How To Eat And Store Costco's Jamón Serrano

Costco is famous for many things — its $1.50 hot dogs, its customer-friendly practices, its unique products in gargantuan sizes — but you may have never had the pleasure of trying one of their best offerings: jamón serrano, or aged Spanish ham. (This is one of the more famous regional hams, alongside the longer-aged jamón ibérico, the very similar prosciutto, and the somewhat different Virginia ham.) They're only available around the holidays, and are hot sellers, so if you didn't get one yet, you'll likely have to wait a bit before they come back around. But, once you get your hands on one, it's worth the wait: smoky, salty pork that practically melts in your mouth. But how do you eat it, and how do you store it?

Well, it's a little different from your average Christmas ham. Instead of something you put in a fridge until you're ready to warm it up in the oven, jamón serrano is actually ready to eat right off the counter (similar to the difference between city ham and country ham). By the time a jamón serrano reaches the consumer, it has already been salted and cured for at least a year. When you're ready for a slice, just make use of the great big knife Costco thoughtfully provides for you, and cut a piece off. The instructions say that the ideal slice of jamón is ultra thin and a few inches long, but you are the master of your own hammy destiny.

As for storage, this is where it gets a little weird. Instead of wrapping the ham leg up in tin foil and keeping it in the fridge the way you might expect, you're instead intended to place the ham on a wooden stand (provided by Costco) out on your countertop. While an uncured ham would quickly spoil if left out of the refrigerator like this, a big difference with cured hams like jamón serrano is that they can safely be stored at room temperature.

But, on a wooden rack like this, the ham is completely out in the open. It's a good idea to at least cover it with a towel when it isn't in use. Still, the storage arrangement may feel pretty unusual and raise a few logistical questions. For example, those of you who have a cat may need to find a very safe space to put the ham, because that poor piece of pork will not survive in one piece.

If you do buy one of these glorious hams, bear in mind that, while it's a truly sumptuous experience, fourteen pounds of meat is a lot for one person, especially if it's sitting out on your countertop silently taunting you.