[USA] My First Ham

two_MN_kids
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[USA] My First Ham

Post by two_MN_kids » Thu Mar 22, 2012 21:35

Since this time last year I have wanted to make my own ham. I have found a fresh picnic ham at a local grocery, and at a great price. I have thrice read Chuckwagon`s notes for "Boiled Ham" and still am somewhat anxious about this project.

I now have so many questions! I have poached several cured pork loins but never tried to poach/smoke anything as large as a ham, and I am developing a case of nerves.

I have tried various search parameters in this forum, but haven`t really found that much information for a beginners project.

Is a picnic better suited as a boiled ham, or Okay to hang it and smoke it? The picnic weighs just under 12# and still has the skin on most of it. I plan on deboning it. I have watched a few YouTube video`s about removing the bones, but they dealt with the hind leg. I think the picnic has only one bone. Do I remove the skin also? Should I cure the skin separately and rewrap it onto the ham before smoking, or just toss it?

I am planning on using Chuckwagon`s recipe for the cure located here: http://www.wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.php?t=4830

No additional flavors added this time around (and assuming that I will try this again).

Do I cure the ham before I roll and tie it? I was considering drying it overnight after the proper cure time, allowing the pellicle to from, and then rolling and tying it; thinking that would bond the muscle sections better. I already have the hooks and ham bags just waiting for a project.

Thanks in advance for your wisdom and spirited guidance.

Jim~I have so much to learn!
Last edited by two_MN_kids on Wed Apr 25, 2012 01:59, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Chuckwagon » Fri Mar 23, 2012 00:09

Hi Jim, Don`t be nervous! It`s a snap. Okay, right off the bat, it is important to realize that we never boil a "boiled" ham. "Boiled Ham" is by far the most common type ham worldwide, but perhaps we should call it "brine-cured ham". Water boils at 212° (100° C.). Preparatory cooking in heated water (170°F. / 77°C.) is required to raise the internal temperature to safely cook the ham at 150°F. (66°C.).
If you`ve never made your own home-cured ham, you have a treat coming believe me. For convenience, I`ve re-posted the recipe here. My advice for beginners is to choose a ham (rear leg) or picnic (front leg) that isn`t too large. A twelve-pounder is plenty. Later on, you`ll want to make some larger hams for family functions etc., but for now... learn and gain experience while you enjoy a smaller one that you can easily handle.

Make Your Own "Boiled" Cured Ham
"Hobble Creek Hog Leg"

"Boiled Ham" is by far, the most common type of ham made worldwide. But "boiled ham" is never boiled. Preparatory cooking in heated water has undoubtedly given this ham its name. Please note that a water temperature of only 170°F. (77°C.) is required to raise the IMT (internal meat temperature) to safely cook the ham by reaching 150°F.(66°C.). (Remember water boils at 212° (100° C.).

Whenever referring to any meat, the term "fresh" simply means not cured. Ask your butcher for a "fresh ham" (uncured rear leg) or "fresh picnic" (uncured front leg). A "fresh" ham or picnic must be either fully cooked (with leftovers being refrigerated and consumed within a few days), or fully cured using sodium nitrite (Cure #1) and salt. Whenever it is cooked, "fresh ham" becomes roasted pork - perfect for a weekend barbeque! However, fresh hams cured with sodium nitrite and brined in saltwater "pickle", produces an entirely different taste and texture we know as "cured ham". For your first project, you may wish to use a smaller "picnic" of only about 12 or 13 pounds. Leave the bone in place and leave the skin on. Both these items help the meat retain moisture. Be sure to keep the meat refrigerated until you are ready to inject it and place it into the brine.

We must consider two separate qualities in the brine we are about to make. First, the amount of salinity and second, the strength of the nitrite "take up" in parts per million. Begin by making a brine-curing solution by mixing a prescribed amount of salt with water, then by adding the correct amount of curing agent. How much brine-cure should you make? There`s a simple ol` timer`s adage that reads, "The amount (volume) of brine should equal about forty or fifty percent of the weight of the meat being cured". In other words, you don`t need a barrel-full of brining cure to baptize one duck! So simply use enough brine to equal one and a half times the duck`s weight. It might be wise to get a "ballpark" figure by placing the ham into the receptacle you plan to use for brining and cover it with cold water with some to spare. Remove the ham, pat it dry, and place it back into the refrigerator. Now measure the water remaining in the receptacle and weigh it.

How strong must the curing capability be? Note that for immersion, pumped, or massaged products, the legal maximum in-going nitrite limit is 200 part per million. This is achieved when 4.2 ounces of Cure #1 is added to one gallon of water. In other words, in 8.33 pounds of water (1 gallon), 120 grams (or 4.2 ounces) of Cure #1 must be added to achieve 200 parts per million. This is much more cure than is added to comminuted sausage simply because after the sodium nitrite has worked its magic, the remaining brine is poured down the drain. This is not done in comminuted sausage where the nitrite remains in the sausage until it has been completely reduced to nitric oxide. Note the volume amount in 4.2 ounces is 20 teaspoons or a little more than 6 tablespoonsful. Needless to say, if a person is making 5 gallons of curing pickle (brine), for a large amount of meat (up to 100 pounds of... say, rounds for dried beef), one needs to add a whopping 595 grams (21 ounces), yes... that`s 1.3 pounds of Cure #1. The nitrite pickup rate in this formula is 150 ppm. Just right! It is actually a weak brine of only 16° SAL.

What about sweetener? Powdered dextrose is only 70% as sweet as sugar but it forces itself into meat cells more readily. If you don`t have it on hand, dissolve regular sugar in the brine. Many people say that it "counteracts" the harshness of salt, but I disagree. I believe it simply "balances" flavors.

Below is a fundamental curing brine for 12-15 pounds of either ham or picnics. Please try it simply as written, using a minimum of sweetener, before adding flavorings or seasonings. The taste of properly cured ham is exquisite. Later, you may wish to experiment with spices as you gain experience. The two most common mistakes by beginners are over-spicing and overcooking good ham.

"Hobble Creek Hog Leg"
Brining Cure For 12-15 lbs. Of "Boiled Ham"

2-1/2 quarts ice water (32°F.)
1/2 lb. kosher salt
2/3 cup powdered dextrose
1/3 cup Cure #1 (also called Prague Powder #1, Instacure #1 or "pink salt" #1)

Many people have attempted to cure a ham by simply soaking it in salt brine before it spoils. The truth is that in using brine soaking only, the cure will not penetrate the innermost flesh, bone, and marrow of the leg, by the time it begins to spoil. - the very reason we must render a little assistance with a brining needle and give the piggy a shot in several places. You may find a large hypodermic called a "brining needle" in your kitchen supply store.

First, use a scale and weigh out enough brine to equal ten percent of the ham`s total weight. (Weigh the ham and move the decimal one place to the left to determine the correct weight of the brine). Simply dissolve the correct amount of nitrite cure (Cure #1) into the saltwater brining solution and using a butcher`s multiple-orifice hypodermic, inject brining-cure deeply into numerous places in the flesh give the piggy a series of small volume injections in several places, especially along bone. Slowly disperse liquid through the needle as you withdraw it. What could be easier?

Next, the ham is submerged in the remaining brine, (called a "pickle"), for a specific amount of time, (usually about a week), depending upon the weight of the meat. This step removes the threat of some notoriously dreadful bugs including such micro-organisms as clostridium botulinum, campylobacter jejuni, escherichia coli O157:H7, listeria, cyclospora cayetanensis, staphylococcus aureus, clostridium perfringens, and three pathogens in particular responsible for 1,500 deaths annually - salmonella, listeria monocytogenes, and toxoplasma. In 5 or 6 days, the ham will be ready to cook. DO NOT soak the ham in fresh water before cooking it. Simply rinse it off, place it in fresh water, and begin the cooking process.

In a suitable cooking utensil, heat enough water to cover the ham and attach a cooking thermometer. When the temperature reaches 170°F (66°C.), remove the ham from the cold water and very carefully lower it into the heated water. Allow enough heat to bring the temperature of the water back up to 170°F and maintain this temperature until the IMT (internal meat temperature) registers 150°F in several hours.

This "preparatory" cooking is part of the curing process, eliminating cryptosporidium paryum and trichinella spiralis, and may take some time. Be patient and don`t try to rush the cooking. Use a probe type thermometer with a timing alarm to alert you when the meat has cooked. Note that as the temperature surpasses 138°F. (59°C.), any possibly existing trichinella spiralis are destroyed. At 150°F. (66°C.), the ham becomes fully cooked and any threat of "crypto" is removed. Next, cool the ham with cold running water and refrigerate it or pat it dry and hang it up for an hour to develop a pellicle for smoking.

Lots of people mistakenly believe that smoking a ham cures it. Smoking meat absolutely does NOT cure it. Most people would be astonished if they realized how easy it is to actually re-introduce staphyloccous aureus at this point, having destroyed any trace of it previously by the cooking-curing step. Unfortunately, when re-introduced, staph may develop toxins which are not destroyed by further cooking! Ouch! So, if you smoke the ham, please get it into a refrigerator as soon afterward as possible until you reheat it for serving. Use plastic gloves to handle it, and make sure the shelves in your smoker are clean too, or simply hang it while smoking. To smoke the ham, it must be dry to the touch. Use your smokehouse to maintain the ham`s IMT at 140°F. (the upper edge of the bacterial "danger zone"), then introduce a medium heavy-smoke for two hours. Many folks dry the ham in a 325°F. kitchen-oven a few minutes to develop the pellicle and maintain the IMT of 140°F, before placing it into a smoke house where a smoke-machine such as A-maze-n Smoker may be used. The heat is maintained at 140°F to keep the meat out of the notorious bacterial "danger zone". Finally, refrigerating the ham overnight firms the meat before slicing it. If reheating the ham for dinner, please note that the FSIS suggests using a minimum 325°F. oven and serving it when the IMT reaches 160°F. For a moister ham, some folks even re-introduce it into boiling water before serving it. Of course microwaves or countertop appliances may be used as well. This ham is actually best having rested a couple of days. Be sure to wrap the ham tightly in butcher paper and keep it refrigerated. As this is a fully-cooked and cured product, it is perfectly safe to slice cold for sandwiches.

A Few Notes About Injection:

Some folks prefer not to inject the flesh with a perforated brining needle. Instead, the leg`s main artery (if intact), may be used as "nature`s irrigation system" to distribute brine to all parts of the meat. In this case, use a large, single-orifice needle to inject the arteryl Don`t use a vein... its like me - just won`t work! How do you tell the difference? An artery is pliable. A vein is hardened, smaller, and darker.

Best Wishes,
Chuckwagon
Last edited by Chuckwagon on Sat Apr 07, 2012 09:23, edited 1 time in total.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by two_MN_kids » Fri Mar 23, 2012 01:57

Thanks for the reply, Chuckwagon.

Prosciutto never actually entered into the equation. I was only pondering whether to poach the ham or hot smoke a boneless ham, rolled and tied in a bag.

I think for simplicities sake I will poach it. As I will be leaving the skin in place, should I concentrate the brine around the bone and under the skin? It seems the skin would be a barrier to absorption.

Jim~I have so much to learn!
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Post by Chuckwagon » Fri Mar 23, 2012 02:04

The skin is definitely a barrier, thus the need for soaking. It should be just fine provided you allow enough time for thorough brining absorption.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it probably needs more time on the grill! :D
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Post by Dave Zac » Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:20

I have made a 'combo' smoked and boiled ham before. Jim may be interested in that approach too if a smokey ham flavor is desired.

I think somewhere Chickwagon has instructions.

You will brine cure the ham, hang in preheated 130* smoker to dry and then apply heavy smoke for several hours. I will then remove from smoker and finish in water bath because I'm too lazy to keep checking on the smoker for 12 hours or more. You can finish in 170* oven too if you want. Remember to let rest in the fridge for a day or so after you are complete.

You can then simply reheat when you are ready to eat or slice for sammies.

Good luck...if you start now you may be done for Easter supper :smile:

Dave

Oh yeah...don;t waste that stock. I've canned it in the past and use it when making beans, lentils, soups. Excellent
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Post by ssorllih » Fri Mar 23, 2012 21:26

The allowed amount of nitrite that goes into dry products is 625 ppm. For comparison, the amount of permitted nitrite in regular comminuted products (sausages) is 156 ppm, which is four times lower. The reason is that dry products take much longer to make and nitrite dissipates in meat rapidly, especially at higher than refrigerator temperatures. Some of the mix falls off the meat during rubbing in, some mix is washed away by the draining liquid.




Dry Cure Mix for 1 kg (1000 g) of Dry Meat Products



Salt

Sugar (optional)

Cure #1

Sodium Nitrite in PPM



5-6%

2% (20 g)

1% (10 g)

625


All you have to decide is how salty of a product you desire. Get the calculator and punch in some numbers.

Because I have determined that meat cured in a closed bag and turned several times each day and because I have learned that a cure with not more than 2% salt suits my taste and because I have plenty of refrigerator space: is it safe to include the salt in the cure#1 as a part of the total salt?
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Post by two_MN_kids » Sat Mar 24, 2012 12:57

As Cure#1 is 93% salt, and you wish to maintain the 2% overall salt limit, I don't understand how you could not include it as part of the total salt. :???:

You've piqued my curiosity also!

Jim~I have so much to learn.
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Post by Butterbean » Sat Mar 24, 2012 16:32

The salt in cure will effect it. Use a salinometer to test the salinity and then you will know for sure because not all salt has the same salinity.

Or, you can look at this chart on this board and decide if the amount of added salt in the cure is significant enough for you to worry about if you are not concerned about the differences in the salinity of the salt itself.

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/sausage-ma ... king-brine
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Post by ssorllih » Sat Mar 24, 2012 18:03

Butterbean,That doesn't work very well when I am preparing a dry mix to rub into the meat.
A cupful of common granulated table salt is much heavier than a cupful of Morton's® kosher salt or Diamond Crystal® kosher salt but a pound of any of them dissolved in a gallon of water will produce the same level of salinity.
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Post by two_MN_kids » Sun Mar 25, 2012 02:46

The picnic ham received it's injections and is soaking in the brine cure. A week or so from now I will be having ham for dinner.

Jim
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Post by Butterbean » Sun Mar 25, 2012 06:43

ssorllih wrote:Butterbean,That doesn't work very well when I am preparing a dry mix to rub into the meat.
A cupful of common granulated table salt is much heavier than a cupful of Morton's® kosher salt or Diamond Crystal® kosher salt but a pound of any of them dissolved in a gallon of water will produce the same level of salinity.
I agree about the differences in volume measurements but on a weight basis they are still not 100% equal. In the case of table salt, it is refined an purified yet it can have anywhere from 60 - 90% sodium chloride in it. In the case of things like sea salt, they vary as well since they have different impurities in them. Its these impurities which makes these salts have their unique taste and qualities. Does it make any difference in the grand scheme of things - maybe not. But if you test your brine you will know. As for dry rubs and such I think all you can is weigh it.
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Post by ssorllih » Sun Mar 25, 2012 18:03

How can this be without it being so stated on the label? What are the 10% to 40% impurities?
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Post by NorCal Kid » Sun Mar 25, 2012 18:23

Table salt usually contains chemicals additives like sodium silicoaluminate, calcium phosphate, or magnesium carbonate which help prevent clumping. Table salt is required by the FDA to contain at least 97.5 percent sodium chloride. The other 2.5 percent is trace minerals, chemicals from processing or anti-caking agents.
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Post by two_MN_kids » Sat Mar 31, 2012 13:42

I'm just wondering if I need to remove the ham from the brine and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours? Do the salt levels equalize even after being cooked? I plan on poaching the ham this weekend.

Jim
Last edited by two_MN_kids on Wed Apr 25, 2012 02:09, edited 2 times in total.
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Post by ssorllih » Sat Mar 31, 2012 17:10

Resting certainly won't hurt. After cooking the effects of the cure are pretty much finished and won't change significantly.







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