Faqs
Pata negra refers to the colour of the trotter, but not all Iberian pigs have black trotters, nor are black trotters exclusive to this species. The maximum quality is determined, basically, by the species and the feed, and thus an Iberian pig fed on acorns will give, if the drying and curing processes are suitably carried out, the best possible hams.
“Serrano” does not refer to the species, but only to the quality of the jam; it only indicates the type of cut, in “V”, used to obtain the leg of ham. Therefore, Serrano ham can also be from non-Iberian pigs.
Jabugo ham is ham that has been produced and manufactured in the town of Jabugo (Huelva). This town, which is covered by the Certificate of Origin “Jamón de Huelva” (Huelva Ham), has produced hams from time immemorial and its fame is such that people have come to believe that it comes from a particular species of pig, which is not the case. The best hams produced in the area come from Iberian pigs, some of which are a variant of a local species: the “manchado” (spotted) Jabugo, which has white marks on its skin. In short, the best Jabugo ham is, in fact, Iberian ham.
They are crystallisations made up mainly of amino acids called thyroxin, which appear during the breakdown of the proteins. They are not at all harmful; quite the contrary, they are usually a sign of optimum curing and maturing.ing and maturing.
Between 30% (leg) and 40% (shoulder) of the weight of the ham is bone. Cut up into pieces it makes a great ingredient for soups and stews.
Once you have started the ham, or just before doing so, it should be kept at room temperature in a cool, dry place. Cover the cut area with the skin and fat of the ham to prevent it from drying out and losing its aroma and flavour.r
The optimum stay in the cellars is, approximately, between 24 to 28 months for legs of hams and between 18 and 28 months for shoulders of ham. After this there is a risk that the ham will become too dry, although hams weighing 9 kg to 10 kg that have been in the cellars for over 5 years have been tested, with excellent results
When they are growing, pigs need to be fed other types of feed to develop and build their bone structure. Once their weight reaches around 80 to 105 kilos, they begin to pasture, where they will increase their body weight by about 60%, feeding on acorn and vegetation.
There is a preference for the back legs (leg) over the front legs (shoulder), as these give a better cut, but the flavour is practically the same. The difference in price is due to the fact that there is more meat on the legs. However, when buying, one should choose leg or shoulder depending on consumption, taking into account that it should be consumed within 3 to 4 weeks once you start cutting the ham.
At Juan Pedro Domecq, payment by credit card is done through PayPal, via the telephone or directly with your credit card.
Our payment services guarantee that your credit card information will be sent in a completely secure manner: not even Juan Pedro Domecq has access, at any time, to your card data, except when you request payment by credit card over the telephone.
The following credit cards are accepted: VISA, MasterCard and American Express, and we have an SSL security system. To make the payment you will go to Banco Sabadell’s Virtual POS, which means that you can carry out the transaction with total security. This POS is equipped with a secure payment system for online purchases and SSL (Secure Socket Layer) security protocol, which guarantee that data is transmitted securely, completely encoded directly by the banking entity.
