Dalmatian prosciutto
Dalmatian prosciutto sliced 100g
Dalmatian prosciutto without bone 1/2
Dalmatian prosciutto with bone
Dalmatian prosciutto is a cured meat product, made from fresh pork ham with bone. Fresh pork ham is salted with sea salt, smoked and matured no less than 12 months. Dalmatian prosciutto is a product protected with a geographical origin indicator. The uniqueness of a Dalmatian prosciutto comes from its traditional and natural production process that excludes adding any preservatives and/or additives. Dalmatian prosciutto must not contain any additives, the only thing that is being added is sea salt.
Production of prosciutto in Dalmatia dates back to Ancient Roman times. Roman legionaries methods of preserving the pork meat by means of smoking and salting spread as Roman dominion advanced. Since those times the skills and methods of prosciutto production have carried from generation to generation, and with time developed into a procedure specific to the region of Dalmatia.
Up to the time of second world war Dalmatian prosciutto has been produced only in rural regions, while the limited production allowed consumption of the Dalmatian prosciutto only by the more prosperous rural household. In the sixties of the last century, with the increase of life standards, an increased consumption generated a more steady production of Dalmatian prosciutto. With the development of tourism in the costal regions of Croatia, the demand for this Dalmatian delicacy has also increased. In the last 20 years it has become the widely recognizable symbol of a Dalmatian region and a one of the most gourmet and economically typical food product of Croatia.
Favorable climatic conditions of the Dalmatia region have allowed a development of a traditional way of producing cured meat product by means of salting, smoking, drying and maturing, and that very same tradition is presented to us today in a shape of a Dalmatian prosciutto. Singular aroma and smell, alongside the mild salty taste are typical for Dalmatian prosciutto.
Dalmatian prosciutto is produced in the region of Dalmatia which encompass the longest and largest part of Croatian coastal parts. The climate there is mediterranean with warm and dry summers and mild moist winters. Dalmatian region is exposed to several winds almost entire part of the year which makes an ideal natural conditions for optimal prosciutto drying and maturing.
Technological process of production Dalmatian prosciutto
Process of production Dalmatian prosciutto begins with quality control of fresh pork ham.
1.PROCESSING OF FRESH HAM WITH BONE – Dalmatian prosciutto is produced from pigs coming from commercial meat breeds and their crosses. A fresh ham is obtained by cutting and processing cooled down fresh halves.
2. PROSCIUTTO SALTING – - the time allowed to pass between pig slaughter and salting of a fresh ham cannot be shorter than 24 hours and longer than 96 hours. Hams are averagely salted between 14 and 20 days and salted with sea salt at a temperature between +4◦C and +6◦C
3.PROSCIUTTO PRESSING - after the salting stage, hams are pressed by stacking them between panels with weight being applied on top. Pressing lasts for 7 to 14 days at a temperature between +4◦C and +6◦C
4.PROSCIUTTO DRYING AND SMOKING – after salted and drained hams’ temperature is evened with the room temperature, the smoking stage follows. Smoking is performed using furnaces for cold smoke production. Drying and smoking lasts for 45 days at the most.
5.PROSCIUTTO MATURING - the aging stage occurs in dark rooms with mild air circulation. Air temperature in rooms for maturing should not be over +20◦C, and relative air humidity needs to be below 90%
The protection of geographical origin of Dalmatian prosciutto
The Dalmatian Prosciutto Association established in 2006 with the sole agenda of protecting the geographical origin of Dalmatian prosciutto. Its primary goal, the above mentioned protection of geographical origin of Dalmatian prosciutto, was successfully ended.
Ministry of Agriculture published REGISTERED INDICATIONS AND PRODUCTS NAME. Product name "DALMATIAN PROSCIUTTO" was registered as MARK OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION,with Decision KLASA: UP / I 310-26/12-01/04, URBOJ :525-08 / 0497-12-4 from July 10th 2012.
Therefore the production of Dalmatian prosciutto must be done according to specification.
Specification of Dalmatian prosciutto
