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To Boil a Ham

A ham is boiled, then baked with a breadcrumb and mustard topping.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 10 ingredients
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Why it works: Ham and bread are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,536 recipes. Both carry 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline, which smells popcorn, roasted. The science ↓

To Boil a Ham

Oven, in the book's wordsA slow oven

Ingredients

Directions

The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.

Prepare the ham

  1. Soak the ham overnight, or 24 to 48 hours if very dry.

  2. Scrape the ham well and place it in a kettle with enough cold water to cover it.

Simmer and cool

  1. Simmer gently for 5 to 8 hours, allowing 18 to 20 minutes per pound.

  2. It is done when the small bone in the hock can be easily removed.

  3. Set the pot aside for the ham to cool in the cooking water.

  4. When nearly cold, carefully remove the skin without cutting it.

Glaze and bake

  1. Dot the top with black pepper.

  2. Brush the top with beaten egg.

  3. Cover the top with a mixture of bread crumbs, pepper, salt, sugar, and made mustard.

  4. Bake in a 300°F (150°C) oven for 1 to 2 hours, basting frequently with vinegar and boiling water.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Ham + breadtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,536 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

  2. Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together14,067 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Pepper + mustardtop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,430 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Bread + eggtop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together22,662 recipes

    Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).

  5. Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,814 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Ham
Is the main cut that is softened by soaking and slow simmering until tender.
Egg
Beaten egg brushed on top helps the bread crumb coating bind and brown.
Bread crumbs
Form a crust on the surface that holds the seasoning and browns in the oven.
Sugar
Adds sweetness and helps the surface crust brown in the oven.
Made mustard
Adds sharp flavor that balances the sweetness of the crust.
Vinegar
Adds acidity to the basting liquid, sharpening the flavor of the surface.

The step that matters

Simmer gently. Boiling vigorously can toughen the meat and break the skin apart, so the ham should stay at a gentle simmer for the full cooking time.

Swap the mustard

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (ham, pepper, vinegar, bread, sugar, egg):

  1. Capsicumfits about as well
  2. Mustardthe original
  3. Asparagusfits less well
  4. Shallotfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against ham, pepper, vinegar, bread, sugar, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“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.

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