Friuli Prosciutto San Daniele
 

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San Daniele Prosciutto: what is prosciutto?

The curing process depends on a delicate balance of curing and "resting" phases: one slip and the prosciutto is ruined. Prosciutto is possessed of a delicate consistency which does not allow it to be cured just anywhere. It demands a rather particular climate. Producers of prosciutto in Veneto have known for centuries that conditions in the San Daniele area bordering Friuli affect the best results. In San Daniele whole pork hinds, including the foot, are cured. These "graduates" prosciuttos are of a pinky-red hue, marbled with veins of fat which ensure tenderness and should absolutely not be discarded. They also have a flatter pan shape, compared to Parma prosciutto which is usually rounded.

The local prosciutto producers are most proud of their famous local product: record books of the oldest prosciutto companies show that during the last century they supplied the British royal family and the imperial house of Vienna with San Daniele prosciutto.

In Italian there is a distinction between prosciutto crudo, literally "raw ham", which is cured ham, what English speakers refer to as "prosciutto" and prosciutto cotto, "cooked ham", which is similar to what English speakers call "ham".

San Daniele Prosciutto

There's a lot a person could do with a prosciutto (ham). In an Almodovar film, an exasperated housewife uses a prosciutto to kill her husband. The Italians have turned to making prosciutto a culinary work of art, dedicating 9 to 18 months to the process, depending on weight. The proof of their efforts lies in the taste and texture of the best cured prosciutto in the world, universally known as prosciutto San Daniele and prosciutto di Parma, enjoyed in paper-thin slices. In addition to these prominent prosciutto products, there are myriad Tuscan and Umbrian prosciutti, prosciutto di montagna (mountain ham) and the greatest delicacy of them all - culatello, a legendary super-prosciutto from the Emilia region.

Recipes with prosciutto di San Daniele

La Terra Fortunata : The Splendid Food and Wine of Friuli Venezia-Giulia, Italy's Great Undiscovered Region
by FRED PLOTKIN

Editorial Reviews

The Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia is perhaps the least well known by Americans, even those who travel Italy. Tucked away in the northeastern corner of Italy, stretching almost from Venice to Vienna, the region proudly grows the widest range of grape varieties in all of Italy. The Friulians, therefore, are extraordinarily aware of the interaction between food and wine. Fred Plotkin wrote La Terra Fortunata after 25 years of visiting the small region. His knowledge of its food, its wine, and its people and their customs is immense. Plotkin offers a comprehensive history of the region and great insight and understanding in his choice of recipes and their instructions.--Leora Y. Bloom

A great food and wine region of Italy-largely undiscovered by those who live to eat-Friuli-Venezia Giulia springs succulently from the pages of La Terra Fortunata by Italy expert Fred Plotkin.

Friuli-Venezia Giulia was one of Italy's best-kept secrets-until now. Between Venice and Vienna, with Trieste as its capital, this region has the most varied and sophisticated food in Italy. No other regional kitchen uses more fruit or spices or a greater range of meat and seafood. In La Terra Fortunata, readers will discover gnocchi filled with plums or apricots; tagliolini tossed with poppy seeds and the region’s superlative prosciutto di San Daniele; sea scallops with almond sauce; risotto flavored with a rainbow of spices, including ginger, star anise, and nutmeg; cinnamon-scented veal stew, and, of course, frico, the region's signature dish, a delectable cheese crisp that is positively addictive.

With more than 160 recipes and an indispensable list for wine lovers, La Terra Fortunata will come as a revelation to those who thought there was nothing new under the Italian sun.