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I may have gotten into this a bit over my head so here it goes...
I decided to get a Smithfield bone-in uncooked country ham for Christmas dinner. In the back of my mind I figured baking this ham should be as simple as baking a pre-cooked ham. It would just take a little longer. Anyway, as anxious as I am to get started, I went to the Virginia Company's web site to check out the cooking directions for this ham. This is what I read...
Uncooked, Bone-In Virginia Ham
Storage: Requires no refrigeration prior to cooking. For peak flavor, prepare within 2 months of purchase. Store by hanging in cool, dry place. (If stored longer, ham will continue to dry and become more intensely flavored.)
Preparation: Mold on skin of an aged ham is natural and harmless. Remove by washing with hot water and stiff brush. Can be soaked in hot water overnight to remove salt. If you soak your ham, be sure to change water before cooking.
Cooking: After washing & soaking, place ham in large pan and fully submerge in cold water. Bring water to slow SIMMER (not boil) and maintain for 20-25 minutes per pound (e.g., approximately 5 hours for 12 lb. ham) – or until meat thermometer shows internal temperature of 160 degrees F. Add water as needed to keep ham covered. When fully cooked, remove ham from pan and, while still warm, remove skin & trim fat to 1/4-inch thickness. After skin removal and fat trimming, rub 1 cup of glaze (or brown sugar) over ham, score fat in diamond pattern and stud with whole cloves. Bake at 300 degrees F for about 30 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Baking (alternate cooking method): After washing & soaking him, place ham in pan with tight-fitting lid. Pour 5 cups of water over ham, place lid firmly on pan and place in pre-heated oven at 500 degrees F. After 15 minutes, turn off oven. DO NOT OPEN OVEN. In 3 hours, re-heat oven to 500 degrees F., bake for 15 minutes – and turn off oven again. (DO NOT OPEN.) Leave ham in oven overnight, or until oven is completely cool. Finally, take ham out of pan, remove skin & trim fat to 1/4-inch thickness. Glaze ham, if desired.
I had no idea I would have to soak the ham to release the salt. Also, the primary cooking directions say to boil the ham initially then dress and bake.
There is an alternative to boiling and that is to bake at 500 for 15 minutes then shut the oven off for 3 hours. Then fire up the oven to 500 for 15 minutes again then off again until completely cool. Then dress the ham.
Herein lies my question... Which is the best method for cooking this ham? I think I would prefer to bake it. I don't quite understand, however, what to do after the two baking cycles. Do I then trim the fat, add the dressing (clove points, pineapple rings, etc.) then bake it a final time? Then what about the drippings for the ham gravy? Will it be floating in a pool of water or will the water steam up into the ham, thus making it plump up? I'm really at a loss here.
Any help??
I decided to get a Smithfield bone-in uncooked country ham for Christmas dinner. In the back of my mind I figured baking this ham should be as simple as baking a pre-cooked ham. It would just take a little longer. Anyway, as anxious as I am to get started, I went to the Virginia Company's web site to check out the cooking directions for this ham. This is what I read...
Uncooked, Bone-In Virginia Ham
Storage: Requires no refrigeration prior to cooking. For peak flavor, prepare within 2 months of purchase. Store by hanging in cool, dry place. (If stored longer, ham will continue to dry and become more intensely flavored.)
Preparation: Mold on skin of an aged ham is natural and harmless. Remove by washing with hot water and stiff brush. Can be soaked in hot water overnight to remove salt. If you soak your ham, be sure to change water before cooking.
Cooking: After washing & soaking, place ham in large pan and fully submerge in cold water. Bring water to slow SIMMER (not boil) and maintain for 20-25 minutes per pound (e.g., approximately 5 hours for 12 lb. ham) – or until meat thermometer shows internal temperature of 160 degrees F. Add water as needed to keep ham covered. When fully cooked, remove ham from pan and, while still warm, remove skin & trim fat to 1/4-inch thickness. After skin removal and fat trimming, rub 1 cup of glaze (or brown sugar) over ham, score fat in diamond pattern and stud with whole cloves. Bake at 300 degrees F for about 30 minutes, or until lightly browned.
Baking (alternate cooking method): After washing & soaking him, place ham in pan with tight-fitting lid. Pour 5 cups of water over ham, place lid firmly on pan and place in pre-heated oven at 500 degrees F. After 15 minutes, turn off oven. DO NOT OPEN OVEN. In 3 hours, re-heat oven to 500 degrees F., bake for 15 minutes – and turn off oven again. (DO NOT OPEN.) Leave ham in oven overnight, or until oven is completely cool. Finally, take ham out of pan, remove skin & trim fat to 1/4-inch thickness. Glaze ham, if desired.
I had no idea I would have to soak the ham to release the salt. Also, the primary cooking directions say to boil the ham initially then dress and bake.
There is an alternative to boiling and that is to bake at 500 for 15 minutes then shut the oven off for 3 hours. Then fire up the oven to 500 for 15 minutes again then off again until completely cool. Then dress the ham.
Herein lies my question... Which is the best method for cooking this ham? I think I would prefer to bake it. I don't quite understand, however, what to do after the two baking cycles. Do I then trim the fat, add the dressing (clove points, pineapple rings, etc.) then bake it a final time? Then what about the drippings for the ham gravy? Will it be floating in a pool of water or will the water steam up into the ham, thus making it plump up? I'm really at a loss here.
Any help??