La Quercia Speck Americano
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- Age: 1 Year
- Pork
- by La Quercia
- United States
An American interpretation of a traditional Italian ham, La Quercia Speck Americano is smoked with applewood to give it a woodsy earthiness and maple sweetness. Mouthwatering and tender, it’s made from Berkshire pork and has a distinct campfire-like aroma. Try it wrapped around a slice of fresh cantaloupe or stacked atop some Cellars At Jasper Hill Cabot Clothbound Cheddar and fresh baguette.
“When I first tasted Speck Americano, I was so impressed with its smoky, applewood flavor that remained perfectly balanced with the delicately sweet flavor of the meat. It’s reminiscent of a mild smoked bacon, and would pair well with a lighter honey wheat beer or a Riesling. It's also great with Murray's Honey Goat Gouda for snacking, or in a sandwich with arugula and Murray's Honey Mustard.”
Pork, Sea Salt
- Inspired by an Italian dry-cured meat, La Quercia Speck Americano is made with premium Berkshire pork and cold-smoked over applewood.
- Speck comes from m Northern Italy’s Alto-Adige province, and is typically smoked and spiced with black pepper and juniper berries.
- While traditional Italian speck is smoked at the beginning of its dry curing process, this American speck is smoked at the end of the process.
- La Quercia’s speck is aged for 10 -12 months, a bit longer than its Italian counterpart.
- Unlike prosciutto and other hams, speck is traditionally made from the shoulder of the pig instead of the hind leg.
- The meat is deboned before curing to let the smoke better permeate, differentiating it from other varieties.
- However, for this American version, meat from the hind leg is used.
- After spending three years living in Parma, Italy, Herb and Kathy Eckhouse were inspired to bring the taste of Italian charcuterie to Iowa.
- They founded La Quercia more than a decade ago, drawing on Herb’s 30-year career in agriculture and the time Kathy spent as an agricultural economics researcher at UC Berkeley.
- La Quercia works closely with regional farms to promote sustainability, focusing on the health and wellbeing of pasture-raised, heritage-breed pigs.
- Translating to the oak, La Quercia is a nod to the oak’s status as a symbol of the Province of Parma; the oak is also the state tree of Iowa.
Family Owned
