You eat this in two bites: dark, nutty presunto draped over melon that actually tastes of itself. Salt and sugar in one mouthful. Keep the ham cool, not fridge-cold, so it stays silky. Nothing else on the plate, nothing else required.
This is Portugal's ham of the Alentejo and the border hills — some of it from the black Iberian pig, cured in dry air. Barrancos claims a PDO. It is not jamón, though the animal is cousin. The melon must be ripe or the plate is only a postcard.
Drape, do not pile. One slice per wedge. Eat at once, before the fruit weeps and the ham loses its silk.
Method
- 01
Take the presunto out of the refrigerator 15 or 20 minutes before you serve it. Fridge-cold ham is stiff and mute; you want it cool, silky, and smelling of the dry air it cured in. Separate the slices gently so they don't tear. If they have been stacked, they will peel apart more easily as they warm.
- 02
Choose a melon that smells of itself when you hold it to your nose — if it doesn't, wait another day or buy a different fruit. Cut it into wedges, scoop out the seeds, and, if you like, slip the flesh from the rind. The pieces should be cold but not icy. Taste a bite: it must be sweet, or the plate is only a postcard.
- 03
Drape a slice of presunto over each wedge — one slice, not a pile. The ham should fall in folds, dark against the pale fruit. A grinding of black pepper is optional; skip it if the ham is good. Stand back and look: you should see meat and fruit, not a heap.
- 04
Serve at once, before the melon weeps onto the plate and the ham loses its silk. This is a two-bite affair, not a composed salad, and it will not improve with waiting. Eat the ham and the fruit together in one mouthful, so the salt and the sugar meet. Nothing else on the plate, nothing else required.
