{"id":2031,"date":"2009-10-08T15:56:04","date_gmt":"2009-10-08T14:56:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/?p=2031"},"modified":"2009-10-08T15:56:04","modified_gmt":"2009-10-08T14:56:04","slug":"making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-the-maturing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/10\/08\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-the-maturing\/","title":{"rendered":"Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: The Maturing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The final part in the 3-post series about how prosciutto crudo, cured ham from Parma is made. If you&#8217;ve just stumbled on the series, the first two posts in the series covered the topics below. I&#8217;ll wait while you go read those posts and catch up.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/09\/16\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-the-salting\/\">Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: The Salting<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/09\/21\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-drying-and-sugna\/\">Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: Drying and Sugna<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Done? Ok, so we&#8217;ve put on the sugna and now these potential prosciutto di Parma are settling in for the long haul: <strong>the Maturing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>At the <strong>seventh month<\/strong>, after the <strong>sugna <\/strong>is applied, they are moved to &#8220;<em><strong>cantine<\/strong><\/em>&#8221; &#8211; cellars for 10-12 months (based on weight) for the maturing period.<\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s when you get these fascinating halls of prosciutto that I posted before:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Endless hall of Prosciutto di Parma, Italy by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3903927424\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2430\/3903927424_7820ba52c8.jpg?resize=500%2C333\" alt=\"Endless hall of Prosciutto di Parma, Italy\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>After the maturing period,  a <strong>horse bone &#8220;needle&#8221; is inserted in five points of the joint and the bone is then smelled by experts <\/strong>for uniformity of aroma and maturation. The needle is inserted into the area covered by the sugna and then the controller will cover up the hole made with the needle using his hands.<\/p>\n<p>One of my biggest regrets is that I didn&#8217;t get a picture of the <strong>horse bone needle<\/strong> that is used to check the aroma and maturation of the prosciutto &#8211; I saw it sitting innocently on their table in the antechamber.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma, process complete by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3993082882\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2449\/3993082882_8e8c01800b.jpg?resize=333%2C500\" alt=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma, process complete\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Only, and only after all passing all these previous steps will finally be fire-branded &#8220;<strong>Prosciutto di Parma<\/strong>&#8221; with its distinct &#8220;<strong><em>corona a 5 punte<\/em><\/strong>&#8221; &#8211; 5 pointed crown brand that you can see here, and this manufacturer&#8217;s identification:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma official brand, the &quot;Corona a 5 punte&quot; - 5 pointed Crown by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3992327209\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm4.static.flickr.com\/3462\/3992327209_b61ee5cda6.jpg?resize=500%2C333\" alt=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma official brand, the &quot;Corona a 5 punte&quot; - 5 pointed Crown\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Remember when you&#8217;re buying Prosciutto di Parma, you&#8217;re actually buying from a consortium of manufacturers in and around Parma and not just a single company. Each prosciutto leg will have a unique code that can be traced back to the individual manufacturer.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Rows of Maturing Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma, ready for Sale by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3992325439\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2612\/3992325439_2e4063f0a9.jpg?resize=333%2C500\" alt=\"Rows of Maturing Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma, ready for Sale\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Thanks to the <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.prosciuttodiparma.com\">Prosciutto di Parma consortium<\/a><\/strong> there are some great videos online for the public so you can see the horse bone needle in action.<\/p>\n<p>Start watching at around 4:40 to see the entire prosciutto making process I explained in these three posts, and at 6:15 to see when he sticks the horse bone into the prosciutto and smells it.<\/p>\n<p><object classid=\"clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000\" width=\"560\" height=\"340\" codebase=\"http:\/\/download.macromedia.com\/pub\/shockwave\/cabs\/flash\/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0\"><param name=\"allowFullScreen\" value=\"true\" \/><param name=\"allowscriptaccess\" value=\"always\" \/><param name=\"src\" value=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/v\/K0o1dGXj7Ds&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;\" \/><param name=\"allowfullscreen\" value=\"true\" \/><\/object><\/p>\n<p>Now it&#8217;s ready to eat &#8211; pair it with your favorite <strong>parmigiano reggiano<\/strong> cheese, a glass of wine (a sparkling white in summer and early fall is great) and some bread and grapes and you&#8217;ll have a great meal.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, ready to eat by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3992325733\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2536\/3992325733_57ea618842.jpg?resize=500%2C334\" alt=\"Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, ready to eat\" width=\"500\" height=\"334\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>and just remember where it all comes from, the pig.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a title=\"Before it becomes Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma: the Pig by MsAdventuresinItaly, on Flickr\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/msadventuresinitaly\/3993083208\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2488\/3993083208_2e4ddfea90.jpg?resize=333%2C500\" alt=\"Before it becomes Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma: the Pig\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I hope you enjoyed this inside look at how <strong>Prosciutto Crudo Ham from Parma<\/strong> is made!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The final part in the 3-post series about how prosciutto crudo, cured ham from Parma is made. If you&#8217;ve just stumbled on the series, the first two posts in the series covered the topics below. I&#8217;ll wait while you go read those posts and catch up. Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: The&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/10\/08\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-the-maturing\/\">Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[102,100,3,2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2031","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-behind-the-scenes","7":"category-discovering-food","8":"category-food","9":"category-italy","10":"entry"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4uB1-wL","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1940,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/09\/21\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-drying-and-sugna\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":0},"title":"Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: Drying and Sugna","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"September 21, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Part 2 in a series about how Prosciutto di Parma is made when I visited a prosciuttificio (prosciutto factory) during the Festival del Prosciutto in the province of Parma. Part 1: Making Prosciutto di Parma: the Salting Part 2: Making Prosciutto di Parma: the Drying and Sugna Part 3: Making\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Behind the Scenes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Behind the Scenes","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/behind-the-scenes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Prosciutto di Parma drying out","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2469\/3938824360_348be19601.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1917,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/09\/16\/making-italian-prosciutto-crudo-cured-ham-in-parma-the-salting\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":1},"title":"Making Italian Prosciutto Crudo, Cured Ham in Parma: The Salting","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"September 16, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Prosciutto crudo di Parma, or cured ham, may be one of the most popular Italian foods known - but do you know how it's made? Part 1 in a series about how Prosciutto di Parma is made when I visited a prosciuttificio (prosciutto factory) during the Festival del Prosciutto in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Behind the Scenes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Behind the Scenes","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/behind-the-scenes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Close-up of Prosciutto di Parma process: the Salting","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2438\/3921710423_5b89940d47.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1867,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/09\/09\/a-little-taste-of-prosciutto-di-parma\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":2},"title":"A little &#8220;taste&#8221; of Prosciutto di Parma","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"September 9, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"I spent Saturday with Jessica from Italy Travel Guide in and around Parma for the annual Prosciutto di Parma festival. Here's a little taste of what we saw: More tomorrow!","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Behind the Scenes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Behind the Scenes","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/behind-the-scenes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Endless hall of Prosciutto di Parma, Italy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2430\/3903927424_7820ba52c8.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":349,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2007\/05\/29\/parmigiano-reggiano-stuffed-onions-wrapped-in-prosciutto-di-parma\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":3},"title":"Parmigiano Reggiano Stuffed Onions Wrapped in Prosciutto di Parma","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"May 29, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Wow, that's a mouthful, in more ways than one! I've been cooking quite a few sweet dishes recently, so when the Waiter, There's Something in My... theme for this month (hosted by Jeanne from CookSister) was Stuffed Fruit or Vegetables, I wanted to do something a little more healthy and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Appetizer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Appetizer","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/recipe\/appetizer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Prosciutto di Parma and Onion","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm1.static.flickr.com\/190\/519510993_a2e3a1d9b7.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2269,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2009\/12\/31\/2009-year-in-pictures\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":4},"title":"2009 Year in Pictures","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"December 31, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm preparing my extensive Year in Review for 2009 when I talk about my highs\/lows\/discoveries\/tools\/tips and geek out with statistics as I usually do, but I wanted to leave you with some images of my 2009. I hope this evening you have a great time with loved ones, friends, and\/or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Me&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Me","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/me\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Turkish Breakfast with Blue Mosque in the Background, Istanbul, Turkey","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm4.static.flickr.com\/3106\/3178444907_d53e564c41.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":401,"url":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/2007\/10\/15\/eataly-turins-enogastronomic-marketplace-and-blog-action-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":2031,"position":5},"title":"Eataly, Turin&#8217;s Enogastronomic Marketplace and Blog Action Day","author":"Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy","date":"October 15, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"I couldn't find a better day to highlight the enogastronomic marketplace Eataly since today is Blog Action day, when (at last count) over 15,000 blogs would be talking about today's topic: The Environment. Eataly, located in Turin was opened just this past February in the old Carpano vermouth factory. I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Blog Event&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Blog Event","link":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/category\/blog-event\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Eataly - Eat Fruits\/Veggies in Season!","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/farm3.static.flickr.com\/2111\/1575206960_d09715fd54.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2031","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2031"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2031\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2043,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2031\/revisions\/2043"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2031"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2031"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msadventuresinitaly.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2031"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}