Country Ham Hash Recipes

EASY HAM HASH

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine ham and onion. Shred potatoes and add to ham mixture. Stir in the butter, Parmesan cheese, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish and pepper. , Spoon into a greased 11x7-in. baking dish, pressing down firmly. Combine cheeses; sprinkle over top. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is melted.

COUNTRY HAM HASH RECIPE

Steps:

• Cook ham in a large skillet over medium, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer ham to a plate lined with paper towels.
• Return skillet to medium-high, and melt butter in skillet. Add potatoes, onion, and bell pepper, spreading in an even layer. Cover and cook until potatoes soften, about 8 minutes. Uncover and stir in garlic, pepper, and salt. Cook, uncovered, without stirring, 2 minutes. Stir and continue cooking in 2-minute intervals, stirring after each interval, until potatoes are golden, about 15 minutes total.
• Chop cooked ham, and stir into potato mixture. Cook, stirring occasionally, until warmed and lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with rosemary, and serve immediately.

COUNTRY HAM AND HOMINY HASH

Steps:

• Place the ham in a pot with the bay leaf and peppercorns. Cover with water and simmer for about 1 hour, until the ham is fork-tender (see Know-how, page 172). Add the potatoes and simmer for 10 minutes more, until the potatoes are just beginning to get tender. Strain the ham and potatoes from the pot, reserving about 1/4 cup of the liquid, removing and discarding the bay leaf, and set aside.
• Using two forks, shred the ham into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl. Add the potatoes, hominy, and onion. Stir in the reserved cooking liquid and parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper. (Country ham is salty, so be sure to taste before adding any extra salt.)
• Heat the olive oil and butter in a large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the ham-potato mixture and spread into a flat cake. Cover with a splatter screen or lid and cook until crispy, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip and re-form the cake. Cover and cook, adding a little more oil if needed, until crispy on the other side. Remove from the heat and cover.
• Fill a large skillet with water about 2 inches deep and bring to a boil. Add the vinegar and salt and reduce the heat to a simmer.
• Add the eggs one at a time and poach for 2 to 3 minutes, until the whites set and a thin, translucent film forms over the yolks (see Know-how, page 86). Use a slotted spoon to gently transfer the eggs to a paper towel-lined platter to drain.
• Divide the hash evenly between individual serving plates, place 1 or 2 eggs on top of each, and serve hot.
• For a more rustic interpretation of this dish, make a hole in the hash, crack the eggs in the hole, and cover to fry, rather than poach, to your liking. For a sweet-and-savory combination, substitute sweet potatoes for the russets, and for a crispy finish, scatter fried oysters on top. Or, make a cheesy variation by layering the hash mixture with Gruyère cheese in a skillet to form one large cake and sauté until brown and crispy. Slide the cake out of the skillet and cut into 4 to 6 wedges, then assemble the dish as for the main recipe.
• Hominy is the name for corn kernels that have been hulled to remove the bran and germ. Lye hominy is hulled by soaking the corn kernels in a weak lye solution-a very traditional, centuries-old Native American method-and pearl hominy is hulled mechanically. It is then dried and either ground to make our beloved hominy grits or boiled whole to make what New Orleansians call "big hominy." You can buy hominy canned, meaning precooked, or dried, in which case it will need to be presoaked and boiled in the same manner as dried beans.

COUNTRY HAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil.
• Set ham into the prepared roasting pan and pierce several times with a fork.
• Stir brown sugar, peach preserves, and mustard together in a bowl; spread over the ham. Cover the ham with a sheet of aluminum foil.
• Roast ham in preheated oven, basting regularly, for 90 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil cover and continue baking until hot in the center, 30 to 45 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 140 degrees F (60 degrees C).

CHEESY HAM AND HASH BROWN CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• In a large bowl, mix hash browns, ham, cream of potato soup, sour cream, and Cheddar cheese. Spread evenly into prepared dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly brown. Serve immediately.