When you say Parma you say cold cuts. From the Apennines to the Bassa Parmense the ancient art of pork-butchery has developed over the centuries, exalting the pork meat to the maximum and creating excellent products. Let’s find out together which are the best cured meats of Parma and how to taste them with the TOP Five by Parma City of Gastronomy!

1. PDO Prosciutto di Parma

A name really known all over the world that is synonymous with high quality and tradition. Obtained only from the best legs of heavy Italian pigs, reared with controlled feeding, Parma Ham is produced in a well-defined area of ​​origin, according to the rules of the specification published by the Consortium. Pork meat and salt: these are the only ingredients that give the ham its unmistakable flavor. To these must be added the “marine”, the wind coming from the sea that caresses the hills of the ham production area; a long seasoning, not less than twelve months, and above all the mastery and knowledge of the master butchers who follow the entire production, salting, “sugnatura” and maturing of Parma Ham. The result is a cold cut with a sweet, balanced and delicate flavor with an intense but light aroma. Perfect as an appetizer accompanied by fresh bread or torta fritta, enhanced to the maximum by a glass of fresh Lambrusco, Prosciutto di Parma is to be regulated without additives or preservatives, a natural, genuine, unique product.

Learn more> www.prosciuttodiparma.com

2. Culatello di Zibello PDO

The King of Cold cuts. A cured meat produced in the delimited area of ​​the Bassa Parmense, inside the humid aging cellars where the Culatelli season thanks to the help of the fog that filters through the windows. A synergy between nature, ingredients and craftsmanship that gives those who taste the culatello a true ecstasy for the palate. The culatello is obtained from the anatomical part of the bundle of inner and crural muscles of the thigh of the trimmed pig up to obtain the classic “pear” shape. The meat is processed with salt, pepper, garlic (white wine is also allowed) and stuffed into a natural swine bladder. The ligature handmade by the master butcher, time, fog and humidity will do the rest: the maturing of not less than ten months will make the meat become a salami with an immediately recognizable taste, delicate, sweet, with a velvety consistency and soft. Ideal also as a basic ingredient for recipes, with butter curls and a fresh bread crumb, the Culatello di Zibello PDO reveals all its exquisiteness and natural elegance.

Learn more> www.consorziodituteladelculatellodizibello.com

3. Salame Felino PGI

His name often misleads people who do not know the product to believe that in Parma feline meat is used to make cold cuts, but our PGI Salame owes its name to a small town, Felino, a few km far from Parma, embraced by sweets reliefs of the Baganza Valley.

Obtained from meat from heavy pigs, Salame Felino presents a perfect balance between fat and lean parts; it presents itself to the eye with a ruby ​​red color, intense, lively, and with a delicate but inebriating fragrance. It is a cold cut boasting over eight centuries of history during which the processing processes have remained unchanged, except for the seasonality of production: in fact, if once for climatic reasons the pig was slaughtered only in winter, the modern technologies allow a annual production. Unfailing in all the cutting boards of salami that are respected, Salame Felino is a salami that combines, which keeps company: those of us in the company of friends or guests who arrived suddenly did not get away by cutting a little ‘bread and salami?

Learn more> www.salamefelino.com

4. Coppa di Parma PGI

Taste soft, sweet, captivating: the Coppa di Parma PGI looks like this. Obtained from the meat of the neck of the pig, to obtain the Coppa it occur a process of dry salting with salt, spices and pepper. After salting, the meat is covered with natural casing and, after careful drying, the product passes to season. The long seasoning, at least sixty days, gives the Coppa di Parma scent, aroma and fragrance as well as a delicate and balanced taste. The slice is soft, of medium consistency, homogeneous and rather lean. The Coppa di Parma has an ancient history: it was in fact already mentioned in the seventeenth century with the name of “bondiola” or “salame investito”. The Coppa di Parma also boasts a special link with local winemaking excellence, Malvasia dei Colli di Parma. In the past it was customary to wrap the most seasoned Coppa di Parma in cloth soaked in Malvasia to make it softer.

Learn more> www.coppadiparmaigp.com

5. Spalla Cotta di San Secondo PAT (Traditional Agri-Foodstuffs)

Ancient origins dating back to the Middle Ages, a production area restricted to some areas of the Bassa Parmense and craftsmanship make the Spalla Cotta di San Secondo a delicious, unique cold cut. The scapula of the pig, trimmed and private of the bone, is made to marinate with salt, pepper, cinnamon, garlic and nutmeg. After marinating the shoulder rests for a couple of weeks in a cold environment, then is rolled, tied, stuffed in pig bladders and tied a second time. After the binding, the shoulder ages for a minimum of a month and a half: now it is ready to be cooked. The cooking, after washing with water and vinegar, is very long, ranging from four to eight hours for the larger shoulders. The result is a tender, soft, very tasty cold cuts and depending on the slightly, mottled cut of fat. The Spalla Cotta can be consumed cold but gives its best when served warm, accompanied by torta fritta, fresh bread or, why not, mustards and jams. Traditional is also the combination with Fortana or Fortanina, a rather sweet and sparkling wine, typical of the production areas of Spalla Cotta.

Learn more> www.museidelcibo.it

The world of Parma cold cuts is all this and much more. A world to try, taste, discover: in the shops of Parma City of Gastronomy, cured meats are a fine display for the eyes and palates of gluttonous travelers, let the shopkeepers advise you to take some of our history with you. And if you want to discover the origins, the history and the secrets of the production of these gastronomic treasures, Parma City of Gastronomy cold cuts factories are available to open the doors for you: listening to the knowledge of the butchers will be a real experience. For those who want a complete tour, there is nothing to rely on the gourmand proposals of our tour operators and our tour guides.