs are plunged into vats of salt and hung and dry-cured over a range of temperatures for a minimum of 36 months, with the best hams cured for about 48 months.
伊比利亚火腿如果有认证的火腿师现切最好,直接生吃,而且最好用微温的盘子来放。配面包就啤酒是比较流行的吃法,也可以做头盘开胃菜,中国人配少许米饭也可以。配酒的话,搭配冰镇的干雪利酒(Jerez)或者西班牙里奥哈葡萄酒(Rioja wine)。 西班牙的地道吃法是做成tapa小食。经典的tapa比如salmorejo,选用番茄为底料的香醇冷奶油、科尔多瓦面包屑或者面包粗渣、初榨橄榄油、蒜、盐,配以小片面包、煮蛋切片以及伊比利亚火腿。 西班牙人也喜欢用伊比利亚火腿搭配哈密瓜吃,用薄薄的火腿把小块的哈密瓜卷起来,一起入口,咸鲜口感与甜蜜水汪汪的口感搭配在一起,奇妙无比。
In an effort to meet demand the Chinese have started importing raw frozen pork from Iberian pigs and curing the meat themselves, although Batres says the product is excessively salty.
“They have established a ham-cutting school in China and a professional association,” said Batres. “That’s a sign of how far the product has penetrated the local market.” 世界火腿哪家强? 金华火腿
制金华火腿必用的猪种是“两头乌”(头和屁股的毛是黑色),特点是皮薄及骨架细,脂肪丰富,味道甘香。金华火腿只取肥大、肉嫩的猪后腿,5至9公斤的猪腿是首选。经过腌渍、洗腿、风干、上架及发酵等80多道工序,传统方法需要8-10个月。 帕尔玛火腿
帕尔马火腿必须取自专门饲养的长白猪、大白猪以及杜洛克品种猪,猪的饮食也受到特别控制,混合了谷物、杂粮和生产帕马森干酪奶酪所剩乳清的饲料。制作帕尔玛火腿需要9个月到两年。先要抹上海盐,放置两个月,将其血水去除。之后洗去海盐,在黑暗低温寒冷的环境慢慢风干。整个腌渍风干的过程持续至少12个月。 宣威火腿
宣威火腿通常采用腌制三年的“老火腿”,形似琵琶,只大骨小,皮薄肉厚肥瘦适中。一年至三年熟成的肉质较软,切开断面香气浓郁,色泽鲜艳,瘦肉呈鲜红色或玫瑰色,肥肉呈乳白色,骨头略显桃红,口味咸淡自然。三年以上的则风干更久,香味更浓,甚至可直接生吃。但味道偏咸,肉质较硬,甚至需要锯子锯开。本地人常用火腿煮芸豆,更高端的吃法是“金钱片腿”:切开作圆形,当中是精肉,周围是肥肉,带着一圈薄皮。 诺邓火腿
诺邓雨量适中,气候温和,霜期较短,恰好适宜深度发酵。气候之外,诺邓火腿选用纯粮食喂养的猪后腿为材料,只用诺邓村的千年盐井中取的囟盐来腌制。腌制的方法也非常独特,俗称“诺邓火腿缚着泥巴卖”。每年冬季杀年猪时,用盐和苞谷酒腌制后,诺邓人便把猪腿皮朝下平平地放在木缸或大铁锅内,盖上盖子,腌15到20天。拿出后先抹上一层盐,再在外面均匀地涂抹一层灶灰、诺邓盐卤水下沉淀的泥浆混合的稀泥,这种稀泥有保鲜、加速发酵和防虫的作用。然后用绳子吊挂在阴凉、通风处半年以上即可,存放时间越长香味越浓。 |