Why it works: Ham and molasses work together. They rank in the top 38% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 55 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Curing Hams
Ingredients
Directions
Cure
Mix the salt, molasses, and saltpetre in a bowl.
Rub the mixture well into the ham, especially around the bones and recesses.
Repeat the rubbing process until all the mixture is used.
Let the ham sit for two to three days.
Submerge the ham in brine strong enough to float an egg for three weeks.
Soak and dry
Soak the ham in cold water for eight hours.
Hang the ham to dry in a kitchen or a convenient place for one week or more.
Smoke and store
Smoke the ham for three to five days, ensuring it does not get too hot, using corncobs and apple tree wood for smoking.
Tie the ham carefully in bags for storage during the summer.
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.
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Ham + molassestop 38% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together55 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws moisture out of the meat and seasons it, helping to preserve the ham.
- Molasses
- Adds sweetness and a rounded flavour that balances the salt.
- Saltpetre
- Acts as a curing agent that helps preserve the ham and keep its colour.
The step that matters
Keeping the ham cool while smoking. Smoking should stay gentle because high heat cooks the meat and fat too quickly, which can dry the ham and spoil the cured texture before it is properly preserved.
“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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