Herb Braised Ham Food

BRAISED-THEN-BAKED HAM

Steps:

• If there is tough skin covering the top of the ham, cut it off to expose the fat.
• In a large, deep pot, heat butter or oil over medium-high heat. Add carrots and onions and sauté until tender and golden brown, about 10 minutes.
• Place the ham on the vegetables, fatty side up. Add herb bundle, wine and 1 quart water and bring to a simmer.
• Cook for 2 to 3 hours at a bare simmer; baste with ladle every 20 minutes. After 2 hours, test with meat thermometer: ham is ready when internal temperature reaches 135 degrees. Turn off the heat.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Drain ham, reserving cooking liquid to use for stock (it freezes well). Place ham on a rack in a roasting pan, fatty side up, and score fat in a diamond pattern with tip of sharp knife. If using glaze, brush it on now.
• Place ham in oven; roast 15 to 20 minutes until lightly browned. If using glaze, brush on more after first 10 minutes of cooking.
• Remove from oven, tent with foil, and let rest 20 to 30 minutes before carving.

FRESH EASTER HAM WITH HERBS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the thyme, parsley and rosemary. Using a sharp knife, score the entire surface of the ham in a crosshatch pattern, cutting down just through the skin to the flesh underneath. Rub the outside of the ham all over with the herb mixture, pressing it gently into the crosshatch spaces between the skin. Sprinkle the ham with salt and pepper. Set aside to marinate and come to room temperature, 45 to 60 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the herb-crusted ham in a roasting pan. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone, approximately 25 minutes per pound, or 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven to a rack. Tent the ham loosely with aluminum foil and let stand until the center of the ham registers 155 degrees to 160 degrees F on the instant-read thermometer, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Transfer to a cutting board and carve. Serve with roasted sweet potatoes.

HERB BRAISED CARROTS

Steps:

• Heat butter in a large pan over medium heat until completely melted. Add carrots and shallot to pan; cook and stir until the carrots are coated in butter and shallots are slightly soft, about 5 minutes.
• Stir vegetable stock, thyme, ground nutmeg, and ground sumac into the carrots; cover pan, reduce heat to low, and cook and stir until most of the liquid has disappeared, about 15 minutes.
• Remove pan from heat and garnish carrots with rosemary, sage, salt, and white pepper.

BEER-BRAISED PULLED HAM

Steps:

• In a 5-qt. slow cooker, whisk together beer and 1/2 cup mustard. Stir in pepper. Add ham and rosemary. Cook, covered, on low until tender, 7-9 hours., Remove ham; cool slightly. Discard rosemary sprigs. Skim fat. When ham is cool enough to handle, shred meat with 2 forks. Discard bone. Return to slow cooker; heat through., Using tongs, place shredded ham on pretzel buns; top with remaining mustard and, if desired, dill pickle slices., Freeze option: Freeze cooled ham mixture in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a covered saucepan, stirring gently; add water if necessary.

HERB-BRAISED HAM

Steps:

• Put ham in deep 10- to 20-quart pot and cover with cold water (don't worry if bone sticks out). Bring to a boil, then drain ham.
• Put oven rack in lower third of oven (remove any other racks) and preheat oven to 350°F.
• Wash leeks in a bowl of cold water, then lift out and drain well. Cook leeks, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, thyme sprigs, parsley stems, nutmeg, peppercorns, and cloves in 2 tablespoons butter in wide 7- to 10-quart heavy pot (see "special equipment," above) over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Add wine and bring to a boil, then add ham, skin side down, and water (liquid will not cover ham) and return to a boil.
• Cover pot tightly with lid or, if ham sticks up over top of pot, with heavy-duty foil. Braise ham in oven 1 hour.
• Turn ham skin side up and continue to braise in oven, covered, until thermometer inserted into center of ham (do not touch bone) registers 120°F, about 1 hour more (if ham was labeled "fully cooked"), or 160°F, about 2 hours more (if ham was labeled "partially cooked").
• While ham braises, mash together flour and remaining 3 tablespoons butter with a fork to make a beurre manié.
• Transfer ham to a platter and let stand, loosely covered with foil, 45 minutes.
• While ham stands, pour braising liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a 3-quart saucepan, pressing on and discarding solids, and skim off any fat. Bring braising liquid to a simmer and whisk in beurre manié 1/2 tablespoon at a time (sauce will become lumpy). Continue to simmer, whisking, until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in chopped thyme and parsley.
• Remove skin from ham, then slice meat and serve with sauce.

HERB CRUSTED FRESH HAM

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the thyme, rosemary, tarragon, and lavender. Season the ham with salt and pepper. Rub the herb mixture all over the ham and set aside to marinate and come to room temperature, 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the herb-crusted ham in a roasting pan. Bake approximately 25 minutes per pound, or until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F. on an instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone.
• Remove from the oven to a rack. Tent the ham loosely with aluminum foil and let stand until the center of the ham registers 160 to 165 degrees F. on the instant-read thermometer, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove ham from roasting pan. Transfer the drippings into a small saucepan to make the jus. Add the chicken stock, dash of salt, and pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Decrease the heat to medium to keep warm until serving. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
• Once the ham has rested, transfer to a cutting board, carve, and serve with the jus on the side.

ROOT BEER HAM

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 325 degrees. Using a sharp knife, make parallel cuts across the surface of the ham, about 1/2 inch deep and 1 inch apart, then repeat in the opposite direction to create a diamond pattern.
• Place the ham in a deep, large roasting pan, cut side down, and pour the root beer over the ham. Add the shallots and bay leaves to the root beer in the roasting pan. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and bake, basting once halfway through, until the ham is heated through (it's already cooked). The internal temperature should reach 135 degrees, about 15 minutes per pound (2 to 3 hours total).
• When the ham is done heating through, carefully remove from the oven and raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Uncover the ham and ladle out 2 cups of the root beer braising liquid into a large skillet.
• To make the glaze, add the brown sugar, mustard and rice vinegar to the root beer in the skillet and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally and watching that it doesn't boil over. Cook until reduced significantly, syrupy and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and drip off slowly, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Using a spoon or a brush, apply half of the glaze all over the surface of the ham. Bake, uncovered, until the glaze is bronzed, bubbling and gorgeous (but not burned), 8 to 12 minutes.
• Transfer the ham to a cutting board to rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing thinly and serving with the extra glaze. Carefully pour the braising liquid into a gravy boat and serve alongside, as well.

TOASTED HAM AND CHEESE SANDWICH WITH HERB BUTTER

Steps:

• In a small bowl combine the softened butter, Dijon mustard, thyme, parsley and just a pinch salt; mix well until smooth and thoroughly combined.
• Arrange 4 slices of bread on a cutting board and top with a slice of cheese.
• Then top with sliced ham, then tomato, then onions and remaining cheese.
• Top with a slice of bread.
• Butter the outside of 4 slices of bread with herbed butter (I like to lightly butter the inside also, but that is up to you).
• Heat a non-stick skillet with a bit of herbed or regular butter (if you buttered the outside of the bread, then you might not want to add in any butter to the skillet).
• Add in the sandwiches, and cook until cheese melts and the bread is golden brown (about 3 minutes on each side).
• Delicious!

WINE-AND HERB-BRAISED POT ROAST

Steps:

• Blanch salt pork in boiling water 5 minutes; drain well and set aside.
• Heay oil in Dutch oven or deep, heavy large skillet over medium heat.
• Add onions,salt pork and garlic and saute until pork is browned, about 20 minutes.
• Remove onions and pork with slotted spoon; set aside.
• Increase heat to medium-high.
• Pat beef dry;season with salt and pepper.
• Add to Dutch oven and brown on both sides, about 20 minutes.
• Return onions and pork to pan; add tomatoes with liquid,wine,parsley sprigs,bay leaf,orange peel thyme,marjoram and basil.
• Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until beef is tender, 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
• Remove meat, bay leaf and parsley sprigs from pan; keep meat warm.
• Degrease sauce.
• Mix water and flour; stir half into sauce and bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer until thickened,adding remaining flour mixture if desired.
• Slice meat and arrange on platter; pour sauce over, garnish with parsley and serve.