Ham For The Holidays

One of the best parts of Christmas is the eating. This is especially true of Christmas Day when sumptuous feasts are served. usually there is turkey or crown rib that's the star. In German and most American households it's a large ham. It is the perfect meat to have because it's rich and delicious. it;s also wonderful for later eating.

Ham is a relatively easy meat to serve. It's already smoked and cured , doesn't require stuffing like poultry or special attention like some beef cuts.There are three kinds however, city country and . City ham is the one most shoppers buy. These have been soaked in brine and then either boiled or smoked. Country cured hams come from pigs that have been fed a steady diet of fruits and nuts. The meat is more flavorful. The hams are then smoked over fragrant hardwoods and cured cold for about sixty days. They are dryer than the city cured ones. Fresh hams are hard to find in any bog city grocery store. They are available in the e country where there are pig farms.Ham is relatively easy to cook. It does take a while For every pound of cured ham, it's usually fifteen to eighteen minutes in a 325 F. degree oven. A ten pound ham will take a good two and half hours to bake.up Country ham takes longer , with twenty to twenty five minutes a pound. Remember to baste your ham within the last hour to twenty minutes of cooking other wise the taste will be super salty. Another must is coating the ham within th e last hour too. You can use sugar, ginger ale , pineapple juice or honey.Don't worry if you have late arriving guests. Ham is also good served cold and thickly sliced in sandwiches.

There;s nothing like a ham for a Christmas Day dinner. It's the perfect meat to serve on a cold winter's day. It's also festive and celebratory A plate of ham is the perfect way to feast on this important Holiday.