Cinco Jotas 5j Jabugo Ham (Sánchez Romero Carvajal)

1. Story and tradition of Jamón de Jabugo 5J
2. The Jabugo’s pasture land: the breeding of the Ibéricos Pata Negra
3. The art of the traditional curing of the jamón ibérico
4. Brands: Cinco Jotas (5J) / Sanchez Romero Carvajal
5. The jewel in the crown: Jamón Ibérico de Bellota 5J
6. Why is it considered one of the best hams in the world?
7. Recipes with jamón Cinco Jotas (5j)

1. Story and tradition of Jamón de Jabugo 5J

Cinco Jotas ham (5j) is original from the Jabugo area, located in the province of Huelva. Cinco Jotas (5j) was created in 1879. This was the first pure Iberian pork slaughterhouse that existed in the province of Jabugo, created by its founder Juan Rafael Sánchez Romero. Some decades later, the company "Sánchez Romero Carvajal" was created with three pillars. Its founder joined the breeder specialized in Iberian pig Manuel Romero and Vicente Carvajal, commercial and distributor. Currently, it is run by the fourth generation of producers and is part of the osborne group.

2. The Jabugo’s pastureland: the breeding of the Ibéricos Pata Negra

The pasturelands in which the Iberian pigs of Bellota Cinco Jotas (5j) are raised are located in the southeast of the peninsula, more precisely in the area of the natural park of Sierra de Aracena and Picos de Aroche (Huelva). Pigs pasture in these pasturelands during the epoch of montanera in total freedom in order to do the larger number of kilometers in a day. In this way a more delicious and mellow ham is obtained.

The alimentation of the pigs Cinco Jotas (5j) is entirely natural and based on acorns and natural pastures. During the montanera epoch or fattening epoch, pigs pasture searching food, crossing until 14 kilometers with the aim of getting their precious acorns. The vegetation of the pastures consists of basically holm oaks, gall oaks and cork oaks which add different types of acorns to the pig’s alimentation. The weather and the vegetation of the pastures are also a basic factor to its conservation and they indirectly affect the quality of the pieces.

3. The art of the traditional curing 5J iberian ham

The elaboration process of the jamones Cinco Jotas (5j) has four different steps which allow the obtainment of pieces of jamónibérico de bellota of such a high quality.

• The shaping: Consists in removing the excess of fat from the piece of ham. It is done to prevent the ham from drying and enduring too much during its curing. This is essential to control the ham’s quality during all the process.

• The curing: The curing process consists in manually bury the pieces in sea salt. The salt’s quantity needed for each peace varies depending on its weight. This is a key process in the quality of jamónibérico de bellotabecause it helps to remove the excess of liquid and other impurities from the ham.

• The drying: This is the process in which the pieces are dried. At this point, all the pieces are hung in order to get dried in a homogeneous way. Checking the temperature and the environment’s humidity in which the piece is placed is necessary in order to make the process correctly.

• The "cala": Consists in checking the curing grade of the ham to decide if it is the best moment to sell it. This process is based on stalling the ham and smell his inside flavor and after touching the fat that recovers it, with the aim of analyze its curing point.

4. Two brands: Cinco Jotas (5J) and Sánchez Romero Carvajal

The producer of these two brands is Sánchez Romero Carvajal, despite the brand Cinco Jotas (5j)is the jewel in the crown and “Sánchez Romero Carvajal” is his second brand.

Cinco Jotas is the main brand of this producer. It is the premium brand in which the quality, the curing and the fat index of the piece is controlled. It is the most well-known brand in the world thanks to its high and severe rates of quality and it has been awarded several times by important gastronomy figures.

Sánchez Romero Carvajal is the second brand of the producer. The pigs used to produce this ham are exclusively feed with acorns and natural pastures, and the pigs from Cinco Jotas follow the same diet. The pieces which belong to this brand are the ones that don’t meet the requirements to be considered a 5j, but they still fulfill the quality controls to marketing them. This is the main reason that explains its inferior price in comparison to the 5J products.

5. The jewel in the crown: the Jamón de Jabugo Cinco Jotas 5J

The Bellota 100% Ibérico de Jabugo Cinco Jotas (5j) Shoulder and Ham is the star product of the brand. This ham is along the best rated jamones ibéricos de bellotathanks to its flavor, texture and smell. Its long curing time gives it a special character and the weather of Jabugo, with dried and hot summers, are the main reasons to consider these pieces unique.

Its flavor is very characteristic, thanks to its neat elaboration process and to the extensive farming of its Iberian pigs in the pastures. The fat in its interior makes it mellow and it produces a unique texture. This fat is oily and it melts in the mouth. It has a strong and prolonged flavor, which persists and lasts long.

The ham and ham shoulders of Jabugo Cinco Jotas 5J are an exceptional product.

6. Why is it considered one of the best hams in the world?

The worldwide recognition of the Cinco Jotas (5j) shoulders and hams is not casual. Its traditional elaboration method follows the method of past generations and it takes care of the process with extreme caution in all the stages.

One of the main awards it has received during the last years is the "Superior Taste Awards" by which it was elected as the best European ham in 2011. These awards are granted by the International Institute of Quality, which is one of the most well-known cook organizations. On the other hand, it cooperates with some of the most prestigious organizations in the catering and gastronomy world, like “World’s 50s best restaurants”, which shows catering trends and some of the best restaurants in the world.

But the worldwide recognitions granted to the jamones Cinco Jotas (5j) go beyond the awards. These hams are present in one of the most important and exclusive shows of all the types, like in the menu of the Óscars 2019. Moreover, the count with some of the best ham cutters in the world and it is recognized as a delicious product by different chefs over the world.

7. Recipes with jamón Cinco Jotas (5j)

Pumpkin cream with dices of ham

Ingredients:

• 200gr of Jamón de Bellota 100% ibérico de Jabugo Cinco Jotas 5J
• 500 gr Pumpkin
• 100 gr Spring onion
• 40 gr Butter
• 0.5dl Olive oil
• 1L Ham soup
• Pepper
• Nutmeg
• Salt
• Egg (optional)

Elaboration:

• Peeland cut a pumpkin without seeds.
• In a pot, fry the onion with butter and add the pumpkin in dices.
• Brown everything a little and add a little of pepper and nutmeg. Cover it with the ham soup and cook it during 30 minutes.
• Once cooked, we crush and strain it and we add the necessary salt.
• When the cream is ready, we serve it hot with the jamóncinco jotas and a fried egg(optional).

Bean salad with dice ham

Ingredients:

• 100gr ofJamón de Bellota 100% ibérico de Jabugo Cinco Jotas 5J
• 150g Beans
• 20g Mint
• Oregano
• Olive oil
• Lime (optional)
• 80g Roncalcheese
• Olives
• Salt

Elaboration:

• Whiten the beans and keep them.
• Cut the cheese and the ham in dices or squares.
• Remove the bones from the olives and cute the olives in pieces.
• Chop the oregano and defoliate the mint.
• Mix everything and season it with the grating lime above it.

Tiradito de Jamón with mushrooms

Ingredients:

• 100gr slices ofJamón de Bellota 100% ibérico de Jabugo Cinco Jotas 5J
• 250 gr Mushrooms of the season (optional)
• 1 red onion
• 1 orange
• 2 sticks of celery
• 1 garlic
• 20gr of ginger
• 15gr of onion rings
• Coriander sprouts

Elaboration:

• Peel the red onion in small slices and keep them in water.
• Blend the orange juice with celery, garlic and ginger.
• Strain the preparation and add the onion.
• Let it rest for 5 minutes.
• Cut the mushrooms and use the juice of tiradito in a bowl.
• Finish it with ham slices and adding the coriander sprouts and the rest of the ingredients.