Country-style ham is a delicious, unexpected twist on the classic roasted holiday ham. However, some critical differences between country hams and the more-familiar, partially cooked city hams require a vastly different cooking technique. With a little information, some planning, a few basic tools, and some simple ingredients, you can make sure your country ham comes out perfect.
Step 1
Unwrap your ham and place it in a large cooler and fill the cooler with water. Because country ham is salt-cured and dried, it needs a long water soak to rehydrate the flesh. Soak the ham between four and 12 hours as recommended by the USDA Food Safety and Health guidelines.
Step 2
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and place the racks in the uppermost and lowermost positions. Place the ham in a large roasting pan and pour 1 gallon of apple juice or cider over the ham. Add 1 tbsp. of cloves to the apple juice.
Step 3
Crimp two pieces of aluminum foil together to make a sheet large enough to cover the top of the roasting pan with room to spare. Loosely crimp the edges of the foil around the ham to form a foil tent, making sure the foil does not actually touch the surface of the ham.
Step 4
Place the roasting pan on the bottom rack of your oven and roast for 30 minutes. Then, turn the temperature down to 325 F and cook for an additional 90 minutes.
Step 5
Working quickly so that your hands do not remain in contact with the foil long enough to burn them, remove the foil from the ham. Using large bunches of paper towels or clean oven mitts to protect your hands, turn the ham over. Continue to roast until the deepest part of the ham reaches 145 degrees. Allow to sit on the counter-top for 15 minutes, then carve thinly.
Tips and Warnings
- You can use a disposable aluminum baking pan if you don't have a roasting pan large enough for a whole country ham.
- Refrigerate leftovers within two hours of serving.
Things You'll Need
- Whole country ham
- Large cooler
- Cold water
- Roasting pan
- 1 gallon apple juice or cider
- 1 tbsp. whole cloves
- Heavy duty aluminum foil
- Meat thermometer
- Carving knife
References
- USDA : Ham and Food Safety
- "I'm Just Here for the Food"; Alton Brown; 2002
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