Country Ham with Maple, Tea, and Cardamom Glaze and Sauce

Fit for Company, Fit for a Crowd, Great Leftovers

Unless you live in the South, you may not find country hams at your supermarket. Most of the smokehouses that make them, however, sell them over the Internet (see Sources). Country hams vary considerably in their level of saltiness, smokiness, length of aging, and quality, so you may want to try a few to see which ones suit your taste. The best way to enjoy the ham is very thinly sliced and served on warm biscuits with a drizzle of the sauce and a side of sweet potatoes.

Serves 16 to 20

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 12- to 16-pound bone-in country ham (see Cook’s Notes)
• 3 cups brewed black tea
• 2 cups apple cider or apple juice
• ¼ cup bourbon (optional)
• 1 cup real maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
• ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup cider vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Wash the ham under cold water, scrubbing the skin with a stiff brush to remove any black pepper coating or mold. Put the ham in a very large pot or tub or a clean sink, big enough so that the ham can be completely submerged in cold water. Soak the ham for 48 hours, changing the water six to eight times to extract as much of the salt as possible. Drain and scrub the ham again to remove any
   remaining pepper or mold. Rinse the ham thoroughly.
2. Put the ham in a very large pot and cover it completely with cold water. Bring to a boil, then drain and discard the water. Refill the pot with water to cover the ham, bring to a boil, and discard the water two more times. Finally, cover the ham again with cold water, bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to barely a simmer. Take care not to let the water actually boil; it should read about 180°F on an instant-read thermometer. Poach the ham, uncovered, for 4 hours at a slow simmer.
3. Slice off a bit of ham and taste it. It should be firm but tender and palatable, and it will probably still be quite salty. You may need to cook it for 1 to 2 hours more, depending on its salt level and how long it was aged. Taste it from time to time to judge its progress, until it is cooked to your liking. (At this point, you can let the ham cool in its poaching liquid, then remove it, wrap it tightly in aluminum foil, and refrigerate it to bake and glaze the next day. Discard the liquid.)
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
5. Drain the ham and discard the liquid. Carefully remove all the skin and any dark or discolored meat. Trim the fat, leaving a ⅛- to ¼-inch-thick layer, and score a crisscross grid in the top of the fat, if you like. Place the ham fat side up in a roasting pan. Pour in 2 cups of the tea and enough water so that there is ¼ inch of liquid in the bottom of the pan. Bake for 30 minutes. (Or, if you have refrigerated the boiled ham, bake it for 2 hours, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 115°F.) Add water to the pan to maintain a ¼-inch depth during the baking process.
6. While the ham is baking, make the glaze: Combine the remaining 1 cup tea, the apple cider, bourbon (if using), maple syrup, cardamom, brown sugar, and vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook until the glaze becomes syrupy. Set aside.
7. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F. Generously brush some of the glaze over the ham. Roast for 10 minutes, brush with the glaze again, and roast for 5 minutes more, or until the surface is glazed and bubbly. Reserve the remaining glaze to make the sauce. Place the ham on a cutting board or platter and let it rest, covered loosely with aluminum foil, for 20 to 45 minutes.
8. Taste the liquid in the pan and if it is not too salty, add 1 cup to the remaining glaze. If it is salty, add 1 cup water instead. Bring to a boil and reduce until the sauce becomes syrupy.
9. Cut the ham into thin slices. Serve warm or at room temperature with the sauce on the side.

COOK’S NOTES:

• If you are using a fully precooked country ham, start with step 4. There is no need to trim the ham, because that has already been done. Roast for about 10 minutes per pound, then check the internal temperature. When it reaches 115°F, begin to apply the glaze as directed.
• You may use any of the other glaze/sauce recipes. Instead of glazing the ham, you can sprinkle it with a generous amount of confectioners’ sugar, which will melt into a blanket of sweetness as you heat the ham for 10 minutes at 425°F. However, you will not have a sauce.

LEFTOVERS:

• Leftover ham can be served cold or rewarmed and stuffed into warm biscuits. Thick slices of cooked country ham can be fried and served with steamed greens. You can use country ham in the leftover ham recipes