Fresh Picnic Ham Two Ways Cuban Style Bbq Recipes

CUBAN LECHON ASADO (ROASTED FRESH HAM)

Steps:

• The day before you plan to serve this dish, trim the excess fat off the pork leg; make shallow slits all over the pork, using the tip of a knife; mash the garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, pepper, bay leaf and olive oil to a paste in a mortar; rub this mixture all over the roast, forcing it into the slits; combine the sour orange juice, sherry, and onions in a small bowl; place the roast in a large, heavy plastic bag; add the sour OJ mixture, making sure that the whole roast gets covered with the mixture; refrigerate and marinate the roast in the bag overnight, turning occasionally during the time.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Drain the roast, and pat dry, reserving the marinade; place it in a lightly oiled, nonreactive, heavy roasting pan; cook the roast for 1 hour, turning once or twice to brown it on all sides.
• Reduce the heat to 325 degrees; pour the marinade and onions over the pork; tent the pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil; (tear off a piece that is 1 1/2 times the width of your pan; fold it in half and crease the top; open it up, and place over the pan like a tent, tightly crimping edges to seal) continue roasting the pork, basting from time to time with the pan juices, until almost cooked, about 1 hour; add a little water or sherry if the pan dries out.
• Uncover the roast and continue cooking until the internal temp reads*at least* 150 degrees F on a meat thermometer, about 30 minutes more; (most Cubans like the meat well done, so after sitting, it should be up to 180 degrees--it's safer, also).
• Let the roast stand for 10 minutes before carving.
• Note: this is traditionally served with black bean soup and white rice, and fried, sweet plantains; for dessert, serve a rich flan and you're set!

FRESH PICNIC HAM TWO WAYS: CUBAN STYLE & BBQ

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. While the oven heats score the skin by slicing through the skin and fat to the meat below. Be careful not to cut to deep.
• Then rub the ham all over with spices, you can rub on a little olive oil to help the spices stick. Put the ham on to a roasting rack in a pan and place in the oven for at least 4 hours.
• The longer you cook it the more the internal fat and muscle will break down; my mother cooks a fresh ham for at 6+ hours, she wants it falling apart. I like mine to have a little more substance left so I go more like 4-5. It's your choice.
• Right before you remove the cooked ham from the oven turn it up to about 425 degrees and let the skin on top brown, don't let it burn. This should take about 15 to 20 minutes.
• Remove the cooked ham from the oven and let it rest at least 20 minutes so the juices can redistribute.
• Now it is time to start cutting this big boy up. Begin by removing that lovely crispy skin. The skin is very similar to chicharon, Latin American dish of fried pork skin. I serve the skin on the side like a lovely pork flavored appetizer, my mother finds this gross so do what you would like. You can also dice the skin up small and sprinkle it over the sliced pork to serve it. Or if you want to break my heart you can discard the skin.
• To slice the ham cut parallel to the bone and you will be able to free large wedge shaped sections of the ham from the center bone. It's not going to be as pretty as you thanksgiving turkey carving but oh well.
• I serve the meat with a squeeze of lime, sprinkle of cilantro, and dash of salt. I always serve this "Cuban style" pork with rice and black beans. Find my recipe for black beans here.

CUBAN STYLE FRESH HAM

Steps:

• Mix together the juice, garlic, oregano, cumin, salt, and water. Put the ham into a large bowl or leak-proof plastic bag and pour over the marinade. Let soak in the refrigerator overnight. (Or let the marinade steep for 1 hour, strain it, and inject it directly into the ham using a marinade injector; wrap and refrigerate the ham overnight. Use any leftover marinade for basting.)
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Remove the ham from the marinade, reserving the marinade, and pat dry. Strain the marinade into a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Put the ham fat side up into a roasting pan and cook it for about 25 minutes per pound or until the internal temperature registers 155 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Baste the ham with the marinade every 20 minutes or so. Remove the ham, cover it with foil, and let it rest for about 15 minutes. The temperature will continue to rise to 160 degrees F. Slice and serve.

BBQ PICNIC HAM

Steps:

• Remove fat cap from ham with sharp knife Wrap in butcher's twine if desired. Spread yellow mustard all over ham Sprinkle rib rub all over ham Wrap in foil or place in plastic bag Refrigerate for several hours up to a day Remove ham from refrigerator and let warm up before and during charcoal preparation. Prepare 3 packets of hickory chips (~1 cup each) by soaking in water and then making foil packets. Use all 3 during the smoking process. Sear ham with grill at 350 on both sides for initial 30 minutes (no foil). Cook on foil but uncovered at 225-250 for 6 hours total (sliceable) or 7 hours total (pulled pork). 40 charcoal briquets are required initially, and about 12 more will need to be added 2-3 times during the cooking. Insert meat thermometer and watch temperature at about hour 5.