How to Make the Perfect Ham for the Holidays

One of my favorite traditions when it comes to Christmas is the Christmas dinner ham.  Growing up in my family always involved the roasting of a ham but unlike now a days this process took my mother a few days. 

Anyone now can go into a supermarket and purchase a gammon (a ham is technically a whole leg which has been cured.  A gammon is a piece which has been cut from a cured leg) but it takes some real dedication to make a ham from scratch.  Below are a few pointers on how you can make a traditional ham for you and your loved ones.  Trust me your family will thank you for it. 

If you aren’t sure you must cure!

Sure you can bypass this important step and go pick up your ready cured and smoked ham, but what’s the fun in that?  Brining your own pork gives you total control over what your ham will taste like.  Typical brining consists of salt ,sugar, water and spices.  My personal favorite is salt, brown sugar, garlic cloves,  orange peels and cloves.  Now if you insist on having a pink ham you may consider using prague powder.  Prague powder which is also referred to as curing salt or pink curing salt give hams that distinctive pink color we have all come to love.

Lets get Cooking!

If you decided to go the non traditional route and buy a Gammom please be aware hat a gammon is cured but not cooked.  So you will need to either poach or bake this puppy.  Make sure to follow the instructions that came with the Gammon.

When cooking a ham there are a few options some like to poach.  Some chefs recommend poaching over roasting in order to infuse more flavors into your ham.  My personal favorite is roasting my ham which is set over a pan of stock and vegetables.  Poaching your ham or roasting in with some liquid in the bottom base will help keep your ham from drying out too much.

Glaze it up!

Not having a glazed ham is like having an unfrosted cake.  It’s just unheard of.  To really pull off this holiday dinner you need to properly glaze that succulent piece of pork in the oven.  The trick to a good glaze is a proper balance.  You can use, citrus, mustard, sweet marmalades but whatever you do you need to have that balance.  My favorite glaze involves a sweet, sour and savory mixture.  A little bit of mustard powder, orange juice and brown sugar makes for an incredible glaze.  

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