Prekmurska šunka

Appearance & taste

In cross-section Prekmurska šunka is evenly pear-shaped, and the rind is evenly reddish. The ripened meat is ruby red and slightly marbled, covered by a cream-white layer of fat at least 10 mm thick. The ham smells and tastes pleasantly smoky, but according to the specification the smoke never masks the aroma of the ripened meat. Thanks to the long ripening it is tender, smooth and juicy, and somewhat saltier. The salt content is at most 9 %, the weight at least 2.75 kg.

According to old custom, it is cut crosswise into slices a centimetre thick. Everyone gets bread, a slice of ham and a knife and cuts the slice into narrow strips themselves on a small wooden board. In the shops the ham carries the “Prekmurska šunka” emblem and the words “zaščitena geografska označba” (protected geographical indication).

Production

The fresh leg is cut off 3 to 4 cm below the head of the hip joint, without the foot and without the pelvic, thigh and shin bones. Once trimmed, it weighs at least 5 kg before salting.

The chilled legs are salted dry or by a combined method, then washed with cold running water and hung in a ventilated room until the surface has dried. After salting they are branded on the rind. They are smoked in hardwood smoke together with sage.

The hams ripen for at least six months in a natural or partly artificially controlled climate, losing up to 45 % of their weight. The areas without rind and fat are coated twice with a mixture of fat, flour and spices: at about 25 % weight loss and again at 45 %. After six months, appearance and taste are checked; hams that do not meet the requirements lose their brand. All steps from trimming to inspection take place in Prekmurje.

Origin & history

Prekmurje is part of the Pannonian Plain. The climate is continental with cold, damp winters and warm, dry summers; the region has the lowest annual rainfall in Slovenia. On the plain the air can circulate freely, and fog occurs less often. Typical are the north-east wind with a weather front and the south-west wind before it.

In the past the ham was smoked and dried under the roof of farmhouses built of wood and mud and thatched with straw. The smoke from the bread oven rose up under the roof and cooled on its long way, so that one can speak of cold smoking. In the second half of the 20th century, smoking moved to free-standing smokehouses in the yard or garden, with air drawing through their gaps. Depending on size and weather, ripening took a few months. Today it is made in modern facilities, according to the specification with a quality comparable to that of the farm-made ham.

The ham was served when guests came to the house or something important happened, and as a snack during bigger jobs on the farm. In 1947 Vilko Novak described home slaughtering and the preparation and ripening of the ham in a study of folk diet in Prekmurje.