Rovagnati: Gran Biscotto Cooked Ham from Lombardia

With a passion for innovation and a dedication to quality, Rovagnati has made an everlasting impact on Italian prosciutti. Based in Lombardia, this 100% Italian company specializes in premium prosciutto cotto (cooked ham) and other cured specialties like Salame Felino. How did Rovagnati get its start, and what makes its salumi so special?

The story of Rovagnati

The story began in 1941 in Biassono, in the northern region of Lombardia. Ferruccio Rovagnati founded the company with his son Paolo, intending to make quality versions of the region's staples: butter and cheese. They could not have known they would one day be renowned for prosciutto.

In the 1960s, at the height of the economic boom, Paolo convinced his father to experiment with salumi and prosciutti. He had been studying new production methods and believed they could make a high-quality prosciutto cotto, a product then considered inferior to its crudo counterpart. Thanks to the long-standing dedication and loyalty of their clients, Paolo expanded his father's business and took over the company in 1968. The company has since grown into an internationally recognized name, known for cutting-edge technology, innovation, quality and its signature product: Gran Biscotto.

Gran Biscotto: a prosciutto unlike any other

In the early 1970s, Paolo set out to make a unique, premium prosciutto cotto. After several years of testing raw materials and production techniques, he finalized the first versions of what is now Gran Biscotto.

In Italian, gran biscotto literally means "big cookie." The name comes from Paolo's wife, Claudia, the toughest judge of his new ham. In Milan, when you taste something really delicious, you say "È come un biscotto," or "It's like a cookie." Tasting Paolo's prosciutto, Claudia found it so delightful that she called it not just a cookie but a great one.

Gran Biscotto is slowly steamed for 12 hours and then left to rest for up to 4 weeks. Before cooking, the pork legs are rigorously selected, carefully hand-boned and massaged for up to 72 hours with a secret blend of herbs and spices. The result is an incredibly moist, delicate prosciutto cotto with a distinct flavor and aroma. A few years after the naming, Paolo had the idea of fire branding the flagship prosciutto with the Gran Biscotto name, which helped it stand out from the rest.

Today Rovagnati makes the delicate plain Gran Biscotto and also varieties flavored with herbs, spices and truffles.

Get a taste at Eataly

Rovagnati prosciutto cotto appears in special dishes at our restaurants and counters, such as antipasto boards with thinly sliced Gran Biscotto and prosciutto panini. Other Rovagnati specialties are in our marketplace. Want a taste before you buy? Ask one of the mongers at the Salumi & Formaggi counter for a complimentary slice.