Leg at 80 degrees: Roasting

Fresh ham is not the same as cured ham; ask whether it is brine-injected before you compare prices. The hind leg, the largest single piece on the pig and the one the whole curing industry is built around. Fresh it is lean and mild; salted and air-dried for a year or more it becomes jamón, prosciutto or country ham, depending on which side of a border the cellar sits on.

For roasting, pick a piece with the skin still on; for stir-frying, ask for the inside round, which is the tenderest section. Colour, sinew, where the fat sits, and thickness are what you check before you pay. Ask for the thickness that matches “Roasting.” Use 80 degrees and 80 when you cook. Salt after you know the job. Do not play with undercooked meat.

At the counter, read the use on Leg before the photograph. 80 degrees is the internal heat, “Roasting” is the dish, and 80 is the stage of the fire. Marbling alone does not split stew from grill. Fresh leg is lean enough to need brining if you are roasting it whole — an overnight salt solution changes the result entirely.