Small Plates and Dips · Card SP13
Spanish Jamon with Pan con Tomate
Paper-thin slices of cured Spanish ham, fanned on a board, next to crusty toast rubbed with raw garlic and slathered with freshly grated ripe tomato, olive oil and salt. There is almost nothing to cook, so the quality of the ham and the ripeness of the tomatoes carry everything. Classic Barcelona bar food, ready in minutes.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 5 min
- Total
- 20 min
- Serves
- 6
- Level
- Easy
- Cuisine
- Spanish
Method
Step 1: Take the ham out of the fridge 30 minutes before serving and lay the slices loosely on a wooden board. At room temperature the fat turns translucent and silky and the flavor opens up.
Step 2: Cut the tomatoes in half across the middle and grate the cut sides on the large holes of a box grater set in a bowl, pressing until only the flattened skins are left in your hand. Discard the skins and stir a pinch of salt into the pulp.
Step 3: Toast or grill the bread for 2 minutes per side, until crisp and browned at the edges but still slightly soft in the center.
Step 4: Rub one side of each hot toast with the cut garlic, a few strokes only, so it perfumes the bread without turning harsh.
Step 5: Spoon the tomato pulp over the toasts, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with flaky salt. Serve at once alongside the board of ham, draping a slice over each toast as you eat.
Kitchen note
Grating the tomato breaks the flesh into a loose pulp while leaving the skin behind, so the juice soaks into the rough crumb of the toast and clings instead of sliding off like sliced tomato would.
Easy swap
Prosciutto di Parma stands in for the jamon if needed; it is a little sweeter and softer.
Filed nearby
See the whole volume
