Alton Brown’s City Ham (Gingersnap Crust) - Recipe Diaries (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between a country ham and a city ham? ›

The difference between city and country ham comes down to how they're cured. Country hams are cured by dry-brining for several months, while city hams are wet brined for a much shorter amount of time and kept fresh thanks to the advent of refrigeration.

If ham seems too salty, soak slices in lukewarm water 30 minutes before frying. Place slices in skillet turning the lean part of the ham away from the hottest part of the skillet. Add just a little water. Fry slowly for 4 to 8 minutes.

Let the ham simmer 20 minutes per pound. DO NOT BOIL--just simmer--this is important. Consider simmering 15 minutes per pound if boiling half of a country ham or the boneless center section. After cooking (simmering), remove the vessel from the stove and allow ham to cool in water in which it was cooked.

Both ham and bacon are high in protein, but they also contain a significant amount of fat and sodium. As you can see, bacon is significantly higher in calories, fat, and sodium than ham. Ham is a better source of protein per calorie than bacon. However, bacon does contain slightly more protein per serving than ham.

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Why slow cook ham? Slow cooker ham is infinitely more tender for a fall-off the bone texture. A low, consistent heat over hours breaks down the collagen and connective tissues, which tenderises the meat. The natural fat slowly renders down, infusing the meat with a more intense, rich flavour.

Just like beef, chicken, or any other meat, hams can overcook, which leaves them dry and stringy. Since they're already cooked through, your only goal is to heat yours to an appropriate serving temperature.

For cooked hams that have been repackaged in any other location outside the plant or for leftover cooked ham, heat to 165 °F (73.9 °C). Cook all raw fresh ham and ready-to-eat ham to a minimum internal temperature of 145 °F (62.8 °C) as measured with a food thermometer before removing meat from the heat source.

When preparing an uncooked country ham, it must be washed and soaked before cooking, since these hams are dry salt cured. Country Hams should be soaked 12-24 hours. Soak a Genuine Smithfield Ham for 24-36 hours. The length of soaking time is important and should be influenced by your taste for salt.

Soaking a salt cured country ham before cooking is believed to make the ham less salty.

Can you eat a country ham without cooking it? ›

As he explained that a properly cured country ham is as safe to eat uncooked as prosciutto, jamon iberico or any of its European counterparts, the inevitable question of food safety arose.

It is the salt, of course, that allows the ham to age for months without refrigeration. This is typical of all country hams. It is possible you might have to acquire a taste for country ham, but once you do you will always prefer it. Mold in no way affects the quality of the meat but rather indicates proper aging.

The ham will be done when it reaches an internal temperature of 160 degrees F. Remove skin and allow to cool in liquid in which it was cooked.

The choice is yours. The cooking liquid, enriched with onions spiked with cloves and a few bay leaves, has done its work and can be chucked out (it's inclined to be salty), but I do like to spoon a little of it, in lieu of gravy, over the slices of moist, pink meat as I serve them.

Country hams are salt-cured (with or without nitrites) for one to three months. They are usually hardwood smoked (usually hickory and red oak), but some types of country ham, such as the "salt-and-pepper ham" of North Carolina, are not smoked.

City hams are produced using modern moist-curing methods. The cure is injected into the ham in a brine form. The process takes much less time compared to that of country ham. The result is a moist and tender ham that is characterized by its sweet flavor.

Hams are either ready-to-eat or not. Ready-to-eat hams include prosciutto and cooked hams; they can be eaten right out of the package. Fresh hams and hams that are only treated to destroy trichinae (which may include heating, freezing or curing in the processing plant) must be cooked by the consumer before eating.