# Cookin' My Ham **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 16, 1999, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095 "1999-12-16T22:03:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dirty\_Devil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Dirty\_Devil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dirty_Devil)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 1999, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/1 "1999-12-16T22:03:00Z")
We’re doing Christmas dinner for the family at our house this year. My wife does not want to do the turkey thing again, so we decided on a ham. But she doesn’t want to just put it in the oven with a couple of slices of pineapple, either. So, does anyone have any ham recipes that they’d like to tell me about? We’re feeding five or six adults and two kids. Any ideas would be most appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 1999, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/2 "1999-12-16T22:11:00Z")
Well, I make slices in it - fairly deep - put cloves in. Then, I cover it all over (PACK it) with brown sugar, then I drizzle ginger ale all over it - keep drizzling as it cooks. Of course, we do the pineapple thing along with that… ---
**Author:** ![Dirty\_Devil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Dirty\_Devil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dirty_Devil)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 1999, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/3 "1999-12-16T23:38:00Z")
Sounds good. I never thought of cooking with ginger ale, though, but I can see why the tastes might go well together. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Ayesha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c0e974/32.png) [@Ayesha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ayesha)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/4 "1999-12-17T06:36:00Z")
Go ahead and just bake the ham, then make either a fruit sauce or raisin sause or both to put over the slices. My father-in- law was a chef and taught me how to make them. fruit sauce- Can of fruit cocktail juice and all sugar, amount depends on taste a little water cornstarch put fruit & juice in a pot, add sugar, cook till sugar totally dissolves. Mix cold water with cornstarch and mix well till dissolved, stir into hot fruit stuff (this thickens it) Raisin sauce, about 1/2 large box raisins water , enough to cover raisins plus about an inch over the top. cinnoman if you want it sugar cornstarch cold water cook raisins ,sugar & cinnoman mix cornstarch with cold water stir in cook till thick. ## Both of these make your ham slices look great, and everyone can add as much or as little as they like. Ayesha - Lioness * * * There are two solutions to every problem : the wrong one, and mine (Thomas A. Edison) ---
**Author:** ![Wicked\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/2acd7d/32.png) [@Wicked\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wicked_Blue)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/5 "1999-12-17T06:54:00Z")
When I cook a ham, I like to make it with a honey-mustard dressing. I use equal amounts of honey and yellow mustard. My husband loves it 🙂 Rose ---
**Author:** ![Atrael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Atrael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atrael)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/6 "1999-12-17T14:26:00Z")
Get a 7-9 lb. ham…cut a big chunch out of the top…I mix about 24 oz. of honey with crushed rosemary and about 2 tbls of lemmon-pepper together…pour honey into cut out section, and apply a libral coating all over the rest…put the chunck back in, and cover with tin-foil…let bake about 2 1/2 hours…basting every 20 minutes or so…enjoy. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/7 "1999-12-17T14:53:00Z")
Go down to the local bookshop, pull out a book on Southern cooking, and surreptitiously memorize a ham recipe. Those rebs know what to do with a ham. Sometimes it involves Coca-Cola, which is better than it sounds. * * * Uke ---
**Author:** ![Diane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2acd7d/32.png) [@Diane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diane)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/8 "1999-12-17T15:43:00Z")
This is easy and REALLY GOOD! Slice the ham into a roasting pan then pour a large jar of apricot preserves over the top. The preserves melt into a sweet sauce. * * * \>^,^\< KITTEN Fluff yer hair Beula, I’s feelin frisky - M.S. ---
**Author:** ![Demo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demo/32/8472_2.png) [@Demo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Demo)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/9 "1999-12-17T16:45:00Z")
Well, after you have opened the can and removed that greasy packing gel, slice the Spam into wafer thin slices and then…oh wait, did you say HAM? _backs away sheepishly_ * * * “Teaching without words and work without doing are understood by very few.” -Tao Te Ching ---
**Author:** ![Dirty\_Devil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Dirty\_Devil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dirty_Devil)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 1999, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/10 "1999-12-17T17:03:00Z")
“ughraghlughrahg” (doing my best drooling Homer Simpson). Oh, man, am I hungry now! These all sound really good (except for yours, Demo. You and your Spam and Corona Light 😉 ) Since I want to have each one, I’ll leave it up to my wife to choose. If there are any leftovers, I’ll mail them to the poster whose recipe we use. Thanks again. ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 1999, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/11 "1999-12-18T06:16:00Z")
There’s a cookbook called “Square Meals” (sorry, I don’t know how to underline yet) by Jane and Michael Stern which, IIRC, has a description of how to do the Coca-cola ham. It’s also a very funny book. It’s a history of American-style cooking with representative dishes from each decade, starting with the 20’s. The stuff from the '50’s and '60’s when “convenience foods” started to be popular is really hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 1999, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/12 "1999-12-18T05:06:00Z")
Go with the essentials. You want a sweet to complement the saltines of the ham, and a subtle “zing”… But several honkin’ liters of Coke. Rustle up some brown sugar. Cloves are good if you got 'em. And some fine bourbon. Basically soak the ham in some Coke/bourbon mixture for a while. Drain it off, but save it. Plop the ham in a pan and pack on some brown sugar. Bake it for a while (sip Coke and or bourbon meantimes), baste with the basting stuff or just drizzle on some of what you’re drinking. Do side dishes and stuff. Keep basting and sipping. (Hey, Coke/Pepsi is sugary/citrus stuff anyhoo; take advantage of it.) Let the ham get dark and glisteny and smelling like heaven should be. Baste some more if you want. The ham will be tender, sweet/salty and more subtle than all the food snobs in the world could aspire to. (Pour the stuff from the bottom of the roaster over the finished ham, or serve alongside.) Coke, bourbon and brown sugar. Fail proof, never equaled and purely luscious. (don’t tell Chef Troy), Veb ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 1999, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookin-my-ham/12095/13 "1999-12-18T05:13:00Z")
I use ginger ale to baste. Not just _any_ old ginger ale, though. Vernor’s. I never tried anything fancier than that, though. I may have to try a few of these recipes myself, if you good people don’t mind. 🙂