To Boldly Go Where I've Never Taken a Ham Before...Help, Questions!

Redhot

Redhot

is Blowin Smoke!
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So there's this little mom and pop grocery store down the street from us and they had whole uncured, unsmoked, unprocessed hams on sale for $1.49 a pound. Pretty much a pig leg minus the foot. We bought a 19.22 pound one to smoke for Christmas. Has anyone ever cooked a ham so...raw? Any rub, injection, smoking hints will be greatly appreciated!

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Gimme some ham!

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I don't know about curing a ham but I saw an interesting episode of the show "Food Feuds" on Food Network a few weeks ago that featured a couple of places that cooked roasted pork sandwiches, (Tony Luke's was one of the places), and they both used whole, uncured, uncooked hams as their pork cut which they they seasoned and roasted.

If you can't find any good information on curing and smoking, perhaps butterflying it, seasoning it, tieing it up and then roasting it would be an option.
 
Hey Redhot, looks like those meds are turning Guerry's hair a little gray, beard still white, though.

That is one sweet piece of pig and at 1.49 a pound sweet deal. You know who has all the answers cooking something like that! COWGIRL..........
 
I am no expert but I saw a thread a few weeks ago on similar thing. I think some suggestions were brining then smoking to like 160. There is also an injection recipe if you search the archive called Kiss of Death I think it is that is used with a lot of double smoked ham recipes. At any rate, I would like to do exactly what you are with a raw ham.

here's the link I found. http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33527&highlight=kiss+death+ham
 
Roasted fresh ham (uncured) is a basic building block for the Cuban sandwich as well as a basic part of Cuban cooking. So if you are looking for tips and methods, I'd google Cuban Roasted Pork (lechón asado).

I tried curing a half ham like that a few weeks ago with mixed results. The mistake I made was not injecting the cure. If you are looking to cure and smoke for Christmas, you may not have time.
 
You do not have time to turn that into a ham by Christmas, but, you have plenty of time to turn it into a nice pork roast. You could inject it to get more flavor deep into the roast. But, one of the best parts of a roasted pig is the hams, and they get little more than salt, pepper and some vinegar. Once the pork has cooked up, it can be chopped or pulled and seasoned once done.

Top turn it into a ham, you need to put it into a cure solution, not a brine, and it will need to sit for a couple of weeks at least. You will also need curing salts or something like Tenderquik.
 
I've never cured a fresh ham, so I have no advice. I bet if you inject some brine cure into it you can reduce the curing time, but honestly I would just cure it for a later time.
 
Wasn't really thinking of curing it when we bought it. But...could do that and cook it for New Years instead. But for uncured, any other ideas besides just deep injecting something and a rub, or maybe a simple brine? We've never brined anything before, just marinated.
 
Oh, you're not curing? OK, that's a lot easier then. The only reason brines and cures were mentioned was to make "ham" out of it!:becky: Go with the flavorings you like, rubs and such. Inject is optional, but if you are wanting the flavors down in the meat you are gonna have to inject. Cook it to 160 internal for slicing.
 
Red hot,where did you get the 1701 craft? I have all but that one.Will you sell?
Give me a jingle P.M.Let's talk,the Wife may be good this year.LOL
I'm a Star Trek Freak...
 
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I have been looking at some fresh hams at my local grocery. I have pondering how to cook it also.
 
be sure and show pics of what you do with it. I have access to fresh hams also.... I might give it a go.
 
Call your local butcher and tell him what ya got. Ask him how much he would charge to Needle inject his cure into the ham and put it in his tumbler. Then smoke it for Christmas. It will turn out AMAZING! I had him put mine in a net so I could hang it also.

Dan
 
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