Pan de Jamón
“A soft, slightly sweet enriched bread rolled around a spiral of ham, green olives, and raisins. The hallmark loaf of the Venezuelan Christmas table, sliced to reveal its salty-sweet pinwheel.”
Where it comes from
Created in December 1905 by Caracas baker Gustavo Ramella; the olive-and-raisin filling was added by the 1920s and it became a fixture of Venezuelan Christmas.
On the plate
The crumb is pillowy and faintly sweet, wrapping a savory coil of cured ham streaked with bursts of briny olive and sweet, plump raisin. Warm from the oven, it smells of butter and smoke. Every slice balances soft bread against salty, sweet, and tangy in one mouthful.
How it works
Eggs and butter enrich the dough, coating gluten strands so the crumb stays tender and soft. Rolling the filling into a tight spiral lets each slice carry ham, olive, and raisin together, while the egg wash sets into a shiny, browned crust via the Maillard reaction.
Variations
Versions with bacon or smoked turkey, additions of capers or walnuts, puff-pastry shortcut versions, cream cheese added to the filling
On the Palate
Ingredients
Serves 8
How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓45 min active · 120 min waiting
How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓- 18 min
Bloom yeast in warm milk with a pinch of sugar until foamy, about 8 minutes.
- 215 min
Knead flour, sugar, salt, eggs, butter, and the yeast mixture into a smooth, elastic dough.
- 390 min
Cover and let rise in a warm spot until doubled, about 1.5 hours.
- 46 min
Roll the dough into a large rectangle and lay ham slices over it edge to edge.
- 58 min
Scatter green olives, raisins, and a little brown sugar across the ham, then roll up tightly into a log.
- 64 min
Seal the seam, brush with beaten egg, and prick the top to vent steam.
- 733 min
Bake at 180C (350F) for 30-35 minutes until deeply golden and glossy.
- 86 min
Cool slightly, then slice to show the ham-and-olive spiral.
