Ham economics

Kazonline

For those worried about the safety I have to say the blade roatates a lot slower than I'd expected, so I'm very pleased with it (I'd expected something along the lines of those elctric round saws, lol)
As for what else you can cut - this evening I slice my Aubergeines and courgettes on it - perfectly even slices, and so quick & easy.
Kaz x

BrokeBrunette

I buy several packets of pre-packed ham every week and am seriously thinking about buying large joints and slicing them instead. The problem is that I always seem to overcook gammon etc and then it falls to pieces when I'm trying to carve it. Does anyone have a good suggestion for finding out when it's cooked as I'm always worried about food poisoning from undercooked meat? I think I worry too much

FZwanab

I freeze ham water and use it whenever cooking cabbage or brussels sprouts, we always wanted more from Mum and couldn't understand friends hating these vegetables, but the secret was the ham water!!

allIcouldwishfor

I've been cooking little 750g joints every week for sarnies since last august as we were getting through so much pre-packed ham. I do have problems slicing it thinly by hand, but nobody in our house seems to mind. Anyone tried slicing it with a mandoline type thingie? It's just occurred to me I should perhaps try that.

I just put it in the slow cooker, no water or anything, although I might glaze it with marmalade or maple syrup if I'm feeling a bit saucy!!

Just before Christmas I went out to dinner with some friends, one of them told me her husband was cooking their ham for Christmas that night and was so chuffed about it that I didn't have the heart to tell her that it's a weekly event at our house!!!!

allIcouldwishfor

BrokeBrunette wrote:

I buy several packets of pre-packed ham every week and am seriously thinking about buying large joints and slicing them instead. The problem is that I always seem to overcook gammon etc and then it falls to pieces when I'm trying to carve it. Does anyone have a good suggestion for finding out when it's cooked as I'm always worried about food poisoning from undercooked meat? I think I worry too much

If you are doing it in a slow cooker, I do a small joint (under 1kg) for about 3 hours on high. Anything larger needs to be cooked for 4-5 hours. You could try a probe-type meat thermometer if you're cooking it in the oven?

furndire

FZwanab wrote:

I freeze ham water and use it whenever cooking cabbage or brussels sprouts, we always wanted more from Mum and couldn't understand friends hating these vegetables, but the secret was the ham water!!

That sounds interesting.

I've always bought large beef/lamb/pork joints from Makro, and portioned them up, but I've usually frozen them in gravy - just enough for 3 or 4 portions. Never thought until reading this thread to freeze slices dry.

thriftlady_2

Well, I bought a 10 lb smoked gammon joint from Waitrose last week. Not your cheapest :rolleyes: It was about £25, but it worked our at 57p per 100g so cheaper than my butcher, and way cheaper than decent packet ham.

I cooked it and sliced it. We've had one meal of cold ham and baked spuds, and I've parcelled up 12 lots of slices that will make sandwiches for us all. I've also got a bag of bits which will make another meal of some kind.

I've discovered that my butcher does a freezer offer on boneless gammon joints. If you buy 18 lbs at a time they cost £1.49 lb (33p per 100g), so when I've a bit more room in the freezer that's what I'll do.

waterlilyann

Having been inspired by this thread I've bought 1kg (2.2lb) ham from my local butcher for £5! However, I'm stuck as how to cook it and how long to cook it for. Do I need to soak it if I do it in the slow cooker? Is it better to boil it? Any help from you wise souls would help me SO much!

(I've also bought a Kenwood slicer from Lakeland this afternoon as I couldn't stand to wait a week for the one from Amazon !!)

npsmama

I bought a 13lb leg of pork and thought I would cooked it and slice it for ham.

Although it was nice it really was roast pork, not ham.

I boiled it and then roasted it.

I would have been impossible to slice with my food slicer as it was so flakey. It was very nice, but by no means ham as the texture, taste and look were completley different to even premium farmer's market ham.


Where did I go wrong?

I know this is cheeky but maybe could some of you who do this successfully give us detailed instructions as there seem to be a few of us here who want to do this...:o

thriftlady_2

When I boil a ham I soak it in water overnight to remove some of the salt. This isn't vital as hams aren't as salty as they once were.

Then I bring it to the boil and simmer for 30 mins per lb plus 30 mins for joints up to 5 lbs and for 20 mins per lb plus 20 mins for joints over 5 lbs. Make sure the water doesn't boil away. I haven't done it in the slow cooker, but I'm sure details on how to do this are around here somewhere.

If you want to bake your ham too and give it a nice glaze for eating hot, then take it out of the water 30 mins before the end of cooking time. Let it cool until you can peel the skin off. Score the fat in a diamond pattern, rub on a paste of mustard and honey/tracle/marmalade/brown sugar. Stud the diamonds with a clove. Bake for 30 mins at 180.