On Sat 21 Jan 2006 06:37:51p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it zxcvbob?

Nancy Young wrote:
"Wayne Boatwright" wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com wrote


On Sat 21 Jan 2006 06:03:02p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nancy
Young?


"Bill" wrote


I have some experience cooking Country Ham! I like to take "center
slices" vacuum packed from the grocery store and just pop them into
the microwave for two to three minutes. They make a perfect
accompanyment to fried eggs, bisquits and grits. Also, you can make
"red eye" gravy by stirring a little coffee into the drippings off
the ham in a frying pan.

I get those once in a while, I like that for dinner, I know
it's not gore-met but hey, dinner's on the table in a flash.
Anyway, last time this ham slice thing came up, I mentioned
the water content and this surprised someone, so I doublechecked at
the store. Yup, ham slice, a good 25% water by weight.


Are you sure that was *country* ham, Nancy? It's rarely injected with
anything. In fact, it's usually on the dry side unless it's soaked
before cooking.


Oh, No! I know he said that, I assumed he was talking
about the same type of product I was, I haven't been playing
along in the ham discussion ... I have read different explanations
what that is, I wouldn't presume to say for sure.

In english, I don't know for sure what a country ham is because
I've seen different descriptions. I was only talking about the ham
slices you buy vacuum packed.

nancy



"Country ham" is usually dry-cured (sometimes a little curing solution
is injected around the bone as insurance against spoilage.) It must
lose at least 11% (I think that's the right percentage) of its green
weight during curing and aging. So it has *less* water in it than it
started out with, unlike Nancy's ham slice that was 25% added water.

Yep, I think your percentage is correct.


--
Wayne Boatwright Õ¿Õ¬
________________________________________

Okay, okay, I take it back! UnScrew you!

"Wayne Boatwright" wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com wrote

Most supermarkets carry the type you bought, usually sugar-cured and
somewhat smoked. There are several different types that fit the category
of country hams, but they are usually cured using salt and are almost
always smoked. IMHO, they are almost inedible unless they are soaked
before cooking, but they are really delicious if prepared properly. I
have actually seen those for sale in a couple of Walmarts, but rarely if
ever in a supermarket. Of course, the availability of country ham in
stores is fairly dependent on where you live. In the Southern US you can
find them in far more places. I like both types, and they each have a
place on the table. I like to grill the sugar-cured ham slices, then
smear with a little mustard, sprinkle with brown sugar, and return to the
grill for a minutes or two.

That's how I like to make them, except in a pan on the stove, usually.

But the kind I mentioned, that's the only type I've seen sold in a
supermarket,
as far as vacuum packed. Just your everyday ham slice thing. I get the
thick cut when I see it. Even with the high water percentage, it's still a
bargain, again I know it's not fancy food or anything. I know, not the
holy grail of ham! (smile)

Matter of fact, putting it on my shopping list right now.

nancy

On Sat 21 Jan 2006 07:04:59p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nancy
Young?


"Wayne Boatwright" wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com wrote

Most supermarkets carry the type you bought, usually sugar-cured and
somewhat smoked. There are several different types that fit the
category of country hams, but they are usually cured using salt and are
almost always smoked. IMHO, they are almost inedible unless they are
soaked before cooking, but they are really delicious if prepared
properly. I have actually seen those for sale in a couple of Walmarts,
but rarely if ever in a supermarket. Of course, the availability of
country ham in stores is fairly dependent on where you live. In the
Southern US you can find them in far more places. I like both types,
and they each have a place on the table. I like to grill the
sugar-cured ham slices, then smear with a little mustard, sprinkle with
brown sugar, and return to the grill for a minutes or two.

That's how I like to make them, except in a pan on the stove, usually.

But the kind I mentioned, that's the only type I've seen sold in a
supermarket,
as far as vacuum packed. Just your everyday ham slice thing. I get the
thick cut when I see it. Even with the high water percentage, it's
still a bargain, again I know it's not fancy food or anything. I know,
not the holy grail of ham! (smile)

Matter of fact, putting it on my shopping list right now.

It doesn't have to fancy to taste good. :-) Some of my favorite foods are
I guess what you'd call comfort foods, or just old-fashioned home cooking.


--
Wayne Boatwright Õ¿Õ¬
________________________________________

Okay, okay, I take it back! UnScrew you!

On 22 Jan 2006 02:19:48 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com wrote:

On Sat 21 Jan 2006 05:48:45p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Bill?

On 19 Jan 2006 16:52:50 -0800, wrote:

Why are we cooking country ham? We eat Prosciutto. (Italy cured ham)
without cooking why cook U.S. Cured ham?

I am thinking that on my next visit to Billy's Pork Store in eastern NC
that I am going to ask him to:

1. cut me a two inch slab of the center cut

2. clean up the outside

3. debone the slab

4. adjust his slicer to shave

5. slice down the center cut two inch slab

6. eat it COLD

Will it kill me?

Thanks

Doug Clark

Hey Doug!
I have some experience cooking Country Ham! I like to take "center
slices" vacuum packed from the grocery store and just pop them into
the microwave for two to three minutes. They make a perfect
accompanyment to fried eggs, bisquits and grits. Also, you can make
"red eye" gravy by stirring a little coffee into the drippings off the
ham in a frying pan.

If you want to remove the saltiness, just get some water boiling in a
frying pan and through the ham slice in for a "bath". It will soak
that salt right out in 20 seconds then you can heat it as I said
before in the microwave to get it ready to serve.

I can't imagine zapping a slice of country in the MW, whether it's center
cut and vacuum packed or not. My family (Mississippi roots where country
ham abounds) always soaked slices, or even the whole ham, overnight in
milk, then dried thoroughly before frying or baking. It not only reduces
the saltiness but also helps to rehydrate the meat.

oh yes Wayne! You would be surprised as I was the first time I tried
it! When you open a vacuum package of country ham the meat feels like
it is as moist as bacon when you open a vacuum package of bacon. Just
try this, take a paper plate, put a paper towel on the plate, lay a
center slice of country ham on the paper towel, lay another paper
towel on top of the ham slice and pop it into the microwave for say
two minutes. You will hear it start sizzling about a minute into the
cooking.

When I was a kid I would go to my grandfather's brother's farm in
rural North Carolina and get country hams he had dry cured. My Dad
even cured some at home one time. He got three fresh hams from the
local slaughter house, lined an old foot locker with newspaper, poured
salt in the bottom about three inches deep, (this is the part I don't
remember too clearly-I think he rubbed borax and black pepper all over
the fresh hams) then he layed them down on the thick bed of salt, then
he just poured salt into that foot locker to cover those hams up with
salt. They were encased in salt. He left them like this for maybe a
week of so letting the salt absorb into the meat. Then he took them
out and rubbed all the exterior salt off of them and put them in cloth
sacks and hung them up to age for a while.

My great uncle must have been pretty good at curing country hams
because there were several Doctor's who would drive out to his farm
and purchase hams he had cured from him!

Bill

On Sat, 21 Jan 2006, Nancy Young wrote:


Oh, No! I know he said that, I assumed he was talking
about the same type of product I was, I haven't been playing
along in the ham discussion ... I have read different explanations
what that is, I wouldn't presume to say for sure.

In english, I don't know for sure what a country ham is because
I've seen different descriptions. I was only talking about the ham
slices you buy vacuum packed.

nancy


Tee hee hee. You, me, and most of the country.

"Country ham" and "City ham" are marketing terms somebody made up along
the way.

"Country ham", for commercial purposes, describes a fully preserved
smoked ham. It requires no refrigeration. It is very salty and very dry.
It needs to be soaked in order to rehydrate before it is prepared.

The term "country ham" refers to the kind of hams people preserved at home
in a smoke house before the days of refrigeration.

Back in "those days", pork was preserved by smoking or by curing. Curing
always involved salt, but some people had different flavorings that they
added to make it unique to them. Curing didn't involve any smoking.

Curing is more difficult and more tricky (it is easier to "lose" meat), so
most commercial hams today are smoked. I haven't seen a cured ham since I
was a kid. Things like bacon, salt pork, fat back, and streak of lean
are still cured. The rest of the hog, is generally, sold fresh today.

When the hogs are killed and the hams are "fresh" they are called "green".
Green hams can be found in the supermarket.

"City hams" cover a variety of hams, most are boneless, closely trimmed of
fat, and devoid of rind - such as the kind you can buy in a loaf shape or
in a can. Also included are the bone-in, partially cured/smoked hams.
Technically, "they" call anything that is not fully smoked "city hams".

Elaine, too