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We make artisan salumi using traditional dry curing. This is a millenia old method that involves salting and drying to preserve meat and then aging to develop flavor internally. The length of aging depends on the size of the piece of meat. We use no nitrates, nitrites or their vegetable derived substitutes. Because we use only 2 (pork and sea salt) or 3 (pork, sea salt, spices) ingredients, the quality of the meat we use very clearly expresses itself in your eating experience. And since the animals and the growers are our neighbors, we directly benefit from and appreciate the extra care and effort involved in humane and organic animal production.

We do not buy any meat from confinement production systems or from animals fed subtherapeutic antibiotics to promote their growth. All of the pigs we use come from farms that offer the animals access to the out of doors, opportunity to root and to socialize, and room to move freely. They are all fed vegetarian, grain-based diets.

Within the qualifications described above, we use three types of pork:

Green Label: Organic Berkshire-cross. All of the meat for our organic Prosciutto Americano Green Label--our best eating prosciutto--comes from Jude Becker's Becker Lane Organic Farm. Learn more about them and their pasture based program through the Suppliers section of our "About Us" page. Learn more about our work with them on the Acorn Edition link below. We get the meat for our Organic Pancetta Americana—Green Label and Organic Guanciale Americano from Becker Land and from farmer-owned Organic Valley Coop.
Rossa: 100% Heirloom Berkshire. Our La Quercia Rossa—Heirloom Prosciutto is made with 100% Berkshire pork—great for cooking and in our opinion, great for curing—that we get from farmer-owned Eden Farms.
Americano: 100% Antibiotic Free. Farmer-owned Heritage Acres and Niman Ranch provide us with the meat we use for Prosciutto Americano, Speck, Coppa Americana, Prosciutto Piccante, Pancetta Americana, and Guanciale Americano.

We constantly work to improve the quality of our prosciutto. Recently we've launched these initiatives to move forward:

We are dedicating 25% of our prosciutto production to organic Prosciutto Green Label. The best meat makes the best prosciutto and this is the best meat we receive. Award winning New York City restaurateur Danny Meyer recently selected Prosciutto Green Label for his new Italian restaurant in New York City. His executive chef, Nick Anderer called it "the Kobe Beef of prosciutto." We are now taking all of the rear legs from Becker Lane Organic's pork production that meet our quality criteria.
Working with Russ Kremer of Ozark Mountain Pork (part of farmer owned Heritage Acres), we are putting together the introduction of our third prosciutto "varietal." We now offer organic Berkshire-cross "Green Label", 100% Berkshire "La Quercia Rossa," and we will introduce La Quercia "Ridgetop Tam"--made with Ozark Mountain ridgetop raised Tamworth pork. This meat comes from Tamworth pigs bred for generations by Russ' family, raised on Ozark Mountain ridges--they have their shelter on the ridgetops and roam the wooded ridges at will. Russ farms the bottom ground to raise corn, soybeans, and barley to feed them.
We work with Kelly Biensen and Eden Farms to get our 100% Berkshire. This year Eden farmers Suzanne Castello and Barney Bahrenfuse are participating in our Acorn Edition III with pasture raised, acorn-fed 100% Berkshire pigs. We are going to work more closely with Kelly, Suzanne and Barney to get more of that good pasture-raised 100% Berkshire pork.
We developed a procedure that enables us to use more traditional, raw-lard-based "sugna" on our prosciutto. We put the sugna on once the hams have lost most of the weight we want them to lose; it acts as a barrier to inhibit further moisture loss. We think that the raw lard based material will help ham flavor and texture.

Below you'll find brief descriptions (with links to more lengthy ones) of our handmade organic Prosciutto–Green Label, La Quercia Rossa—Heirloom Breed Prosciutto, Prosciutto Americano, Speck Americano, Prosciutto Piccante, organic Pancetta—Green Label, Pancetta Americana, Coppa Americana, Guanciale and Iowa White (lardo). Or you can download a product summary in PDF format here.

Something to look for next year: La Quercia "Ridgetop Tam" Bacon--fully dry-cured, applewood smoked, ready to eat bacon made with Russ Kremer's Ozark Mountain Tamworth pork.

OUR MEATS Click on the item names below for further detail to appear.

La Quercia Acorn Edition

Prosciutto

Here's a PDF that provides slicing guidelines for our whole piece Prosciutto Green Label, La Quercia Rossa, and Prosciutto Americano, plus handling guidelines that apply to all of our products.

La Quercia Prosciutto Green Label, Organic
We consider this our best prosciutto, and it is what we eat at home. At Slow Food Nation, we offered our Prosciutto Green Label in a Taste Workshop, and one of the participants said that "this is the kind of prosciutto an Italian would get down on the floor and cry for, it is so good." Steve Jenkins, cheese expert and author of The Cheese Primer and The New American Cheese wrote, "Best damn prosciutto I ever tasted in my life (55yrs), and I’ve been around the Italian block so to speak." Selected by Chef Wolfgang Puck for the menu at the 2008 Academy Awards Governor’s Ball, it is the first (and only) organic prosciutto commercially available in the USA and is made with Becker Lane Organic Farms pasture raised, Berkshire cross, certified organic pork. Learn more in this PDF or see the amazing conditions for the pigs at Becker Lane on our Acorn Edition or Suppliers pages.
La Quercia Rossa—Heirloom Prosciutto, 100% Berkshire
In July of 2006, we took another step in our quest to create memorable eating experiences and advance with our craft by introducing La Quercia Rossa—Heirloom Breed Prosciutto; the first and only single-breed, dry cured ham made in the USA. Breeding plays a key role in dry cured ham quality because it influences muscle structure, muscle fiber, water holding capacity, fat quality, and internal meat characteristics. Prosciutto flavor develops from the inside, so these factors are especially important. The response from food critics and writers was (again) enthusiastic: Time, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Food & Wine, Canada National Post, and the LA Times used superlatives like "amazing," "delicious," "fabulous," "inarguably lovely," and "exceptional." Crafted from prized Berkshire or Kurobuta pork, known for its color, flavor and tenderness, La Quercia Rossa was compared to what is known as the best Jamon Iberico de Bellota, Joselito Gran Reserva, by famed wine critic Robert Parker: "lighter color than the Gran Reserva from Joselito...similar buttery texture and unmistakable nutty flavors...great subtlety...flows cross the palate with considerable richness but no oiliness or heaviness...very pure...and very nuanced...lots of fat and marbling but not a fatty taste...stunning stuff and very close to the Spanish." After sampling La Quercia Rossa at the NYC Fancy Food Show, Craig Laban wrote in the Philadelphia Inquirer, "The prosciutto made from Berkshire pigs by Iowa's La Quercia was among the best things I tasted during the entire show - its deep, plum-colored flesh reminiscent of Spain's coveted black-footed Iberian pig." Served at the 2007 Academy Awards Governor’s Ball, it is the first breed specific dry cured ham made in the USA. Learn more from this PDF.
Prosciutto Americano
Prosciutto Americano was introduced in 2005 to critical acclaim and appreciation. Vogue Food Critic, author, and Iron Chef judge Jeffrey Steingarten wrote that it was "the best American or imported prosciutto I’ve ever tasted." Bon Appetit, The New York Times, Food & Wine, Cook’s Illustrated, Country Home, the Chicago Tribune, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Fine Cooking, and House & Garden added their praises, while award winning chefs like Mario Batali, Michael White, Nancy Oakes, Michel Richard, Charlie Trotter, Chris Bianco, Paul Kahan, Ana Sortun, Nancy Silverton, and Tony Mantuano added it to their menus. Leading retailers like Fairway Markets, Whole Foods, Dean & DeLuca and Balducci’s added it to their offerings. The only prosciutto available made exclusively with humanely raised, antibiotic free pork, Prosciutto Americano offers lower yield losses, improved slicing characteristics, and more uniform quality end to end. Traditionally salted, dried, and aged with only sun dried sea salt added, each piece is worked on 11 times by our trained artisans to maximize its potential. We use no nitrates, nitrites or substitutes.
Prosciutto Piccante
Prosciutto Piccante is our homage to the American love of strongly flavored foods. We wanted to get the spice into the prosciutto in a way that would be complementary to the rich cured flavor of the meat; bring some different, but traditional, flavors to the table; and be fun to eat. Our blend of hot pepper and fennel seed has a bit of a California-Southern Italian influence—fennel and pepper are regular ingredients in various salamis. We don’t buy someone else’s pre-ground spice mix; we freshly grind the herbs just before we use them to maximize their flavor and aroma. We rub the spices on by hand. With slicing, the herbs on the surface get pulled across the meat and add warmth and spice to its flavor. Florence Fabricant wrote in the New York Times that Prosciutto Piccante has a "vibrant complexity that makes it excellent on a platter of hors d’oeuvres or in sandwiches." We like to eat it as part of a La Quercia "Tris"—Prosciutto Americano, Speck Americano and Prosciutto Piccante.

Now Available! Convenient Sliced Retail Packs Many food lovers need the quick convenience of sliced prosciutto ready to take with them, or are looking for something for a picnic, to give as a gift, or just hold at home for the right moment. For them, we brought back our package of thin (.7mm) slices, separated by biodegradable deli film, and cradled and cushioned with modified atmosphere in a 3 ounce package that can be hung in a wall display. Quality and convenience married. See the Charles Finkel designed packaging here.

For another easy way to get your prosciutto, we offer La Quercia Prosciutto Americano "Crumble." Coarsely ground, it is ready to eat. Great for snacking on its own or on a sandwich, it also makes a great addition to an omelet, a salad, a soup, sauces, pasta, tapas, etc. Vacuum packed in an 8 ounce consumer zip lock peg package or a 2 pound bulk pack.

Speck

Speck Americano
Speck Americano La Quercia Speck Americano differs from its Italian counterparts in several ways: Speck Americano is smoked at the end of its natural dry curing (only pork and sea salt, no other ingredients). Thus the smoke finish is light and inviting and does not interfere with the sweetness of the meat. We use no flavorings or spices—no garlic or other strong spices to interfere with the subtle, delicate flavors of just aged meat, sea salt, and apple wood smoke. Ours is made with humanely raised antibiotic free pork. Italian Speck makes no animal production claims. Compared to a 1 ounce serving of Speck dell’ Alto Adige, it has 50% more protein (9 grams of protein versus 6), one third the fat (3 grams versus 9), and only two thirds the calories (70 calories per serving versus 104). And finally, Speck Americano is cured for 8-10 months (35 weeks minimum) while Speck of Valtellina is typically cured for only 4 months (18 weeks) and Speck of Alto Adige is cured a minimum of 20 weeks. Time of aging is one factor that can influence richness of flavor. Taunton’s Fine Cooking called it "fantastic" and the New York Times Magazine called it "buttery." Will be available SLICED in the late summer. Here's a PDF with more information.

Pancetta

Pancetta Americana, rolled
Rolled pancetta ("arottollata") is preferred by some because there is no dry surface. The pork is salted, lightly dried, then rolled and put into a casing so that the lean meat is on the inside and develops uniform moisture content. The freshly ground spicing resonates through the meat clearly and pleasantly. For those who want no compromise regarding antibiotics, we use meat selected to our criteria by farmer owned specialty pork producer Heritage Acres. They produce Berkshire cross meat using humane non-confinement practices and no antibiotics ever.
Pancetta Green Label, organic, flat
We select the larger, thicker bellies from the Organic Valley farmer coop’s production and make them into a rustic, farm- style version of flat pancetta, or "tesa". This is great for cooking, for wrapping, larding, or grilling and is a nice accompaniment on an "affettato misto" or melting on a warm crostino. Our favorite compliment about this pancetta is from an Italian chef who told us this was the best he’d had since his grandmother’s in Italy!

Coppa

Coppa Americana
The few subscribers to our Acorn Edition I were the first to enjoy La Quercia made Coppa. They said that it was "beautiful," "fabulous," and "delicious." Pork expert Bruce Aidells, author of the Complete Book of Pork, exclaimed, "this is the best coppa I’ve ever had!" We had requests to make it regularly from those who had it and those who’d heard about it. We liked it too, so we decided to go do just that. Made from the upper part of the loin above the shoulders, the "Coppa" or "Capocollo" is a richly marbled piece of meat that is typically deep in color, supple, tender, and flavorful. Moving away from the traditional garlic and pepper spicing, we wanted to give our Coppa a rich deep flavor to go with the richly flavored, deeply colored meat. We incorporated just a touch of smoke flavor by using smoked pimenton from Spain. Then to get a dusky richness, we added organic cocoa. As with all our other cured meats, we use no nitrites, nitrates, or their vegetable equivalents. Made with humanely raised Antibiotic free pork. Learn more here in this PDF.

Guanciale

Guanciale Americano
We make ours from selected, organic trimmed, pork jowls. Guanciale is often associated with dishes of Roman origin like Buccatini all’ Amatriciana or Spaghetti alla Carbonara (see our Recipes page). Its great feature is the collagen in the meat. In combination with the creamy fat, the collagen gives anything cooked with guanciale a smooth, silky, succulent covering. For example, we like to braise vegetables with it to make a voluptuous and healthful fresh vegetable pasta sauce—something as simple as leeks, guanciale, and a splash of white wine; great served on fresh or egg pasta.

Lardo

Lardo
"Lardo? Lardo you say? Why do you think that I would be someone who would want to eat lardo?" This is what some of our friends said when we offered them some of our new Iowa White lardo. They wondered if we thought that their appearance suggested that they were likely lardo eaters. But wait a minute—you know Simon Hopkinson’s great Roast Chicken recipe—well it is loaded with butter, as are many other leading recipes. Pork backfat is way more nutritious; ok, at least somewhat more nutritious. You can let it melt into the warmth of hot bread or toast, as you see in the picture; grind it into a spread; use it for wrapping seafood or vegetables; use it to cook and add fat and moisture to chickens, game fowl, pork loins, or put it on pizza and panini. You will find a recipe for onion focaccia with lardo that we enjoy on our Recipes page. When you compare it to butter, Iowa White has only 40% of the saturated fat, about a quarter of the cholesterol and 3 times the protein. There you go—get your protein with Iowa White. Well not really, but you will enjoy it.

La Quercia

What We Make

OUR MEATS Click on the item names below for further detail to appear.