We had a lovely Christmas dinner with my mom and stepfather and our dear friend Liz (*waves at all through the internet*), and my moment of culinary triumph this holiday season was the ham. I’ve been cooking this recipe for years, thanks to a gift of Saveur Cooks Authentic American from our friend Pierce many moons ago. Here’s the recipe along with the backstory that accompanies it in the cookbook:
“When I first moved to New York City,” advertising copywriter Monte Mathews told us, “a friend gave me two pieces of advice: First, if you wear an expensive watch, you can wear anything else you want; second, when you have a lot of people over, buy a cheap ham. I already had the watch, but the cheap-ham tip threw me, and my friend did not elaborate. Not long afterward, at one of my first big-city parties, what should I see center-stage on the buffet table but a giant ham, bone intact, brown as could be. And what a ham! The mingled flavors of brown sugar and orange permeated every bite, and there was a faint hint of spice in the aftertaste. Guests hovered over it, and as the evening wore on, it became unrecognizable — thoroughly picked over…
…[My hostess] instructed me to buy the cheapest ham I could find, glaze the hell out of it, and cook it for a long time. ‘You can feed 30 people for $6.99!’ she exclaimed.”
— from Saveur Cooks Authentic American, Monte’s Ham Recipe
The recipe goes on to say that Monte Mathews reports he’s never paid more than 99 cents a pound for ham to use in this dish. Now that’s a cheap ham. In all the years I’ve cooked this recipe, I’ve nerved myself up to go cheaper and cheaper on the ham, always with great results — but I always knew the days of the 99-cent ham were over.
Until this week, when I found a butt-end of ham on sale at the grocery store for 99 cents a pound. Right next to the $5.99/pound spiral-sliced Brand Name ham. Is spiral slicing worth $5 a pound? I think not.
And the ham was fabulous. I feel like I found the Hammy Grail. Along with it, we had butternut squash soup finished with cream and fresh parsley; mashed potatoes (thanks, Liz!); green bean and zucchini ratatouille; glazed carrots; and chocolate cloud cake for dessert. And a beautiful bottle of ’98 Pio Cesare Barolo courtesy of our friend Karina, that made everything on the table taste better.
Buy a cheap ham and spend the savings on good chocolate and delicious wine, and share it all with good company. There’s no better recipe for a lovely evening.
Monte’s Ham
(Kelley’s comments in italics)
1 15-lb. smoked ham, on the bone
1½ cups orange marmalade
1 cup dijon mustard
1½ cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 rounded teaspoon of whole cloves
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Trim tough outer skin and excess fat from ham. Put ham in a large roasting pan and score, making crosshatch incisions all over it with a sharp knife. Roast for 2 hours. Remove ham from oven and increase heat to 350 degrees. (I swear, just throw it in and forget it for 2 hours. Don’t worry.)
Combine orange marmalade, mustard and brown sugar in a medium bowl. Stud ham with cloves, inserting one at the intersection of each crosshatch, then brush entire surface of ham generously with glaze and return to oven.
Cook ham another 1½ hours, brushing with glaze at least 3 times. (It is impossible to overglaze this ham. Also, you can leave it in the oven a bit longer if necessary without any damage. I love a recipe that is hard to screw up!)
Transfer to a cutting board or platter and allow to rest for about 30 minutes. Carve and serve warm or at room temperature. (I cover it with aluminum foil to keep it warm while it rests).
Ooooh I want some of that ham, Kelley! Great recipe, thank you!
Yum! (well, except for the, um, ham…) Entertaining ham story tho. 🙂
The soup and the wine and that chocolate dessert sound divine.
ugh! : )
the formatting screws up with the emoticons too.
Cute story, but my immediate reaction is to wonder if, just as in the UK cheap chicken = poor welfare for the chicken, cheap pork in the USA (from everything I’ve read) = poor welfare for the pig. Sow stalls for example.
Well, Farah, I won’t serve it to you if you ever come to my house for dinner.
Personally (despite choosing not to eat ham for >30 years (could I be that old!)) I would feel honored to eat (the cheapest) ham if I it were served to me home-cooked at the Eskridge-Griffith household.
And speaking from recent, first-hand experience of feeding livestock (chickens) up-close and personal, I have concluded that even so-called ‘free range’ might not be what we would want for our pets or ourselves. However, even so, I am reluctant to give up eating chicken meat. I find that (despite my qualms) I still feel much superior to them on the food chain. : ) And I need protein.
But I would pass up any meat/protein at all, and/or starve myself for a month in exchange for a glass of ‘98 Pio Cesare Barolo and a piece of that home-made chocolate cloud cake accompanied by conversation in Seattle!
Darn, now I’m hungry and have no ham, chocolate, wine or conversation. *falls weeping to the floor*
Ok, now normally I’m not into meat that has come into contact with a lot of sugar. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll eat anything that is set in front of me with the exception of raw onions (stomach doesn’t like them), but sweet meats don’t usually draw me. After reading your description of the ham, though, I find that we’re going to have to try it – after Tim (J’s stbxhusband, picky eater) moves out, of course. We’re really looking forward to being able to cook a variety of foods and not just the same seven dishes he will eat . . . Thank you for the recipe.