Let’s Talk ….Prosciutto

What is prosciutto?

I must confess that I’m honestly surprised every time I meet someone who has no idea what it is. I suppose it’s because it is such a wonderful, delicious delicacy that I’m shocked more people are not aware of it. Also, it has become so popular with professional chefs and home grown gourmets that it is now showing up on almost every other menu you read.

I decided to look up a definition of the word and found the following: Prosciutto, noun - dried and smoked Italian ham: Italian cured ham, usually served cold and uncooked in thin slices. Clearly this definition was not written by someone who has ever tasted prosciutto. This is like saying Liz Taylor was just a nice looking woman. Or that George Clooney is only somewhat attractive. Either way, to leave it at, “Italian cured ham” is a gross understatement.

Prosciutto does mean ham in Italian. There are two kinds of prosciutto “cotto,” which means cooked and “crudo” or raw. Prosciutto cotto is – to keep it short – very much like the sliced ham you would get at the local deli. Prosciutto crudo –raw cured ham -is made by salting and pressing the ham for about two months, until it is drained of blood; it is then rinsed well and left out to dry in a cool environment. The aging process can take up to three years, depending on the patience and quality of the producer. The care and time that goes into the curing process is just one of the many reasons that the meat is so expensive. However, it is worth the cost. When the cured ham is shaved into paper-thin slices; it has a deep saltiness and a rich texture that melts on the tongue. I have never been a fan of highly salted foods BUT….the blend of the salt with the rich smoky flavor and velvety feel of the meat are extraordinary.

While there are many ways to serve prosciutto and equally as many recipes in which to use it, my absolute favorite is with sliced melon. I could eat prosciutto with melon any time of the year but I think the very best time to enjoy it is during the summer months when you just want to have something cool and refreshing.  I find the rich sweetness of cantaloupe to be the best match and that is how you will find it served in almost every restaurant and home in Italy. Although I have seen prosciutto served with honey dew melon and even watermelon on rare occasion, it is cantaloupe that partners with it best.

Delicate wedges of melon gently draped with nearly translucent slices of prosciutto, placed on a platter, artfully surrounded by thin slices of fresh buffalo mozzarella, accompanied by a tray of black olives and a basket of bread is a meal that requires no cooking and little effort on a 90 degree summer day. Blanche some asparagus (throw in boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes remove and immediately douse in an ice bath for 8 minutes)carefully wrap each stalk with a piece of the prosciutto and lay out on a small serving dish. Drizzle very lightly with a mixture of red wine vinegar and oil.

The one problem I find when purchasing prosciutto is that often times no one in the store knows how to properly slice it. This may not sound like a very big deal but please believe me it is! Improperly slicing the meat simply ruins it and makes it far less enjoyable to consume. The meat has to be cut at a certain angle and sliced extremely thin otherwise it seems oily and will be very hard to chew. Remember prosciutto is supposed to melt in your mouth. It should not have to be gnawed upon like beef jerky! If you find that to be the case then take your purchase back to the store and ask for your money back.

I have encountered this problem numerous times before and I can tell you now that the most effective way of avoiding it is NOT to buy prosciutto at the supermarket.  Seriously! I have yet to go to one supermarket – Stop ‘n' Shop, Hannaford’s, Shaw’s ….where anyone had any idea how to properly cut the prosciutto. I ended up with something that resembled stringy corned beef that couldn’t be chewed. Even my cats, who will eat any kind of meat as long as it is fresh, wouldn’t go near it.  Your best bet is to go a little family owned Italian specialty shop or a gourmet import store. They are the people who truly know how properly handle this very special and rather expensive cut of meat. They understand that unlike throwing a slab of pimento loaf on the deli slicer and just cranking it back and forth against the blade, slicing prosciutto is an art. It requires practice and the knowledge that if it’s not done right... the flavor is ruined.   

One place I can recommend for good prosciutto in this area is Panzano Market in Southborough. Their prices are a bit high but they do have excellent quality deli meats and cheeses. They also know how to properly cut and wrap them.

If you find yourself on the south shore stop in to Alfredo Aiellos. They have two stores one in Quincy the other in Norwell. Just make sure that they don’t have one of the kids behind the counter. Some of them just haven’t had enough experience.They also have a larger selection of imported goods than Panzano.  Try a slice of their home made pizza if you get there before they sell out. I normally do not like thick crust pizza but this tastes like somebody’s mama made it in her kitchen. Hey I was actually looking to see if they had somebody’s little old mama chained in back to the stove! The pizza is that good!

Finally - let's talk about leftover prosciutto. I can hear a number of my friends laughing (one from Quincy in particular) as they ask "Is there any such thing?'  The aswer: sometimes. It doesn't happen often but occasionally, especially at the holidays I will buy more than I need at the time. Prosciutto is at its best the first two days after you bring it home. After that it begins to slowly dry up and loose some of it's marvelous texture.  You can always chop up a few  pieces of it and throw it into a sautee pan with some zucchini, summer squash and some finely chopped onion. I will also  stretch a few pieces out on a cookie sheet and put them in my oven at around 375 for 20 minutes until it crisps up almost like bacon.

I crumble the crispy pieces into dip or top a hot bowl of soup - crumble on top of spinach or cauliflower, put a piece on top of a garden salad and even sprinkle smaller pieces into a cheese omlete.  I could go on for hours about all the things you can do but frankly I need go to the store....I'm suddenly very hungry.