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火腿告急!西班牙火腿成中国餐桌新宠

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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.
继法国葡萄酒、鱼子酱和松露之后,热爱西方奢侈品的中国新富们又爱上了一种新美味——西班牙的伊比利亚火腿。但是,由于需求过旺导致供不应求,现在西班牙人不得不眼睁睁地看着他们最重要的圣诞美食价格飞涨。

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.
著名的伊比利亚火腿品牌Cinco Jotas的出口部负责人勒内•雷米告诉《国家报》说,前不久中国取消了伊比利亚火腿的进口限制,让这一顶级火腿找到了自己“在市场上和鱼子酱、松露比肩的合理位置”。

火腿告急!西班牙火腿成中国餐桌新宠

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.
超爱吃猪肉的中国人如今被伊比利亚火腿给俘获了。问题在于,最好的火腿需要数年的生产时间,因为供不应求的原因,价格已经上涨了10%。现在一条7.5公斤的火腿售价在150欧元到600欧元之间(合人民币1180元到4721元之间)。

 


Spanish ham comes in many forms, but to be defined as jamón ibérico de bellota (acorn-fed Iberian ham), which is what the Chinese want, it must first come from Iberian blackfoot pigs, or from 50% crossbreeds. These pigs must then spend several months of the year roaming the dehesa, a pasture planted with oaks, feeding on grass and acorns. During the last few months before being slaughtered they must live exclusively on this diet.
西班牙火腿有多个品种,但要成为中国富人爱吃的“喂食橡子的伊比利亚火腿”,首先肉源要采用伊比利亚黑脚猪,或者有50%伊比利亚黑脚猪血统。这些猪需在种植了橡树的牧场放牧数个月,吃青草和橡树果实。在被宰杀前的最后几个月,它们只能吃这两种食物。

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.
且不说橡树牧场的面积有限(主要分布在西班牙西北部和西部),每头猪至少需要两公顷地的产出才能吃饱。一旦被宰杀,猪腿将插入盐缸里,然后挂起来干腌,在不同温度下经过至少36个月才能制成,最优质的火腿要腌制48个月。

 


那么,伊比利亚火腿一般如何食用呢?

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。

 


“It’s inevitable that the price in Spain is going to rise,” said Roberto Batres, the director of Shanghai de Delaiberia Gold, which exports ham, wine and olive oil to China. “The companies licenced to trade in China don’t have enough jamón de bellota to meet Chinese demand.”
“西班牙火腿价格上涨是不可避免的。”向中国出口火腿、葡萄酒和橄榄油的享肴商贸(上海)有限公司的总监罗伯托•巴特雷斯说,“在中国有经销权的公司没有足够的伊比利亚火腿来满足中国人的需求。”

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.
为了满足国人吃伊比利亚火腿的需求,中国人开始进口冷冻伊比利亚生猪肉来自己腌制火腿,不过巴特雷斯说,中国人腌制的这种火腿产品特别咸。

 


The production and consumption of top-quality ham is the subject of the same awe and mystery as the making of fine wine. Cutting de-boned jamón de bellota on a ham-slicing machine is regarded as sacrilege. The leg must be bolted on to a frame called a jamonero and then cut by hand using a long, narrow blade. Most towns in the ham-producing areas of Extremadura, Castilla y León and Andalucía hold solemn ham-slicing competitions, often attended by hundreds of spectators.
顶级火腿的生产和消费就像优质葡萄酒一样让人心生敬畏和神秘感。用片肉机来将去骨的伊比利亚猪腿切成片被认为是亵渎圣物。猪腿必须被固定在一种叫jamonero的架子上,然后师傅用一把又长又窄的刀将其切成片。在出产火腿的埃斯特雷马杜拉、卡斯蒂利亚-莱昂和安达卢西亚区的多数城镇,都会举行隆重的切火腿片比赛,通常都会有数百名围观者。

“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.”
“人们已经在中国成立了切火腿技校和行业协会,”巴特雷斯说,“这足以说明伊比利亚火腿已经深入到了当地市场。”

世界火腿哪家强?

金华火腿

 


中国的金华火腿、意大利的帕尔玛火腿与西班牙的伊比利亚火腿并称为“世界三大火腿”。金华火腿色泽较暗,因江浙风味影响,瘦肉香咸带甜,肥肉香而不腻。金华火腿中最有名的是“雪舫蒋腿”。

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

 


意大利的帕尔马火腿被称为“火腿中的爱马仕”。上好的帕尔玛火腿色泽呈暗红,切片后有透视感,带云石纹理的脂肪。嗅起来有陈年的肉香及烟熏的气味,入口味道咸香,脂肪能在口中溶解,有回味。

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

 


除去金华,国内第二有名的火腿就是云南的“云腿”了。而“云腿”中,最著名的又是产自滇东北宣威地区的宣威火腿,与“金华火腿”、“安福火腿”被誉为中国三大名腿。

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

 


诺邓火腿是云南三大火腿之一。肉色嫩红,肥瘦均匀。因盐分比宣威火腿更少、腌制时间更短,所以肉质更为鲜嫩。而且三年以上的诺邓火腿可以生吃,号称“国内唯一能和西班牙火腿比较的,只有诺邓火腿”。

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。

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