FAQs

• Are your products gluten free?

  All of our products are gluten free.

• Where can I buy your products?

  La Quercia products can be found at retailers nationwide including but not limited to:

  HyVee

  Fresh Thyme

  Albertsons

  Andronico's

  Giant Landover

  King's Food Market

  Balducci's

  Murray's Cheese Shop (NYC)

  Giant Eagle Market District

  Other independent retailers

• Do your meats need to be cooked?

  The traditional dry curing method we use means that everything we make can be eaten cooked or uncooked. Our prosciutto is customarily eaten thinly sliced with no further elaboration. Most people prefer to cook the pancetta and guanciale, but they are also delicious raw.

• Do your meats need to be refrigerated?

  All of the cured meats we sell are shelf-stable, however, we recommend that you store your meats in the refrigerator once you bring them home to preserve the flavor and texture over the long-term, but it's not a food safety concern.

• How should I use La Quercia meats when cooking?

  Our meats are dry cured, so they are much dryer than fresh meat. The fattier cuts like pancetta and guanciale can be exposed directly to the heat, but not for too long.  Lean cuts like prosciutto, speck, lomo, lonza, and coppa will be better if you baste them with pork fat, olive oil or butter before exposing them to direct heat. When baking, we recommend that you include them inside lasagna, a casserole, an involtini, bread, etc. When using them on a flat bread or pizza, we recommend that you put them on after cooking. Direct and prolonged exposure to high heat can lead to overly dry or salty meats, so treat them gently. Check out our serving suggestions and recipe ideas.

• What is the shelf life of your meats?

  When product is stored in a cool dry location with the seal intact the shelf life is one year from the pack date. All items will have a date of either pack date or expiration date or both.

  If your product arrives and is not sealed, please contact us immediately.

• How should I store the piece or package after I open it?

  The meat should be tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in the refrigerator. Exposure to air will cause the meat to dry out and the fat to oxidize, so you want to minimize that. Tightly wrapped and refrigerated, even sliced meats will keep 10 days or more in the refrigerator. Whole pieces keep even longer.  You can freeze these meats if you wish.