Prosciutto di Sauris

Prosciutto di Sauris is a smoked, salted raw ham produced exclusively within the municipality of Sauris in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region. Smoking is carried out using beechwood-fired external stoves over a continuous period of 72 hours, and the ham is aged for a minimum of 10 months. A whole, bone-in ham must weigh 7.5 kg or more.

About this designation

Prosciutto di Sauris is registered as a PGI under file number PGI-IT-0512, with EU protection granted on 7 December 2005 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013803). The geographical area is restricted to the municipality of Sauris in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Autonomous Region. Raw material must derive from traditional Large White Italiana and Landrace Italiana breeds, as improved in accordance with the Italian Breed Book, or from specified crosses and hybrid boars whose selection aims are not incompatible with that Book. Slaughter takes place from the ninth month but no later than the fifteenth month following birth, and each leg must weigh more than 11 kg. Salting is conducted in three stages and must be completed within 21 days of commencement. Smoking takes place in dedicated premises using smoke produced by beechwood-fired external stoves channelled through the floor; the process lasts 72 hours, with chamber temperatures between 15 and 20 °C and relative humidity between 50 and 90 %. Aging occurs at 16 to 22 °C and 50 to 90 % relative humidity for a minimum of 10 months, calculated from the day salting began. When released for consumption, moisture must be less than 64 %, the salt-to-moisture ratio must fall between 7.2 and 11.2, and protein content must be between 24 % and 30 %. Boning, cutting, slicing, and packing must take place within the defined area. The inspection body is Istituto Nord Est Qualità (I.N.E.Q.), based in Villanova di San Daniele del Friuli. Each ham must be stamped or hot-branded with the date processing began and the slaughterhouse of origin, and labels must display the PGI logo alongside the full designation and the words 'Indicazione geografica protetta' and/or the abbreviation IGP.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PGI on 7 December 2005 under file number PGI-IT-0512 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013803).
• Smoking is performed exclusively with beechwood-fired external stoves and lasts 72 hours in total.
• The entire production area is restricted to the single municipality of Sauris in Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
• A whole, bone-in ham must weigh 7.5 kg or more and be aged for a minimum of 10 months from the day salting began.

Tasting notes

Lightly cold-smoked Friulian dry-cured ham from Carnic Alps, aged minimum 10 months. Pinker than Parma, gentle beechwood smoke aroma, balanced sweet-salty-smoky profile.

HoReCa use

Sliced thin for alpine-Friulian antipasto; paired with smoked Montasio cheese and rye breads; used as a component of Friulian frico variations.

Packaging

• whole-leg-bone-in-7-9kg
• whole-leg-boneless-vacuum-5-7kg
• deli-sliced-vacuum-100g