Iberico rules the piggy world

You're maybe familiar with spanish pork Iberico Secreto, which is a fine cut of meat. But do you know Iberico Pluma? Put simply, Pluma is the best spanish pork cut money can buy - at least here in Helsinki. Pluma is a special cut taken from the neck end of the Iberico pork loin. In Spanish, pluma translates to "feather", and is sourced from free-range Iberian Black Pigs. Pluma does have an abundance of fat that covers the lean meat underneath. And it is precisely the high amount of fat that makes pluma so tasty and succulent. It really needs to cook on a grill to reveal the true extend of its flavor, charred on the outside and medium rare in the middle. And once you've tasted it, there's no going back!

This 500gr Pluma cut needs 3 hours to defrost. Just the right amount time to open a bottle of Pago de Carraovejas 2019 (from the Ribera del Duero, bought on a Spanish site), and let it decant quietly.

But before that, we had a vey special tapas: a few slices of jamón Ibérico de Bellota - best ham in the world no less, with a few olives stuffed with super hot piri piri pepper, and a few glasses of "Can Sala Cava Brut 2008" (Alko). Usually, you eat the jamón with red wine or with a glass of dry Fino or Manzanilla. But we had that bottle in our wine cabinet, so...

The pork has ben liberally sprinkled with sea salt & black pepper, and has been put on a hot grill 6 min. on each face, lid on. The meat is well charred and juicy...

... then cut in stripes, and lightly brushed with a mixture of "Pimenton de la Vera" powder and extra virgin olive oil.

The meat is served with a few grilled Pimientos de Padron. With a glass of Pago red this is pure heaven. A dinner like this in a restaurant in Helsinki would cost BIG bucks. But tbh, I don't think of any restaurant serving this type of high end spanish food. Anyway, if you want to treat yourself or your guests, go for Iberico Pluma. Out of this world...