I really like good ham. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any such thing in the modern world. I went and bought a $40 Honeybaked, hoping the “honey” was just on the outside and there would be a decent ham underneath, but no such.
When I was a kid, my mother used to buy hams at the Farmer’s Market on 3rd street in LA. She bought therm from a butcher that is no longer there, although I haven’t thoroughly checked with the butchers who ARE there to see if anyone carries what I want, but here is what I want:
A whole ham, on the bone, with rind.
No sugar, honey, or other weird sweet coating or other flavoring (I discovered to my dismay that honeybaked means the meat is sweet all the way through. Yar.)
This ham needs to be able to be cooked in the oven on a very low temp overnight, hardening the rind and causing the meat within to become meltingly tender and moist, so good that one becomes quite base and carnivorous in the desire to just grab chunks of the moist and savory flesh and eat them all by themselves.
I am wondering a couple of things:
Since my mother did in fact put the ham in the oven for up to 12 hours and it came out so moist and tender, is it possible that it was a “raw” ham? Or is there no such thing, really? Because 12 hours for any other ham will turn it to dry rubber. Perhaps the reason my mother’s hams were so succulent is because of the rind (and the 1-2 inch casing of fat under it)?
Is there a name for this kind of ham? A brand? A place to buy it?
You’re not exactly in ham country, but the best hams usually come from small local butchers or slaughterhouses. However, if you can find a decent store bought ham, cooking it in the manner you described will get the desired results…
Run a google search for Virginia hams or Virginia products. The best hams in the world come from southside VA (Suffolk, Chesapeake, Isle of Wight). The hogs are peanut fed, the hams are smoked, and they can’t be beat for flavor. You can order them over the net with no problem.
Um, I don’t know what kind of hinterland LA has turned into but I can get what you are describing in the meat case at the corner grocery here in Michigan.
To answer this, yes you want a raw ham. Do not buy anything that says “fully cooked” on it. A raw ham is smoked but not cooked. You should be able to find this at any supermarket especially as Thanksgiving and Christmas approach. Look for a thing that looks like a pigs leg in shrink wrapped plastic in the meet section. It should say “Bone In Smoked Ham” on the lable. Don’t but anything boneless for this purpose.
I would try this before you go to the trouble of ordering one through the mail. It’s bound to be cheaper and the ones I’ve gotten here locally have always been excellent. Of course being Irish I boil mine instead of baking so YMMV.
:eek:
** Degrance, ** being Irish myself I must ask that you not smear an entire people with your horrifying treatment of a good ham! It only goes into the water when it’s down to scraggly bits of meat hanging off the bone, to make Ham and cabbage and potatoes.
On the other hand, thanks for answering my question about raw ham.
And ** Nightshadea, ** the bad Honeybaked was $43! Since I recall my mother spending $30-$40 on her hams back in the late 60’s and early 70’s, I’m mentally preparing to pay around $80 for the equvalent today. Sigh…
Virginia hams, or rather Smithfield hams as they are more often known, are a completely different animal – they are very dry, and VERY salty and must be boiled for about 12 hours before you can even think about consuming them. They do keep “indefinately” however, which is an admirable quality in meat, to my mind. Of course, some people are put off by the coating of mold you scrape off before preparing…
IMHO, the meat is too strong tasting unless it it “cut” with some other bland meat, like turkey. Not at all what the OP is speaking of.
I talked to the lady there and she was very helpful. I intend to buy one of these hams soon and I will let you all know how it goes. (It is “country” ham, dry aged in a salt cure, no nitrates or brine, for up to a year.)
Of course, some people are put off by the coating of mold you scrape off before preparing…