To Cure Hams
Ingredients
Directions
Make the brine
Make a brine that will float an egg.
Let the brine settle, then skim off the foam.
Add 5 pounds of brown sugar and 1 ounce of saltpetre for every 10 gallons of brine.
Cure the hams
Lay the hams on a bench and rub the face of the hams with granulated saltpetre.
Insert a small piece of saltpetre into the shank of the hams, then rub the shank with some dry salt.
Place the hams in a barrel face up and leave them in the barrel for 15 days.
Remove the hams from the barrel and take out the brine.
Replace the hams on edge and allow them to stand for 10 days.
Remove the hams and repack them.
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
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps balance the saltiness of the cure.
- Saltpetre
- Helps preserve the meat and gives the cured ham its characteristic pink color.
- Granulated salt
- Draws moisture out of the meat and seasons it while helping preserve it.
The step that matters
Make a brine that will float an egg. Brine strength determines how much salt reaches the meat. If it is too weak, the ham may spoil; if too strong, it becomes overly salty and dry. An egg floating shows enough dissolved salt is present.
“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.