World's Most Expensive Ham 世上最貴的火腿

Nice Legs 漂亮的腿

We all like to eat well, and sometimes it's worth spending that little bit extra in order to get the best food available, but how many of us would consider spending nearly ￡2,000 (22,000 yuan) for a pig's leg?

British gourmets with money to burn are licking their lips at the thought of a Spanish ham that has gone on sale this week at shop in London.

The 7kg leg of Iberico ham costs ￡1,800 (19,800 yuan) and even comes with its own DNA certificate to guarantee authenticity.

Cured ham has long been enjoyed as an expensive delicacy around the world but the hefty price tag attached to these hams sets them apart from other similar products.

The reason they are so costly is because they come from a group of only 50 black Iberian pigs personally selected and reared by a third-generation Iberian pig farmer and curer.

Each pig has been fed on a special diet of acorns and roots to give the ham its distinctive flavour, and given a pasture of ten hectares each to live in.

After, what is by pig standards, an idyllic life of roaming oak groves and feeding naturally, the pigs are slaughtered and the curing process begins.

To make jamon iberico, as it is called in Spanish, the hams are salted and left to dry for two weeks, then they are rinsed and dried for another four to six weeks.

The dry hams are then hung in a cool, dry place for between 12 and 36 months before being made available to the public.

These kinds of ham are served raw in very thin slices and usually eaten as an appetiser. According to the London store selling the world's most expensive ham, the taste more than justifies the price tag.

"Connoisseurs will appreciate the melt-in-the-mouth texture of this truly amazing Spanish ham," said a spokesman.