{"id":1966,"date":"2020-11-09T11:49:23","date_gmt":"2020-11-09T10:49:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/?p=1966"},"modified":"2021-03-03T13:09:37","modified_gmt":"2021-03-03T12:09:37","slug":"should-i-cut-shoulder-in-the-same-way-as-a-ham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/en\/should-i-cut-shoulder-in-the-same-way-as-a-ham\/","title":{"rendered":"Should I cut shoulder in the same way as a ham?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"debo-cortar-igual-la-paleta-que-el-jamon\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The simple answer is no. Although both products come from the\nsame animal and they are made in a similar way, there are clear differences in their morphology\nthat mean that they should not be cut in the same way<\/strong>. In\ntoday\u2019s post, we are going to provide some basics on the characteristics that\nmake these products differ from each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First of all, we should clarify that, when we talk about ham<\/strong>, we are referring to\nthe back leg of the pig<\/strong>,\nwhile the shoulder<\/strong>\ncorresponds to the\nfront leg<\/strong>. Just like other mammals, the front and back limbs\nhave different morphology which can be noted in their flavour, in how they are\ncut and above all, their yield.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Main differences<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The most obvious is doubtlessly the size<\/strong>. The front limb is\nquite a lot smaller than the back. It is usually 60 to 70 cm long, depending on\nthe type of animal it comes from (white, Iberian or crossed pig). A ham usually\nmeasures between 80 and 90 cm. Furthermore, the weight<\/strong> of a shoulder is usually around 5.5\nor 6 kg, while a ham is usually 8 kg, always depending on the type of ham or\nshoulder and the manufacturer (we specifically like a big ham).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given its length and its volume in general, there is a substantial difference in the quantity of\nmeat that we are going to extract<\/strong> from both. The ham not only\nhas more total muscle mass but the ratio of meat to bone is also much higher\nthan for shoulder. Consequently, more\nmeat can be taken from the ham<\/strong> than the shoulder. Firstly,\ndepending greatly on the piece and the cutter\u2019s skill, it is possible to obtain\nbetween 45% and 50% yield<\/strong>.\nOn the shoulder, this percentage would be 35-40%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are also differences\nregarding its flavour<\/strong>. The greater presence of fat in the\nshoulder, and the proximity of its meat to the bone in general gives it a more\nintense flavour. However, the longer curing<\/strong> of\nham, given its greater size, provides more\nnuances<\/strong> that turn it into a more complex product\norganoleptically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it is perhaps the shape of the bones<\/strong>, S-shaped in the shoulder\nand T-shaped in ham, that is the greatest difference we are going to find when\ncutting them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, how do we cut shoulder?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Although, as we have already said, they are not cut in the same\nway, the tools we use are the same: ham\nstand, paring knife and a good ham knife<\/strong> preferably shorter\nthan the standard (23 or 24 cm).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the ham offers different options when deciding where to\nstart, our recommendation with the shoulder is that you always start with\nthe part of the ham\nwith the least lean meat<\/strong>, as high as possible on the quarters\n(separating the meat from the bone using the paring knife) and parallel to the\nhumerus. This is the simplest way of starting, placing the hoof downwards<\/strong>, particularly if\nyou have a basic ham stand. Don\u2019t worry if the first slices aren\u2019t the perfect\nsize. Little by little, the cutting surface will increase, and the slices will\nget larger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just like with ham, the main difficulty lies in navigating the bones<\/strong> as\nthey appear. However, as we have said, the greater proportion and size of these\nbones in the shoulder are going to make it more difficult to cut. If we find\nthe tibia, fibula, femur and hip bone or coxal bone (belonging to a leg) in a\nham, the shoulder gives us bones like an arm or an upper limb: radius, ulna,\nhumerus or scapula. The latter is a large, flat bone that lets you show off\nyour skill with the knife if you want to get maximum yield and some tasty\nslices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In any case, and as a picture is worth a thousand words, take a\nlook at the following link to Jam\u00f3n\nLovers<\/strong> where the ham cutter and speaker, Roberto Gonz\u00e1lez Santalla<\/strong>,\nwill explain how to cut and make the most out of a shoulder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here it is<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The simple answer is no. Although both products come from the same animal and they are made in a similar way, there are clear differences in their morphology that mean that they should not be cut in the same way. In today\u2019s post, we are going to provide some basics on the characteristics that make […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1257,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[161],"tags":[317],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1966"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1966"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1966\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1968,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1966\/revisions\/1968"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laestrelladeljamon.es\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}