First and most important, because they are delicious! Star chefs like Mario Batali, Rick Bayless, Jose Garces, and Martha Stewart use our meats in their restaurants and homes. Top food and restaurant critics says our prosciutto is better than any Italian prosciutto you can get in the USA and compare it favorably to the very best Italian and Spanish dry-cured hams. Cook’s Illustrated did a blind taste test that rated the “newcomer from Iowa” as the “hands down winner vs the Italians Prosciutto di Parma and Prosciutto di San Daniele."
We use only pork that is humanely raised with deep bedding and access to the out of doors, with no non-therapeutic antibiotics (most are never given any antibiotics at all). We can make traceable and verifiable animal husbandry claims.
La Quercia meats are made with only pork, sea salt, and spices – no nitrates, no nitrites, no vegetable substitutes.
We make our dry-cured meats in the United States with pork raised on nearby Iowa and Missouri farms, thus minimizing our carbon footprint.
Our meats are dry cured, so they are much dryer than fresh meat. The fattier cuts like bacon, pancetta, and guanciale can be exposed directly to the heat, but not for too long. Lean cuts like prosciutto, speck, lomo, lonza, and coppa will be better if you baste them with pork fat, olive oil or butter before exposing them to direct heat. When baking, we recommend that you include them inside lasagna, a casserole, an involtini, bread, etc. When using them on a flat bread or pizza, we recommend that you put them on after cooking. Direct and prolonged exposure to high heat can lead to overly dry or salty meats, so treat them gently. Check out our serving suggestions and recipe ideas.
Do your meats need to be refrigerated?
Our meats are aged at room temperature and are considered shelf stable, but they maintain their quality best when refrigerated. This is especially true of our pre-sliced meats.
They do not need to be chilled when serving and in fact taste better when at room temperature.
How long can I keep your meats in my refrigerator?
Whole pieces in intact packaging will keep for at least a year refrigerated. The pre-sliced meats have a shelf life of 120 days from date of slicing. They are safe to eat after that point, but the quality may decline.
How should I store the piece or package after I open it?
The meat should be tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator. Exposure to air will cause the meat to dry out and the fat to oxidize, so you want to minimize that. Tightly wrapped and refrigerated, even sliced meats will keep 10 days or more in the refrigerator. Whole pieces keep even longer. You can freeze these meats if you wish.
What if a whole piece gets some mold on it?
Small amounts of grey or white mold are harmless and can be removed with a knife or a damp cloth. You can wipe the piece with a cloth dampened with diluted vinegar.
