Glazed Ham

The best tasting animal, in my opinion, is the duck. However, aside from pan roasted breast with crispy skin, foie gras, Peking from Chinatown, and confit of leg, there isn’t much. Now a pig, that’s a whole other ballgame. Endless cuts, cooking techniques, and textures. Who can argue the greatness of a ham, whether it’s boiled and sliced and served with braised shoulder, pickles, and mustard in a Panini press, or artery clogging bacony goodness? Pork is king.

This was my glazed ham from this year’s Christmas Eve dinner; a true labor of love.  Here is the overview:

1. Make the brine
2. Cool the brine
3. Brine for 3 days
4. Inject brine into ham and brine again for 7 more days
5. Air dry for 1 day 
6. Smoke
7. Glaze (Prepare it the day before)
8. Feast

For the brine:

• About a 9 lb, bone-in, fresh uncured ham (shank end if possible), with most of the fat trimmed 
• 1 C dark brown sugar 
• 1 C Morton Canning and Pickling Salt 
• 1 oz “pink salt” (Prague Powder #1) 
• 1 Tbl. Whole cloves 
• 1 head garlic, sliced in half 
• 1 Tbl. Black peppercorns 
• 6 bay leaves

Combine everything with about a gallon of water and bring to a boil stirring to dissolve. Let cool. Place in refrigerator overnight. Add the whole ham to the pot of COLD brine. Add a little water if needed until it is fully submerged. TIP – you can add a plate or two on top of the ham to help keep it under. Cover the pot and place in the fried for 3 days. After three days, pull the ham out of the brine and use an injector to generously inject brine directly into the thickest part of the ham. Make sure to inject all along the bone. When you got everything, place the ham back in the pot, cover the pot, and return to the fridge for another 7 days.

Air Dry:

After a total of 10 days in the brine, pull the ham out and place on a clean towel, in a pan, and let it sit uncovered in the fridge for 24 hours. The purpose of this is for the skin to dry out so the smoke can better permeate the meat.

Smoke:

Set up your smoker for about 150 degrees. I used lump hardwood with a nice log of green apple wood for smoke. If the fat was nicely trimmed I don’t think a drip pan is needed, but a water pan may help to regulate the temp. You know your smoker (hopefully). You want to aim for a temp of 130 degrees to start basting on the glaze, and a final temperature of 140 degrees.

The Glaze (prepare the day before):

• ½ C Inner Beauty Hot Sauce (see proceeding entry)
• 1 Tbl. Brown sugar
• ¼ C buckwheat honey
• ¼ C orange juice

Bring to a boil while stirring just to dissolve the sugar. Let cool and let sit overnight.

Baste the glaze onto the ham about every 10-15 minutes from 130 to 140 degrees. When the finished temp is reached pull the ham and let it rest UNMOLESTED for at least 20 minutes. Slice and bask in the glory that is ham.