Country Ham Ginger Butter Recipes

Steps:

• Unwrap ham and scrub off any surface mold (if you hung in a sack for 6 months you'd have mold too). Carefully remove hock with hand saw. (If this idea makes you eye your first aid kit, ask your butcher to do it. But make sure you keep the hock, it's the best friend collard greens ever had.)
• Place ham in cooler and cover with clean water. (As long as it's not too dirty you can use what southerners call the "hose pipe"). Stash the cooler in the bushes. If it's summer, throw in some ice. If it's freezing out, keep the cooler inside. Change the water twice a day for two days turning the ham each time.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place ham in a large disposable turkey-roasting pan and add enough Dr. Pepper to come about halfway up the side of the ham. Add pickle juice if you've got it and tent completely with heavy-duty foil. Cook for 1/2 hour then reduce heat to 325 degrees F, and cook another 1 1/2 hours.
• Turn the ham over, insert an oven safe thermometer (probe-style is best) and cook another 1 1/2 hours, or until the deepest part of the ham hits 140 degrees F (approximately 15 to 20 minutes per pound total).
• Let rest 1/2 hour then slice paper-thin. Serve with biscuits or soft yeast rolls.
• Cooks note: Even after soaking, country ham is quite salty, so thin slicing is mandatory. If you're a bacon fan, however, cut a thicker (1/4-inch) slice and fry it up for breakfast.

Steps:

• Temper the ham by bringing it out of the fridge 90 minutes before cooking. (This will allow it to heat more evenly and not dry out.)
• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Place the ham in a shallow roasting pan fitted with a rack. Using a paring knife, score the fatty side of the ham by gently slicing lines 1/2-inch apart, crisscrossing on an angle to create a diamond pattern. This will allow the glaze to soak into the ham. Add the chicken stock to the bottom of the pan, then cover the pan in foil. Cook for 40 minutes, basting every 10 to 15 minutes.
• To make the glaze, warm the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the ginger and chile flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the brown sugar, honey, lime juice and Dijon mustard. Bring to a simmer, then cook until slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Set aside the glaze in a bowl, leaving about 1/4 cup behind in the pan for finishing.
• Remove the ham from the oven and raise the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Remove the foil from the ham and discard the drippings from the pan. Brush the ham liberally with half of the glaze. Return to the oven and cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes, then brush again. Bake again until dark and caramelized, another 15 minutes. Remove the ham to a rimmed platter.
• Heat the remaining 1/4 cup glaze to a simmer over medium-low heat. If using the bourbon, remove the glaze from heat and add the bourbon. Using a lighter, flambe the alcohol in the pan and very carefully pour over the ham. (The alcohol can be omitted and you can just put the warm glaze over the ham.)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Rub each potato all over with a scant 1/2 teaspoon lard. Cut parchment squares just large enough to wrap around each potato individually. Wrap potatoes, twisting ends in opposite directions to form a tight seal. Transfer to a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet.
• Bake until potatoes are very soft and collapsing, about 1 1/2 hours. Leave wrapped in parchment until ready to serve, then split each lengthwise, dollop with ham-ginger butter, and sprinkle with salt.

Steps:

• Put the gammon in a large pan and cover with 2 litres of ginger ale. Top up with water to cover the joint, if you need to. Add the whole allspice berries and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low, and simmer gently, covered, for 2½ hrs. Top up with water, if you need to, while it's simmering.
• Drain the ham and leave until it's cool enough to handle while you make the glaze. Put the remaining ginger ale in a pan with the sugar, grated ginger and crushed allspice. Simmer, uncovered, for 20-25 mins until syrupy.
• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Remove the skin from the ham, leaving a layer of fat, then score the fat in a criss-cross pattern. Transfer the ham to a foil-lined roasting tin, and brush over half the glaze. Roast for 15 mins, then glaze with the remaining syrup. Increase the temperature to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and roast for a further 15-20 mins until you get a sticky golden crust. Leave to cool for 15 mins before carving. Drizzle over more glaze from the tin to serve, if you like. Can be made ahead and chilled for up to four days.

Steps:

• Place ham in baking dish or roasting pan.
• Score ham diagonally both ways about 1/8" in.
• Pour ginger ale over top.
• Pat brown sugar all over top and sides of ham.
• Bake according to ham package directions.
• (Usually 20 minutes per pound at 325 degrees).
• Serve with Potato Salad or Scalloped Potatoes (see my other recipes).

Steps:

• The afternoon before you plan to serve the ham, fill a very large kettle or pot or your sink with water. Soak ham 4 to 8 hours to lose some of the saltiness; change the water 2 or 3 times, if possible. Rinse well, and scrape off any mold or green rind.
• Wrap ham well in aluminum foil. Place on a baking sheet. At 7 p.m. the night before you plan to serve the ham, preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Place the wrapped ham in a large roasting pan filled with 1 inch of water, and bake for 30 minutes. Turn off the oven, but do not open the door. At 10 P.M., turn the oven back on to 500 degrees. Bake the ham for 15 minutes more. Turn off the oven, but do not open the door. Leave the ham in the closed oven overnight.
• Remove ham from the oven, then remove the aluminum foil. Using a very sharp knife, trim the rind and all the fat from the ham. Serve the ham warm or at room temperature; cut with a ham-slicing knife into very thin slivers.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil.
• Set ham into the prepared roasting pan and pierce several times with a fork.
• Stir brown sugar, peach preserves, and mustard together in a bowl; spread over the ham. Cover the ham with a sheet of aluminum foil.
• Roast ham in preheated oven, basting regularly, for 90 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil cover and continue baking until hot in the center, 30 to 45 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 140 degrees F (60 degrees C).

Steps:

• Stir together butter, ginger, ham and honey. Season with salt and pepper