To Fait Hams
Ingredients
Directions
Cure
Rub the hams well with saltpetre, coarse sea salt, and common salt.
Place the hams in lead or earthenware pans for ten days, turning them once.
Rub the hams again with common salt.
Let the hams sit for another ten days, turning them every five days.
Prepare
Remove the hams. Scrape the hams clean.
Dry the hams with a clean cloth.
Rub the hams lightly with salt.
Hang the hams up to dry.
Smoke and dry
Hang the hams in a chimney to smoke.
Make a fire of oak shavings and horse litter, adding juniper berries.
Keep the fire smothered for two to three days.
Let the hams dry.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Saltpetre
- Helps cure the meat and gives it a characteristic pink colour and cured flavour.
- Common salt
- Draws out moisture and seasons the meat, helping preserve it during curing.
- Coarse sea salt
- Adds salt to the cure, drawing moisture out of the meat and seasoning it.
- Juniper berries
- Adds aroma and a resinous, piney flavour to the smoke.
The step that matters
Keep the fire smothered for two to three days. A smouldering, low-oxygen fire produces smoke rather than flame. Too much heat or air can burn the hams and dry them unevenly before the cure has done its work.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.