I have posted about baking ham before. In the last year, it seems I have been buying Hormel Cure 81 hams when we have bought half hams. They are a bit more money, except when you get them on sale, and they have been on sale often.
Today I started with the ham, the glaze packet, a whole yellow onion, quartered, and several celery sticks. I like to make a bed of celery and onions to raise the ham off the surface of the pan to allow the juices and fat to drain. The ham was frozen so it needed a bit more time.
 |
| Dijon, Spicy Brown Mustard & Horse Radish Sauce with my Cure 81 Ham |
I am going to say something you won't normally hear...
USE THE GLAZE PACKET THAT COMES WITH THE HAM. No ham producer wants to ruin the flavor of their product with a glaze they include for free. You may have a favorite, and you can use that one, but my wife prefers the one Hormel includes. Following the roasting instructions, I cooked the ham in my Magnalite aluminum roaster. This is a marvelous way to roast a large ham or roast because it has a lid and is very thick so the heat distributes very evenly. For the last few minutes of cooking, crank up the heat to 425℉ and apply your glaze. The high heat will caramelize the sugars in the glaze. Try to get the glaze between the slices as you brush it on.
Tonight's meal was simple
. MEAT, just
MEAT. I did add Dijon Mustard, Grainy Brown Mustard and Horse Radish Sauce. All of them were terrific with this ham. I will be telling you some of the recipes I made with the remaining ham.
