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Published on July 18, 2007

"And the sauce is never paired with spaghetti," says Andrea Assirelli from the town of Alcisa in the northern Italian region of Bologna, which is renowned for its ham and pork products. "It is only served with tagliatelle - a long, flat ribbon-shaped pasta. And sometimes you add chopped mortadella [a type of bologna or sausage] to add to the taste."

Assirelli was recently in Bangkok for the Eurofood Mediterranean Food Fair 2007, where he clarified several terms associated with Italian hams and sausages that are widely misused.

"When we talk about prosciutto or ham, we mean pork from the hind legs of the animal," he explained. "And other things like mortadella which is made from the neck and shoulder of the pork, we just call it so."

And prosciutto di Parma is ham from the town of Parma, while prosciutto di San Daniele is ham from the town of San Daniele. Italians also enjoy their dry-cured hams in a panino - a sandwich made from those meats often eaten during mid-morning or in the afternoon.

Assirelli also explained that Parma ham had a stronger taste than San Daniele because less salt is used in the dry-curing of the latter. Both are often enjoyed with a piece of bread.

"There's no secret in making a good prosciutto," said Assirelli. "The only ingredients are fresh meat, salt, air and time. The rest depends on nature."

Sirin P Wongpanit

The Nation