Ham: How to make at Home?

ern98

December 03, 2009 01:28

Early next year I am planning a pig hunt and hope to take several. I plan to expand my smoker in size and for the capability to both hot and cold smoke. So it occurs to me that I should probably look into the art of ham making. I already have decent sources for both sausage and bacon info, but nothing on hams. Am I correct that some forms of ham require much less refrigeration then other? Can someone point out to me a good source of info on the subject? Thanks....

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  nononsense

  December 03, 2009 01:51

  ern98,
  
  Good, general explanations:
  
  http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Fact_Sheets/Ham/index.asp#5
  
  http://www.common-place.org/vol-08/no-01/shields/
  
  http://www.foodarts.com/Foodarts/FA_Feature/0,,177,00.html
  
  This might be the longer of the basic methods but the results are worth it in my opinion:
  
  http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/cure_smoke/virginia_ham.pdf
  
  Best.

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  Mobuck

  December 03, 2009 02:48

  Home curing of hams is a good way to poison yourself. The thickness of the meat and the presence of the bone in the middle cause all sorts of complications in the curing process. Use caution and good luck.

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  allen griggs

  December 03, 2009 04:39

  I am inferring that you haven't been hog hunting before.
  
  My buddies and I shot dozens of 'em in the Oconee River Swamps in Georgia.
  Our favorite trick was to smoke a ham, or shoulder, in an electric smoker like this one:
  
  http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=netcon&id=0005862516114a&navCount=1&podId=00
  
  
  It took about 8 hours to cook/smoke a ham in this device. Damn it is good, smoked wild hog ham is the best meat I ever ate.
  We would start one on a Saturday morning, and invite some girls over, and sit around all day drinking beer, watching football and smelling that ham smoke.
  I don't know about making sure enough preserved, smoked ham, we never tried it.

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  He Dog

  December 03, 2009 06:19

  I grew up eating Boone County (Missouri) country ham. Mom and dad used a sugar cure (which had way too much salt for my taste) coating and spicing the hams and shoulders which were then wrapped in cloth then news paper, then a cloth bag and they were hung in a curing box in the detached garage. The box was well ventilated but sceened to keep flies off. Here is one simple recipe, not quite a Boone County country ham.
  
  http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1827,150160-242195,00.html

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  captkirk3@dslextreme.com

  December 03, 2009 08:29

  NONONSENSE, nailed it on the head...Read what he posted for all to read.

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