What is ham?
A: Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing.
As a processed meat, the term "ham" includes both whole
cuts of meat and what?
A: Ones that have been mechanically formed.
Ham is made around the world, including a number of
regional what?
A: Regional specialties, such as Westphalian ham and some varieties of
Spanish jamón.
In addition, numerous ham products have specific
geographical what?
A: Naming protection, such as prosciutto di Parma in Europe, and Smithfield
ham in the US.
The preserving of pork leg as ham has a long history,
with traces of production of cured ham among what?
A: Among the Etruscan civilization known in the 6th and 5th century BC.
Cato the Elder wrote about the "salting of hams" in his
De Agri Cultura tome around when?
A: 160 BC.
There are claims that the Chinese were the first people
to mention what?
A: The production of cured ham.
It was certainly well established by the Roman period,
as evidenced by what?
A: An import trade from Gaul mentioned by Marcus Terentius Varro in his
writings.
The modern word "ham" is derived from what?
A: The Old English ham or hom meaning the hollow or bend of the knee, from a
Germanic base where it meant "crooked".
When did it begin to refer to the cut of pork derived
from the hind leg of a pig?
A: Around the 15th century.
Because of the preservation process, ham is a compound
foodstuff or ingredient, being made up of the original meat, as well what?
A: The remnants of the preserving agent(s), such as salt, but it is still
recognized as a
food in its own right.
How is ham produced?
A: By curing raw pork by salting, also known as dry curing, or brining, also
known as wet curing.
Traditional dry cure hams may use only what as the
curative agent?
A: Salt.
This process involves cleaning the raw meat, covering
it in salt while it is gradually what?
A: Pressed draining all the blood.
The hams are then washed and hung where?
A: In a dark, temperature-regulated place until dry.
It is then what?
A: Hung to air for another period of time.
The duration of the curing process varies by what?
A: The type of ham.
How long does it take Jinhua ham to complete?
A: Approximately 8 to 10 months.
Serrano ham cures in how long?
A: 9–12 months.
Iberian ham can take up to how long to reach the
desired flavor characteristics?
A: 2 years.
Most modern dry cure hams also use what?
A: Nitrites (either sodium nitrite or potassium nitrite), which are added
along with the salt.
Why are nitrites used?
A: Because they prevent bacterial growth and, in a reaction with the meat's myoglobin, give the product a desirable dark red
color.
The amount and mixture of salt and nitrites used have
an effect on what?
A: The shrinkage of the meat.
Because of the toxicity of nitrite, some areas specify
what?
A: A maximum allowable content of nitrite in the final product.
Under certain conditions, especially during
cooking,
nitrites in meat can react with degradation products of amino acids, forming
what?
A: Nitrosamines, which are known carcinogens.
The dry curing of ham involves a number of what?
A: Enzymatic reactions.
Dry-cured ham is usually eaten without being what?
A: Cooked.
Wet-cured hams are brined, which involves the immersion
of the meat in what?
A: A brine, sometimes with other ingredients such as sugar also added for
flavor.
The meat is typically kept in the brine for how long?
A: Around 3 to 14 days.
Wet curing also has the effect of increasing volume and
weight of the finished product, by about how much?
A: 4%.
The wet curing process can also be achieved by doing
what?
A: By pumping the curing solution into the meat.
