COOK SMOKED HAM RECIPES

Steps:

• Prepare the brine. Blend half the water (12 cups), kosher salt, sugar, pink salt, peppercorns, bay leaves, and mustard seeds together in a large stockpot. Bring to a gentle boil and stir until the salt and sugar have dissolved. Remove from heat and let it cool. Stir in the remaining 12 cups of cold water. You can add some ice to speed up the cooling process. The brine needs to be completely cool before adding the meat.
• Prepare the meat. While the brine is cooling, prepare the ham. Use a sharp boning knife to remove the shank and femur. The shank has more connective tissue and takes almost twice as long to break down as the rest of the meat. Reserve it for another cooking application. Removing the femur is optional. Keep in mind that the meat cooks quicker, more evenly, and is easier to slice when boneless. Trim any tough outer silverskin but keep the fat on. Don’t cut away too much tissue or the muscles won’t stay intact. Use kitchen twine to truss the ham into an even, round piece of meat if desired.
• Submerge the hog ham or hams in the brine and refrigerate for 3-5 days, or about 8-12 hours for every pound.
• Prepare your smoker according to manufacturer’s instructions using your choice of wood: hickory, apple, or cherry. Set the temperature to about 180 degrees.
• Remove the meat from the brine and rinse very well with cold water. Pat dry with paper towels and set it on the top rack of the smoker if possible. Have a small bowl or tray of foil filled with water sitting on the bottom rack directly underneath to release steam.
• While the ham is smoking, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, stir the mustard, vinegar, honey, and pepper together until smooth.
• About 2 hours into the smoking process, and every hour after, lightly baste the ham with the glaze. Smoke the ham until it reaches 160 degrees internally in the thickest part of the meat. If smoking a venison ham, smoke to 150 degrees. If you find that the meat begins to stall, you might need to increase the heat of the smoker to 200 degrees. The total cook time will be anywhere between 8-12 hours, depending on the size of the ham.
• Serve warm or let it cool to room temperature and chill in the refrigerator for 24 hours before eating.
• *Brine the shanks with the rest of the hind quarter and add to the smoker for a few hours. It will absorb plenty of wood-smoked flavor and can then be transferred to a crockpot to finish tenderizing with onions, beans, and greens for a smoked hock stew.

Steps:

• When you buy a spiral ham that is fully cook, it can be eaten cold or hot, but I like it baked a little anyway! To serve hot: Preheat oven to 325. Remove all packaging material from ham. Place ham into pan at least 1" deep.
• Add at least 1/2 cup water. It won't hurt to add a cup. Your preference! Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
• Heat approximately 6 minutes per pound or to an internal temperature of 120 F. Do not overcook or your ham will dry out.
• GLAZE: I think a glaze is important because it adds that little extra bit of zip. This one is my own creation, so the measurements are iffy! Start with a cup or so brown sugar. Add a big squirt of mustard (about 3 Tbsp). Add a little bit of that can of crushed pineapple (about 1/3 cup). Don't make it watery because you want it to stick to the ham. Another glaze option is 1 cup brown sugar, 3 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 cup honey and 1 tsp cinnamon. OR, you could use the pineapple rounds and use toothpicks to stick the toothpick to the ham. Use a little of the juice with the brown sugar mixture. It's pretty that way, but it will be good whatever you do.
• Cook on the stovetop over medium heat, stirring until it thickens, for about 10 minutes.
• With 15 minutes left, remove the ham from the oven. Take your foil off and brush the glaze over the ham. Let it kind of get crusty.
• Put the ham back in the oven and let cook for remaining 15 minutes.
• I think the main thing about the ham is the time you cook it. Remember for a pre-cooked ham, only 6 minutes for every pound! And LOW heat!
• CARVING INSTRUCTIONS: For a half ham, lay ham on a cutting board or flat surface. Using a small knife, cut the front spiral section away from the bone. Proceed with remaining slices!