When selecting a country ham the first step is to make sure it is in fact a country ham. There are lots of kinds of ham on the market and a lot of things that people try to pass off as ham. A country ham is usually sold in a cloth bag, hanging. To follow this process you do not want to use what is called a City Ham.
When you open up your country ham you might not like what you find. A country ham looks dried up and can be caked in mold. Sitting around, curing for what might be months causes the mold. Don’t worry, as long as the mold is on the outside only the ham is fine. Scrap off the mold and you’re in business.
The first step to prepare a country ham is to get the excess salt out. Country hams are salt preserved, meaning that they have been dried in salt. This makes them too salty for most anyone. To get the salt out you need to soak the ham. Consider this a reverse brining. By soaking the salted ham in water you will draw the salt from the meat but also add moisture.
Some people say you need to soak your country ham for about 6 to 12 hours. If you have a small ham, around 4 to 5 pounds this might be okay, but I personally like to soak my ham for a long time, about 2 to 3 days. You want the ham to stay cold while soaking but not as cold as your refrigerator. A cooler works great for this because it gives you the space your need but also keeps the temperature in a more controlled range. Keep the temperature around 40 degrees F. and your ham will be perfect. The temperature isn't too important but you want it low to keep any bacteria from growing.
As the soaking pulls the salt from the ham you will want to change the water about every 12 hours. This gets the salt out of the way and allows more to come out. When you change the water you should also give the ham a quick rinse to get any salt off the surface. The soaking will rehydrate the ham and make it better to eat.
Once you have soaked your country ham you can now cook it. While the ham is ready to eat already the soaking process may have exposed the ham to bacteria so cooking it at this point is important. You will want to cook your ham at a low temperature low enough to get the internal temperature up to 160 degrees F. While roasting it in the oven is fine the added flavor you get from a smoker or grill makes a much better ham.
If you put your ham on a grill you will want to cook it indirectly at a low temperature. I would suggest putting a pan of water under the ham to catch any drippings, but more importantly to keep the cooking environment moist. You should also baste your ham periodically to prevent it from drying out. A good baste for a country ham should be sweet and acidic. Dr. Pepper works great for hams, honest. At a low grilling temperature of about 300 degrees F. you should have your ham finished in about 3 to 4 hours. Watch carefully to avoid burning. A country ham can be forgiving but letting it burn up on the grill is unforgivable.
If you are going to smoke your country ham, keep the smoke levels low. A country ham typically already has a smoky flavor to it. Adding too much smoke can make it bitter. Baste frequently and keep the temperature around 250 degrees F. for 5 to 6 hours. Of course you can go longer but the benefit of smoking declines over time.
You might have noticed that this process takes time. Plan on starting out with your country ham 3 days before you need it. Yes, it is something of a project but well worth the effort and the actual time spent on it is not very much. You’ll have plenty of time to prepare other items for your Holiday feast.
