Being in the chacuterie business we are often asked the big question, "Do you make Parma Ham?" The answer is no. We will never be able to make Parma Ham because Parma Ham comes from Parma a region of Italy. But i'm never that blunt because firstly i'm a nice guy and really its a very common mistake outside of Italy.
Parma Ham has become so famous people often refer to Prosciutto Crudo (pronounced pro-shu-toe crew-dough) as Parma ham, which in fact is only one type of prosciutto that is made in the region of Parma and the name is protected under Italian law, like the name Champagne can only be used for bubbly made in Champagne, France.
So what other types of proscuitto do you get? Well the answer is every little town has their own proscuitto and they will be the first to tell you theirs is the best! Outside of Italian locals claiming the title their are a few other famous hams like Prosciutto di San Danielle and Proscuitto di Moderna.
How its made...without making the process sound simple, its not. This is how Prosciutto is made (it Italy)
- The legs of ham arrive in the factory.
- They are trimmed, weighed, salted and massaged.
- The legs are left to rest with the salt for several days.
- More salt added and massaged again & left again.
- Then cleaned and hung to dry for several week or months.
- Then they will be matured for 1-3 years.
Capito? Understand? Great!
But now you are in a deli and someone offers you coppa ham? or Lonza? What's that?
Well coppa ham or lonza are different cuts that under go the same type of process that the prosciutto goes through. Salted, massaged, dried and hung to mature.
But the big difference is they are not made from the leg like prosciutto. Coppa is made from the muscle at the top of the shoulder and Lonza is made from the loin.
In the picture above we have sliced some of our Prosciutto, coppa and Lonza. They all have their own particular flavor and they're all delicious.
I hope for the love of ham its a now little more clear.