Does anyone else cook fully cured (i.e., country, cured-for-a-year) hams?

[Innisfree]

And if so, what sort of boiler or pot do you use to simmer them?

This is a Very Important Yearly Ritual for us: a good ham, slowly simmered in an old ham boiler on Christmas Eve, to be served for Christmas dinner. The boiler is similar to these:

https://www.ebay.com/b/Copper-Boiler/1433/bn_55188353

My boiler is an old inherited one which works fine, but my cooktop needs to be replaced, and I'm seriously thinking of getting an induction one. The boiler will not work on an induction cooktop.

I know it's possible to use the little disks which transfer heat from the induction stove to a pan which otherwise won't work, but I'm wondering if there's a better way. So, what else do people cook their hams in? There must be some way people do this. 

Edited January 31, 2020 by Innisfree

[Tina]

I bake mine in a small roaster with a cup or so of water in the bottom, or I have a rounded stoneware bowl I cover with foil.

[cjzimmer1]

95% of the time, I bake them.  Once in a blue moon I'll use the crockpot.  I've never heated a ham on the stovetop unless I was boiling it down for soup.

I have an induction stove.  It's awesome!

Edited January 31, 2020 by cjzimmer1

[Innisfree]

5 minutes ago, Tina said:

I bake mine in a small roaster with a cup or so of water in the bottom, or I have a rounded stoneware bowl I cover with foil.

So no simmering at all? Are you cooking a Smithfield type? How long do you bake it?

The ones I'm familiar with usually simmer, very slowly, for six hours or so. They're pretty big: when we get to the glazing part, after they've simmered, they just barely fit in my big turkey roaster, and maybe protrude slightly over the edge.

[alisoncooks]

We bake ours (like big Smithfield hams at Christmas/Thanksgiving). Usually covered and with water in the pan, 30 min/pound. 

 

[Innisfree]

12 minutes ago, alisoncooks said:

We bake ours (like big Smithfield hams at Christmas/Thanksgiving). Usually covered and with water in the pan, 30 min/pound. 

 

Okay, thanks. This is what I'm used to

https://www.smithfieldmarketplace.com/about-country-hams

Scroll down and they give cooking instructions.

So, for a ham like this, just use a roasting pan with water under the rack, covered with aluminum foil? If that would work, I could skip the boiler altogether, since we usually don't soak the ham first. I could get used to that.

Edited January 31, 2020 by Innisfree
Spelling

[alisoncooks]

3 minutes ago, Innisfree said:

Okay, thanks. This is what I'm used to

https://www.smithfieldmarketplace.com/about-country-hams

Scroll down and they give cooking instructions.

So, for a ham like this, just use a roasting pan with water under the rack, covered with aluminum foil? If that would work, I do skip the boiler altogether, since we usually don't soak the ham first. I could get used to that.

Ah, so you're talking like a country ham. Like the salty kind? Yeah, I believe that would need some sort of soak/simmer. Sorry - I was talking about the other sort of Smithfield ham (maybe a picnic ham). I missed that "cured" meant "country ham."  I've only ever used country ham bits in a soup or something. 

[Innisfree]

1 minute ago, alisoncooks said:

Ah, so you're talking like a country ham. Like the salty kind? Yeah, I believe that would need some sort of soak/simmer. Sorry - I was talking about the other sort of Smithfield ham (maybe a picnic ham). I missed that "cured" meant "country ham."  I've only ever used country ham bits in a soup or something. 

Right, sorry. I mean the kind that's cured for a year. Maybe I need to edit my title.

See, I know they *sell* these hams, and I know you can't buy a boiler except as an antique, because I tried to buy my brother a new one as a wedding present years ago and it just wasn't available. So people have to cook them in something. Or maybe we all have our mothers' boilers...

[mumto2]

I have never cooked what I believe is a dry cured ham  properly in England because I didn’t  know about the huge salt content that these hams have.  Totally messed it up and just gave up.  I have learned they soak them overnight in water to get the salt content reduced then bake.  It’s supposed to be easy.😂 

[cjzimmer1]

I have this stock pot (which works great on my induction stove).  I see there is also a 24 quart version.  Would one of these be big enough (not sure if you are doing whole or half hams) if you wish to continue your cook on the stove method?

https://www.amazon.com/Tramontina-80120-002DS-Gourmet-Stainless/dp/B00FGB28Z8?tag=incepin-20

Edited January 31, 2020 by cjzimmer1

[Innisfree]

7 minutes ago, mumto2 said:

I have never cooked what I believe is a dry cured ham  properly in England because I didn’t  know about the huge salt content that these hams have.  Totally messed it up and just gave up.  I have learned they soak them overnight in water to get the salt content reduced then bake.  It’s supposed to be easy.😂 

It's essentially easy, yet with a few tricky bits. 😉 One of which is figuring out how long your family likes them soaked and/or simmered to reduce the salt. We don't soak, but do simmer, and slice very, very thinly, so the saltiness isn't a problem. My personal least-favorite bits are sawing off the hock if it's long enough to require that, and removing the hot ham from the deep, simmering water without dumping the hot greasy water all over myself and the kitchen.

But the end result is awfully good.

 

2 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I have this stock pot (which works great on my induction stove).  I see there is also a 24 quart version.  Would one of these be big enough (not sure if you are doing whole or half hams) if you wish to continue your cook on the stove method?

https://www.amazon.com/Tramontina-80120-002DS-Gourmet-Stainless/dp/B00FGB28Z8?tag=incepin-20

Maybe the 24 quart would work. I just measured what's left of the ham in the fridge (fully cured, remember: these things last), and it's 17 inches long. Thanks!

We've almost finished this year's ham, fwiw.

[Catwoman]

If you want to use your regular pan, how about buying an inexpensive hotplate that you can put on the counter — it could prove useful year-round whenever you want to use any cookware that won’t work with induction.

[Innisfree]

5 minutes ago, Catwoman said:

If you want to use your regular pan, how about buying an inexpensive hotplate that you can put on the counter — it could prove useful year-round whenever you want to use any cookware that won’t work with induction.

Yep. It might be a choice between that and a great big stock pot.

[Rachel]

I didn’t grow up eating country ham but my kids cured them as a 4-h project last year and are currently doing it this year. The state fair speech topic was “how to prepare a country ham”. I found Clifty Farms website to be helpful. There are also several recipes and the Hot Ham dip is delicious if you happen to end up with 4 hams in your family.
 

I don’t boil or broil mine. I have fried it, put it in soup, made red eyed gravy, and baked it. You also can just eat it but I don’t care for the texture that way.

For baking, I did what my MIL has done for years.  I soaked it for 24 hours, changing out the water every 3-4 hours or so first to remove as much salt as possible. Then I cooked it in the oven with maple syrup over the ham and water in the bottom of the roaster pan at a lower temp for 3-4 hours. I did make a foil tent over the ham too.