"Prosciutto" is an italian word. Its translation in english, according to my dictionary, is "ham". With this name, we indicate the leg of a pig, variously prepared. It may be raw (prosciutto "crudo", raw ham) or cotto [prosciutto "cotto", cooked ham (and can be cooked in wine, in beer, slightly smoked, and so on... )] or smoked. But, with this name,we generally indicate ALL the preparations of the legs of pig, so, if you come in Italy, or read some italian recipes, under this name you must consider that the food is not perfectly defined: you need a specification more, to understand "what" prosciutto you are speaking about.
Parma is a town in central Italy, near Bologna, and is considered the nest of pig preparation in Italy (all this region, indeed). But, however,even if Parma ham is actually the most well known ham, there is another one, that I like more, produced in San Daniele in Friuli, a region at North of Venice, in North East of Italy. The "san Daniele Ham".
I actually used the German version in Texas last year it's Ok, milder and less salty, the reason I bought it was it was my only choice at the time. But I hafto say dont knock German meats they are masters as are the Italians.
