How to Make Pan de Jamon (Venezuelan Ham Bread)

If you’ve never had Venezuelan ham bread, you’re in for a treat. This Christmas bread is layered with ham, olives and raisins, then rolled up to create colorful, vibrant slices of bread. Pan de jamon came about in the early 1900s when baker Gustavo Ramello was looking for a way to use up leftover Christmas ham.

The delicious bread roll took off from there, with other bakers adding other tasty morsels to the ham filling. Today, it’s still a beloved bread—and thankfully it doesn’t have to be Christmas to enjoy it.

Ingredients for Pan de Jamon

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• Yeast: Make sure to have some packs of active dry yeast around for baking projects like this. It’s the key to getting your bread to rise.
• Flour: There’s no bread without flour! This slightly sweet enriched dough is simple to make and only requires all-purpose flour. If you don’t have AP, you can substitute bread flour.
• Ham: Ham is of course essential to making ham bread! Use scraps of ham if you happen to have any, or slices from your local deli.
• Olives: Green pimento olives are the most traditional ones to use in pan de jamon. They provide briny, salty bites with a touch of sweetness from the pimento. We conducted a taste test to find the best olives.
• Raisins: They may seem odd at first, but the raisins are an important component in this bread. The sweetness rounds out all the salty bits and takes this bread to the next level.

Pan de Jamon Recipe

This recipe comes to us from Taste of Home Community Cook Lorraine Hickman of Lansing, Michigan. It makes 2 loaves.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup warm water (110° to 115°F)
• 1 tablespoon quick-rise yeast
• 3-1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 10 tablespoons softened butter, plus 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Filling:

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted, divided
• 1/2 pound thinly sliced deli ham, divided
• 1/2 cup golden raisins, divided
• 1/2 cup sliced green olives with pimentos, divided

Egg Wash:

• 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon sugar

Directions

Step 1: Make dough

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In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add 1 cup flour, the butter and egg, and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add milk, sugar, salt and the remaining flour, and mix well until you have a shaggy dough.

Turn dough onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top and sides of the dough ball. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Step 2: Roll out dough

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Punch down dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and divide in half. Roll each portion into a 10×12-in. rectangle. Brush dough with the melted butter.

Layer half of the ham over one piece of dough, leaving a 1 inch edge around the perimeter. Sprinkle half of the raisins and half of the olives over the ham. Starting from a long side, roll up jelly-roll style, and pinch the seam to seal. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, seam side down. Repeat with the remaining dough.

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Cover dough rolls with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Step 3: Bake pan de jamon

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In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk and sugar. Brush over the tops and sides of the loaves. Bake until golden brown, about 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through.

Allow the bread to cool so that the filling has time to set. Once it’s cooled, slice and serve.

Pan de Jamon Variations

Pan de jamon started with ham scraps, but it’s become a receptacle for many other fillings. You can substitute turkey for the ham, or dark raisins for the golden raisins. Other popular fillings include capers, almonds, bacon, and even sliced cheese like gruyere or provolone. You can also change up your olive filling.

How to Store Pan de Jamon

Pan de jamon can be stored in a well-sealed container or in plastic wrap for up to 3 days in the fridge. It can also be frozen for up to one month.

Tips for Making Pan de Jamon

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Can you use store-bought bread dough for pan de jamon?

In a hurry? Store bought dough is a great substitute when you’re looking for a few less steps. Use the canisters of raw dough, or thawed frozen bread dough to bake up a delicious pan de jamon.

Can you prepare this ahead of time?

Some of this recipe can be prepared ahead of time! Go through step 1 but instead of resting your dough on the counter, store it in the fridge overnight for the first rise. The next day, pull the dough from the fridge and allow it to come back to room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes, then continue onto step 2.