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Ham Brine

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fatty

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Hi folks,

I have a fresh 10 kilo pork leg and I want to make ham.
I was thinking a tasty Parisian ham or some kind of maple ham...I am in Quebec so I can get my hand on some sweet sweet maple syrup...:-D
But is you have a tasty ham recipe just let me know!

I need recipe suggestions.

I want to wet brine for 10 days then smoke.

I have pure saltpeter as it was super hard to find insta cure or Prague powder here.

so if you can give me a good brine using saltpeter that would be awesome!

Thanks!
Fatty
 
a good maple ham will make a puppy pull a freight train......just sayin.

as for recipes..i have no experience doing a ham, so I can't offer any help there.
 
do a search at the bottom of the page i have found lots and lots of great recipes from there
 
From my experiences and from books that I have read, saltpeter is Nitrates not Nitrites and should not be used in place of cure#1....... Cure #1 should be clearly marked 6.25% sodium nitrite.

Cure #1, Prague Powder #1, Insta-cure #1 should be readily available. Meat markets, sausage maker supplier's, all sell some form of Cure#1. Even Morton makes Tender Quick or Sugar Cure. I have seen all of the above in cooking stores, butcher shops, and even on E-Bay and Amazon. http://sausagemaker.com in Buffalo, NY, and http://lemproducts.com all ship to Canada. Also try http://stuffers.com which is out of British Columbia, and http://www.canadacompound.com out of Toronto..

Even Williams Sonoma, and Carrefour have it in a little jar near the spices.
.
 
I'm putting a few legs down now, my Brine from under here would be as useless to you as BOOBIES on a bull.
What I can say, use a recipe then change the sugar content One part Maple syrup to one part Sugar, to as much maple as you want.
I use the maple on our bacon and its dam fine.
Our Nitrite are 11.5 percent so grab cure one for a wet mix, cure 2 is for dry curing I believe.
just for interest sake I am using Maple and sumac in this lot.
The sumac should replace any Berry recipe.
Any river cottage recipe from Google will be pretty good, I love his work.



Whatever brine you use make it a day ahead then it will be at temperature as you put it all together
 
Last edited:
got some cure today from my sausage maker...I did not think to ask him...gonna do something very simple, brine; salt sugar cure...his recomendaion was add some juniper berry jucie ( boil the berries then squeeze the juice into the brine...brine 5-6 days, then smoke, I will then start brushing it after about 5 hours in the smoker with a maple/spice mop and see what happens...
But lets here some more ideas...
 
Oh boy I think I have problems...so I skinned the leg and put it in a brine with a few coriander seeds, all spice seeds, and a few juniper berrys...now for the i have problems part...I rendered all teh fat i could to make lard for fried chicken and then i processed all the skin and made pork rinds with it soooo good sooooo dirty.... I really used everything form teh leg i could I will make a pea soup with the bone...vegans should be proud of me using everything, hahahahaha.

Ok so I am going to smoke the leg using a mix of cherry and apple which i think will give it a nice taste i might use sugar maple only i have not decided yet...any thoughts...
still looking for a mop/glaze...any suggestions...maybe a apple juice/honey/vinegar concoction, or maple syrup/Dijon/apple juice, or apricot preserve and apple juice...
I did not inject the leg as it is sitting in brine for 8 days, I do not want to pull it out of the brine your thoughts...
also I am seeing reading that I should remove teh leg 24 hours before I smoke rnise it in fresh water and let it dry...your thoughts...maybe i wil inject it with some brine and then let it sit for 24 hours to dry...
any help will be welcome...
tanks
fatty
 
found these...
Old Fashioned Glaze:
Combine 2 cups (500 mL) brown sugar with 2 Tbsp (25 mL) all-purpose flour, 2 Tbsp (25 mL) corn syrup, 2 tsp (10 mL) dry mustard, and 3 Tbsp (45 mL) white wine vinegar; mix well.
Canadian Maple Glaze:
Combine ¼ cup (50 mL) Dijon, mustard with ¼ cup (50 mL) maple syrup and ½ tsp (2mL) dried thyme; mix well.
Maple-Ginger Glaze for Ham:
Combine 1/4 cup (125mL) maple syrup, 2 tbsp (25 mL) all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp (15 mL) each Dijon mustard and lemon juice and a dash of powdered ginger.
Honey-Orange Glaze for Ham:
Mix 1/2 cup (125 mL) each honey or corn syrup and orange juice with 1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar.
Pineapple-Apricot Glaze for Ham:
Combine 1/2 cup (125mL) each apricot nectar and pineapple juice with 1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar.
Red Currant Glaze for Ham:
Stir 1/2 tsp (2 mL) powdered mustard and 1 to 3 tbsp (15 to 50 mL) horseradish into 1 cup (250 mL) red currant jelly.

Preparation time. 15 minutes
Cooking time. 10 minutes Ingredients
1/2 cup apricot preserves
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/8 teaspoon sage flakes
1/16 teaspoon ground cloves


Ingredients
3 cups brown sugar
3/4 cup prepared yellow ballpark mustard
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/3 cup Southern Comfort
1 teaspoon salt


what you all think...
 
10 days may not be long enough in the brine to fully cure it to the center. The temp should be kept around 36*F. It will not cure at 32 or below and there is a risk of spoilage above 40.
 
Crazy Harry said:
10 days may not be long enough in the brine to fully cure it to the center. The temp should be kept around 36*F. It will not cure at 32 or below and there is a risk of spoilage above 40.
Click to expand...

I agree, if you don't inject along the bone, ten days may not be long enough to fully cure the leg.
 
^^^+1 If you don't inject you can expect a uneven saturation of the brine within the the meat also. At a minimum inject around the bone. Maybe passed that point now.
 
I think the rule is 1 day per 1/2 inch (or was it inch..) of thickness. 8 days won't be anywhere near enough. A 10kg leg sounds like it'll be massive, I'd brine for at least a couple of weeks (and up to a month) especially if you're not injecting
 
Ok I injected brine today all around the bone and the meat.
I am sure it will be fine, what is funny is that my polish sausage maker, who makes some of the best smoked meat, turkeys and hams, and the best, I mean the best kielbasa! Told me brine for a few days and it will be fine no injection not necessary... I found that weird but i do trust him... either way if it is not exactly perfect I am ok with that, this is a first time experiment. I am sure the smoke will make it tasty; if it is a hybrid pulled pork/ham it will still be eaten...
I would say that i trimmed maybe a kilo and a half off the leg when prepping it so about 18-17 pounds of meat and bone are left...
I thank you for all your help and suggestions keep them coming...
What about the rinse, do you think a fresh water bath and rinse for a few hours before the smoke is a good idea?
wood?
I am looking at smoking this at 225-240 for 10 hours...
Thanks everyone!
 
If the cure isn't perfect you can run into spoilage problems. Whether you should soak depends on the percentage of salt in the cure. Bacon should be around 3% salt so for a brine you'll be looking at 30g of salt per 1000ml of water (I'm assuming that ham will be around the same salt content wise, I could be a little off) If you used higher than that the you'll probably want to soak it. Be patient with that cure
 
Hi yeti Dave, the brine recipe that was given to me by sausage maker friend is 2 gallons water, 12 oz salt, 8 oz sugar 8 oz cure.
How do you know if the meat is spoiling, right now it smells and looks great!
Thanks!
fatty
 
I meant if the final cure hasn't been thorough it may spoil quickly once cooked (same as uncured pork) so you wouldn't be able to keep it for more than a few days without freezing. Whilst it's curing it's very unlikely to spoil though

The cure there's about 3.7% salt, but the sugar should offset it. Once you remove it from the cure give it a rinse and try a couple of slices to see how it tastes, bearing in mind that the outside slice will be saltier. I think you'll be alright without soaking it though. Just give it a few days in the fridge once you've taken it out of the cure to dry off and develop a pellicle. It'll also help the cure to equalize through the meat
 
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