Baked Ham Glazed with Pineapple, Rum and Allspice

, from Issue #45. August, 2015
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Baked Ham Glazed with Pineapple, Rum and Allspice

A glorious sticky baked ham never fails to please on Christmas day. And if you’re lucky enough to have some leftover, that takes care of lunch the next day.

INGREDIENTS

5 kilogram cooked ½ leg of ham (we use Freedom Farms)

Glaze
½ cup runny honey
1 cup brown sugar
1 x 440 gram tin crushed pineapple
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 tablespoon grain mustard
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
1 tablespoon cider or white wine vinegar

METHOD

Remove the ham from the fridge 2 hours before cooking.*

Preheat the oven to 170˚C.

Glaze: Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend well.

Ham: Remove the skin from the ham using your fingertips to gently prise it away, taking care not to damage the layer of fat underneath. Leave the skin on the hock.

Score the fat around the circumference of the ham, 3 cm apart.

Place the ham in a large, foil-lined baking dish and pour in a little water. This stops the glaze from burning on the base of the dish.

Spread half the glaze over the ham and roast for 30 minutes. Spoon the remaining glaze over the ham and cook for another 1 hour, basting the ham every 20 minutes. Turn the dish several times during cooking for even colouring and reduce the oven temperature if it is starting to catch and brown too quickly. Loosely cover it with foil if necessary.

Allow to cool for 20 minutes before carefully lifting onto a serving platter.

To serve: Place your desired wrapping around the ham hock and secure with kitchen string. Serve the ham hot, warm or at room temperature.

*If you are cooking the ham cold, straight from the fridge the cooking time will need to be increased by 30 minutes if you want the meat to be hot right to the bone. Cover loosely with a piece of foil to prevent it burning towards the end of cooking.