Slow Cooked Black Treacle Ham Recipes

STICKY TREACLE-GLAZED HAM

Steps:

• If you need to soak the ham, do so the night before. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Place the ham, skin-side up, in a deep roasting tin, then add enough water to cover the base of the tin. Scatter the orange wedges and cinnamon stick around. Cover the pan with a tight tent of foil, then cook the ham for about 2½ hrs. (If using a different weight of ham, you want 20 mins per 450g.)
• While the ham is cooking, mix the mustard, treacle and orange zest together with enough orange juice to make a mixture loose enough to paint over the ham.
• When the ham has had its time, remove the roasting tin from the oven and turn up the heat to 220C/ fan 200C/gas 7. Remove the foil, leave the ham until cool enough to handle, then pour away any liquid in the tin. Using a sharp knife, carefully cut away the skin to leave an even layer of fat. Use the tip of the knife to score the ham fat diagonally at 3cm intervals - first in one direction, then the other, to produce a diamond pattern. Liberally paint the glaze over the fat, then stud with the cloves at the points of the diamond shapes.
• Roast the ham for 30 mins until glazed and just beginning to char around the edges. Leave to cool and serve warm or cold, decorated with the bay and orange wedges, if you like, along with my delicious green bean salad and your favourite chutney.

SLOW-COOKED BLACK TREACLE HAM

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250°C/gas mark 9/450ºF, and let your gammon come to room temperature.
• Line a large roasting tin with a layer of foil, and then sit a wire rack on top of this foil. Tear off a large piece of foil (big enough to wrap around the ham) and place this over the rack on the roasting tin. Tear off a second, large piece of foil and place on top, but in the opposite way to the first, so you have 4 corners of foil ready to wrap your ham inches Sit the gammon on the foil and then pour the black treacle over it, straight onto the rind, letting it run down both sides. Don't worry too much about spreading it over the ham, as once it's in the heat of the oven, it will coat the ham well enough.
• Now lift up the sides and ends of the first layer of foil and make a seal at the top, leaving some room around the gammon, then seal the ends. Then take up the other piece of foil and do the same: you are trying to create a good seal around the gammon, so pinch together any open gaps that remain. Finally, tear off another piece of foil and put over the top of the whole parcel, making sure it's well sealed.
• Put carefully into the oven and let it cook for 30 minutes, then turn the oven down to 100°C/gas mark 1/4/200°F and leave for a further 12-24 hours.
• The following day, take the gammon out of the oven and open up the foil seal. It will have made some liquid, which you can reserve to moisten the carved meat later. Carefully lift the gammon out onto a board, snip and remove the string, and peel off the rind to leave a good layer of fat.
• Increase the oven temperature to 200°C/gas mark 6/400ºF. Using a sharp knife, cut a diamond pattern in the fat layer, drawing lines one way and then the opposite way, about 2cm/3/4-inch apart.
• Stud the centre of each diamond with a clove, then mix together the black treacle, demerara sugar and Dijon mustard in a bowl and spread over the fat on the ham. It will dribble off a bit, so just spoon it back over the gammon before putting back in the oven for 20 minutes, by which time the glaze will be burnished and blistered in the heat. Remove from the oven, and transfer to a board. Let it rest for 10-20 minutes before carving into thin slices.
• NOTE FOR THE US: Fully cooked hams are more common in the US and if you use one of these, then try to choose one with the rind still on and not spiral cut. Smear the rind of the ham with 2 tablespoons of molasses then wrap it in a baggy aluminum foil package with tightly sealed edges. Sit it in a roasting pan and reheat following the producer's instructions for oven temperature and time. When the ham has heated through uncover it and reserve juices and use sparingly to moisten ham once sliced. Carefully remove the rind, leaving a good layer of fat, then follow the instructions for glazing the ham.
• STORE NOTE: Cool leftovers as quickly as possible, then cover (or wrap tightly in foil) and refrigerate within 2 hours of making. Will keep in fridge for up to 3 days.
• FREEZE NOTE: Freeze in an airtight container (or wrapped in foil, and then put in a resealable bag) for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in fridge before using.