00:03meet the black pig this special porker is too good to be turned into bacon and
00:09sausages instead he'll become one of the finest delicacies money can buy the
00:14culatello dry cured ham this expensive delicacy begins life in the poem river
00:23valley in northern Italy an area famous for its farming and agriculture the
00:28black pig leads a very pampered lifestyle by normal pig standards it could be called
00:33luxurious if he was going to become sausages he'd be stuck in a pen eating
00:37processed feed but these guys get to roam around fields of sweet corn eating as
00:42much as they can find unfortunately for the pigs though as soon as they get
00:47heavier than 150 kilos it's time for the chop
00:54once the animal has been butchered the process of dry curing can begin unlike
01:00wafer-thin ham the culatello is considered a delicacy so the butcher selects only the
01:05best cuts of meat the first stage is to prepare the meat the butcher performs some
01:10quick liposuction and trims away a layer of excess lard he won't remove all of it
01:15though as some is needed to help the drying process
01:27the particular cut of meat he uses is very fragile so he has to tie it up to
01:32help it survive the long drying process
01:41next comes salt and plenty of it to cure the ham it's wrapped in a thick layer which draws
01:48moisture out of the meat and adds to the final taste the butcher also uses peppercorns to enhance
01:54the flavor and in the tradition of all good recipes he also splashes plenty of wine over
02:04the meat
02:11the first stage is complete and he will now leave it on the side to rest for about a week
02:16the meat will slowly turn red as it sits in a cool room out of the sun
02:26italian cooking and red wine seem to go hand in hand and during this week the butcher will massage
02:32the meat once a day with more wine and garlic to give it extra flavor the next stage is a
02:39protective
02:39covering the meat will be wrapped in the pig's own bladder which may sound nasty but this is a
02:45traditional recipe and it does do the job well the bladder is sewn up tightly but then he fills it
02:52full of holes if he left it airtight none of the moisture could escape and the ham wouldn't be dry
02:58cured
03:05finally the meat is tied up this isn't to stop it escaping but it gives the culetalo ham its
03:10traditional pear shape and that is all the butcher has to do for the time being now it's time for
03:23the
03:23humid italian air to take over the job this luxury ham takes a few months to dry out but it
03:31doesn't go
03:31off because of all the salt it's been wrapped in however it's a different story during the ripening
03:36process in the whole of italy there are only eight villages where culetalo hams can be made that's
03:43because these are the only villages which have the right climate to grow the right mold that the process
03:47needs that's right mold once the ham has been hung in the ripening room it's exposed to the particular
03:55mold spores that grow on damp walls in these villages the warm humid air is just right for this particular
04:02mold to grow it attaches itself to the external bladder and releases enzymes into the meat inside
04:10these enzymes then break down proteins and fats within the ham to help give it its unique and delicious
04:25flavor the combination of the humid air the mold and the long curing process give culetalo a unique
04:33taste which has never been properly reproduced artificially the mass production of parma ham works in a similar
04:40way but it's done on a huge scale and much faster because of demand this is why parma ham is
04:46far
04:47cheaper and more readily available in supermarkets than the culetalo once the ham has reached the
04:53end of its curing process the farmer can remove it from the ripening room and clean it up moldy ham
05:00doesn't sell particularly well with all the spores cleaned off the butcher can test the meat's firmness
05:07by flicking it with his forefinger his expert ear can tell a good ham from an unripe one
05:13if it passes the test the butcher will remove the string bag and open up the bladder to see how
05:18well the meat has matured sometimes the mold has penetrated inside the bladder so the butcher will use
05:30a splash of whatever wine he has handy to clean off any unwanted spores
05:40at last he can sit back and enjoy the fruits of his labor and if you fancy trying one of
05:46the most
05:46expensive hams in the world you'll need about 400 pounds and a very upmarket delicatessen
05:51because you won't find this in your local supermarket
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