Jamón de Teruel

Jamón de Teruel belongs to Aragón, to the high dry province where the air does half the work and the ham comes out clean, sweet, and gently nutty. This is not ibérico, and it isn't a random serrano with a prettier name. It is DOP ham from white pigs, cured slowly in Teruel, with the fat firm enough to slice fine and soft enough to melt once it reaches the table.

The method that decides it is almost embarrassingly small: room temperature and thin slices. Serve it cold and the fat goes waxy, the salt comes forward, and the sweetness disappears. Cut it thick and you chew when you should be letting it melt. So bring it out of the fridge in time, slice it fine, and lay it in one loose layer. The curing was the producer's work. Your work is not to spoil it at the last minute.

If you can't find Jamón de Teruel DOP where you are, buy a good jamón serrano reserva or gran reserva from white pig, sliced very thin. It will usually be a little saltier and less rounded, but it stays in the right family. No hace falta haber pisado España, but you do need to buy carefully. Count 50g per person as a starter. Pésalo, no lo adivines.

Serve it with plain bread, pan de cañada if you can find it, and nothing poured over the ham. Not oil, not vinegar, not a shower of herbs. My Margin note for this one is short: cold is the enemy. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.