Alton Brown's City Ham Recipe #23438
From Food TV's "Good Eats". Cook's note: A city ham is basically any brined ham that is packed in a plastic bag, held in a refrigerated case and marked "ready to cook", "partially cooked" or "ready to serve". Better city hams are also labeled "ham in natural juices". Posted in response to a request.
by Sharlene~W
5½ hours | 30 min prep
SERVES 10 -15
- 7-8 lbs city-style brined ham, hock end
- 1/4 cup brown mustard
- 2 cups dark brown sugar
- 1 ounce bourbon (poured into a spritz bottle)
- 2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies
- Heat oven to 250 degrees F.
- Remove ham from bag, rinse and drain thoroughly.
- Place ham, cut side down, in a roasting pan.
- Using a small paring knife or clean utility knife set to the smallest blade setting, score the ham from bottom to top, spiraling clockwise as you cut.
- (If you are using a paring knife, be careful to only cut through the skin and first few layers of fat).
- Rotate the ham after each cut so that the scores are no more than 2-inches across.
- Once you have made it all the way around, move the knife to the other hand and repeat, spiraling counter clockwise.
- The aim is to create a diamond pattern all over the ham.
- (Don't worry too much about precision here.) Tent the ham with heave duty foil, insert a thermometer, and cook for 3 to 4 hours or until the internal temperature at the deepest part of the meat registers 130 degrees F.
- Remove and use tongs to pull away the diamonds of skin and any sheets of fat that come off with them.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Dab dry with paper towels, then brush on a liberal coat of mustard, using either a basting brush or a clean point brush (clean--as in never-touched paint).
- Sprinkle on brown sugar, packing loosely as you go until the ham is coated.
- Spritz this layer lightly with bourbon, then loosely pack on as much of the crushed cookies as you can. NOTE: A small empty spray bottle from the drug store is perfect.
- Insert the thermometer (don't use the old hole) and return to the oven (uncovered).
- Cook until interior temperature reaches 140 degrees F, approximately 1 hour.
- Let the roast rest for 1/2 hour before carving.
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5 stars