Cooking Xmas Ham

Warper

Hi

I have a big lump of Christmas ham in the freezer since Xmas - frozen.

I presume this would be ok to eat now after defrosting of course - what is the best way of cooking it and for how long does it take (est.)

Thanks

Dizzyblonde

I bake it in the oven - give it 20 minutes per pound weight and 20 minutes extra, at 180 degrees. Double line the roasting tin with enough tinfoil to cover the ham loosely.
You know it's cooked when the rind lifts off easily. After removing the rind you can sprinkle with breadcrumbs and put back in the oven for 20 minutes if you want.
Before baking it I would soak it in cold water for a couple of hours - and after it's cooked if you have lots left over it freezes very well in slices. There's no problem with freezing meat after it's cooked when it's been frozen while raw.

olaola

We usually boil it at home (keeps it moist) which can be done the day before you're going to bake it. Then cut off the outer rind - leaving a good bit of fat behind. Score it and spread mustard over the fat. Then stick dark brown sugar to it and stud in whole cloves. Cook in a med oven for about 30 mins.

Warper

TBH i boiled it for approx 2.5 hrs - changing the water twice and that was all i done and it didnt come out like i could remember eating it when my mother made it - so should i have put it in the over for a while after boiling it or is it ok to just boil it - TBH i thought the reason it tasted dodgy was the fact it was in the freezer since Xmas - or has this nothing got to do with it?

Dizzyblonde

I don't think freezing it since Christmas was the problem - not putting it in the oven for a while at the end was. Don't dump the leftovers though, if you cut it into thick slices they're very tasty fried

noby

When I saw the thread title I thought someone was being very organised!

Start boiling the sprouts around the end of November...

hussey

olaola wrote: »

We usually boil it at home (keeps it moist) which can be done the day before you're going to bake it. Then cut off the outer rind - leaving a good bit of fat behind. Score it and spread mustard over the fat. Then stick dark brown sugar to it and stud in whole cloves. Cook in a med oven for about 30 mins.

This is exactly what I was gonna suggest, but I use honey ... delish!!

Awayindahils

olaola wrote: »

We usually boil it at home (keeps it moist) which can be done the day before you're going to bake it. Then cut off the outer rind - leaving a good bit of fat behind. Score it and spread mustard over the fat. Then stick dark brown sugar to it and stud in whole cloves. Cook in a med oven for about 30 mins.

You can also subsitute the sugar for honey. Mix honey and mustard together, I think i use a 2:1 honey to mustard ratio and spread it all over the ham. You only need a few cloves.

7 months is too long to keep fat meat like ham/pork in the freezer. 3 months absolute max.