In Spain, not all hams are created equal
During my visit to Badajoz, Spain, I was privileged to have been able to visit Señorio de Olivenza, the 125-year-old company that has succeeded in marrying modern manufacturing processes with century-old traditional preparation methods.
We don’t give much thought to ham when we see it served on our table; we are so used to cold cuts from the supermarket. We think that all hams are the same. However, in my culinary career, I can testify that there are certain types of food that can be consumed casually and there are certain types of food that must be served in a fine-dining setting where its preparation and quality are given full service.
This kind of prestige definitely belongs to the Ibérico Bellota ham produced by Señorio de Olivenza under the Montaraz trade name. Montaraz, which is a family-owned company that has been successfully handed down through four generations, has produced this exquisite ham since 1890. It is known to be the most refined Ibérico Bellota ham in Spain that has maintained traditional production processes, respecting century-old salting and curing processes in natural drying sheds with integrated modern production equipment that allows its distinctive quality to be maintained for worldwide distribution.
While I basked under the shade of olive trees, Diego Pastor, the export manager of Montaraz, invited us to take part in a journey of exclusive traditional ham-making practices within their headquarters. The Montaraz Acorn-Fed Iberian Ham is sourced from exclusive free-range Ibérico pigs. Having said that, the process does not begin in procuring the best ingredients; rather, the development of this ham begins in raising the pigs that will be the source of the finest ingredients that can be put together to accomplish the taste and consistency that Montaraz ham has been known for throughout the century.
Walking through corridors of carefully prepared meat in seas of artesian salt sourced from the locality, they take sanitation to a whole new level: everyone wears a face mask and is completely covered in protective clothing to ensure that none of the well-prepared legs of ham that hang from wall-to-wall mechanized meat hooks will get contaminated. It was a sight to behold, with every ham leg carefully cut, prepared and enveloped in salt, then carefully labeled to be processed and packaged completely as a whole leg or sliced ever so thinly and enclosed in vacuum-sealed packs to ensure freshness. Nothing is left to chance.
Precision and efficiency can be seen all over the production floor. It was art in motion and it was delightful to be in the company of passionate people who strive to uphold traditional food preparation while combining it with state-of-the-art technology. Everyone was so dedicated to their craft that you could truly feel the focus and attention each person contributed in order to come up with an excellent product.
My experiences as a culinarian always amaze and inspire me. I hope that a new generation of culinary experts will find ways to also preserve traditional means of preparing food while continuing to innovate and discover new ways of sustaining the quality of our very own culinary treasures the same way Montaraz has been able to preserve theirs.
Luckily, Montaraz hams are available at all Terry’s outlets in Manila. They carry two: Jamon Montaraz, the Iberico Bellota (the pig is fed with acorns), and Iberico Cebo (which is grain- and acorn-fed).
