Christmas Hams
Asked by Kirsten Daswani. Answered on 17th December 2014
Full question
I'm planning to cook a couple of smoked gammon joints to feed up to 25 people. I'm struggling to find joints with the knuckle bone intact (as per the Aromatic Christmas Ham recipe) and would therefore like to know what adjustments, if any, are required to the original recipe if I end up cooking a couple of bonless smoked gammon joints instead? Thank you for your help!
I'm going to be in South America for Xmas and they don't really do gammon over there - they just do pork. Is the Ham In Coca Cola recipe possible with a slab of pork or does it need to be cured first? Thanks! Whoha.
Our answer
Nigella's Aromatic Christmas Ham recipe (from Nigella Christmas) uses a ham on the bone. These can often be ordered in advance from a supermarket or butcher though can be more difficult to buy off the shelf. However if you prefer to cook a boneless ham then use the ingredients and glaze from the recipe but follow the cooking instructions for the Ginger Glazed Ham in Nigella Christmas (p102).
The Ginger Glazed Ham uses a 5.5kg boneless gammon joint and will feed 10-12 people so you will probably need to cook two to feed 25. If you have a slightly larger or smaller joint then you can adjust the cooking time. For a boneless gammon allow 40 minutes per kilo simmering time. Start timing from the point where the liquid has come to a boil and you are turning the heat down.
Unfortunately the gammon hams are the cured type and not a fresh ham. You may find a ready-cooked ham in which case you can reheat it following the producer's instructions and then glaze it according to the recipe (use straight Coca Cola rather than the poaching liquid). For a fresh ham we would suggest slow roasting.
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