Fresh Ham.....In the OVEN??? GASP! Couple ?'s

[burnit13]

Hopefully I don't get too flamed for this....but I am going to cook a fresh ham for X-mas this year, and I am going to cook it in the oven!

The past two years I have smoked Boston Butt's or Picnic hams for X-Mas and Easter and my family is hooked.  I'm not a fan of the cured hams as I think they are way too salty.

This year when I went to go buy a picnic ham I actually found a fresh ham!  We don't usually see those around here.  I bought an 18lb beauty and am drooling just thinking of it.  I estimate it will be about 16lbs after I trim the skin and excess fat off.

So why am I doing it in the oven?  Because the weather this time of year sucks and I don't want to go outside every couple hours in the middle of the night.  Plus, I'll be cooking it at my parents house which is on a hill and really windy making temp control extremely difficult.

I plan to cook it at 225 until the internal temp is 180 or so.  I will glaze it at the end with a maple syrup and honey mix.  I'll have a pan of water in there to help add some humidity as well.

Questions:

1. Aside from the lack of smoke flavor....will I be in for any surprises by cooking the fresh ham in the oven?  Will it taste dramatically different?
2. What would be a descent rub for cooking in the oven and then glazing with maple syrup/honey at the end?
3. With a 16lb prepped ham....how many hours am I looking at?  I plan to take it off and let it rest around 1pm X-mas day.

Thanks!

 

[chef jimmyj]

Hopefully I don't get too flamed for this....but I am going to cook a fresh ham for X-mas this year, and I am going to cook it in the oven!

The past two years I have smoked Boston Butt's or Picnic hams for X-Mas and Easter and my family is hooked.  I'm not a fan of the cured hams as I think they are way too salty.

This year when I went to go buy a picnic ham I actually found a fresh ham!  We don't usually see those around here.  I bought an 18lb beauty and am drooling just thinking of it.  I estimate it will be about 16lbs after I trim the skin and excess fat off.

So why am I doing it in the oven?  Because the weather this time of year sucks and I don't want to go outside every couple hours in the middle of the night.  Plus, I'll be cooking it at my parents house which is on a hill and really windy making temp control extremely difficult.

I plan to cook it at 225 until the internal temp is 180 or so.  I will glaze it at the end with a maple syrup and honey mix.  I'll have a pan of water in there to help add some humidity as well.

Questions:

1. Aside from the lack of smoke flavor....will I be in for any surprises by cooking the fresh ham in the oven?  Will it taste dramatically different? It will taste like a straight up Roast Pork.
2. What would be a descent rub for cooking in the oven and then glazing with maple syrup/honey at the end?  If it was me, I would run a cup of Garlic cloves with Salt, Pepper a handful of Rosemary leaves through a food processor with enough Olive Oil to make a paste and Rub that all over that Ham. If you want to use the Maple/Honey see Below.
3. With a 16lb prepped ham....how many hours am I looking at?  I plan to take it off and let it rest around 1pm X-mas day. At 225*F you will take about 2 hours per Pound. I would add 2 hours to CYA/ Rest that ham before service. There is really no reason you can't go 325*F and cut the cook time down to 30 minutes a pound. After the first hour, add 2 cups of White Wine and baste every 30 minutes or so until the desired IT. Then thicken the pan juices for a gravy. You really only need to go to 170*F. It may be on the dry side at 180 or higher. Good Luck...JJ

Thanks!

Mild Bubba Q Rub

1/2C Sugar in the Raw (Turbinado)

2T Sweet Paprika (Hungarian)

1T Kosher Salt

1T Chili Powder (contains some Cumin and Oregano) Ancho Chile is same without cumin, oregano etc.

1T Granulated Garlic

1T Granulated Onion

1tsp Black Pepper, more if you like

1/2tsp Grnd Allspice

Cayenne or Chipotle Pwd to taste, start with 1/2tsp and go from there.

You may like this Brine as well with the Maple/Honey glaze...

Pork Brine

2-12oz.Cans Apple Juice Concentrate

1C Apple Cider Vinegar

1/4C Molasses

1/4C Mustard

1/2C Kosher Salt

2T Pickling Spice (optional)

1T Sage, rubbed

1Gal Water

 

[burnit13]

Damn.....2 hours per pound!  That's 32-34ish hours!!!!  That's probably too long to be effective.  I'd have to put it in the oven the night before X-Mas Eve for it to be done for X-Mas dinner!!!. 

I'm afraid of high temps....I always seem to dry things out.  I wonder if cooking two shoulders would be a better idea. 

In the past I've smoked either picnic hams or shoulders at 225 until 180ish and sliced them.  Melt in your mouth good.  I think I may go this route instead.

Anyone ever use PEAR wood on pork? 

 

[driedstick]

I would go with chef j choices he has ya covered. good luck and merry xmas

Chef rub does sound good you use that pretty much on anything??

 

[mneeley490]

You could always precook it at your house beforehand, and then slowly reheat at your folks.

 

[harleysmoker]

Ever do a double smoked ham? Very simple, buy a smoked ham at grocery, coat it with mustard and rub, add some wood for smoke, and smoke it at 225*-250*.  Your just slowly heating it back up to about 165* internal temperature with smoke added. I just did my 2nd one Thanksgiving and it was awesome. Doing another for Christmas!
 

 

[chef jimmyj]

I would go with chef j choices he has ya covered. good luck and merry xmas

Chef rub does sound good you use that pretty much on anything??

That rub is good on anything. You can play with it if you like. If you want a South Western twist add 1-2 teaspoon of Cumin. For Brisket add a Tablespoon of Fine ground Coffee. Just remember to Leave out the Salt on anything you Brine so the finished product is not too salty. I forgot to mention that earlier for BurnIt's Ham Roast...JJ

 

[swechef]

For Christmas I always cook the ham in the oven. I usually buy it lightly cured and soak it in some cold water for a couple of hours to draw out excess salt before cooking it. The soaking time depends on the size of the ham and how it was cured, I guess. I have never cooked a totally fresh un-cured ham, though.

The cooking process is a two step thing. First, foil it thoroughly, at least 2 layers, making sure no or very little juices escape during cooking. I want to make use of that juice. I cook the ham at 250 until inner temp of 150-160. Takes maybe 45 min per pound. It gains a few degrees after removing it from the oven. Then let the ham sit for a few hours at room temp, poke a hole in the foil and drain the juice. The juice I always use as stock for sauce. Some black pepper and cream makes it a piece of heaven. Adding mustard and apple juice to the sauce will make it even better.

Step two of the cooking - after the ham has cooled - is simple. Trim off excess skin/fat - leave some fat(!) - and coat it with mustard, any will do, and cover with bread crumbs. Into the oven at max temp for a couple of minutes for the surface to brown. This process does not cook the ham any more, it just gives a nice tasting bark. There are plenty variants here with ginger bread crumbs, honey, etc, but I prefer the good ol' breadcrumbs with mustard.

I usually do the cooking overnight. Only problem is sleeping as the entire house smells so good during cooking...

There it is. Standard Scandinavian Christmas ham.

Cheers /Wes

 

[burnit13]

Thanks for all the replies guys!  I've decided to go my standard route and just smoke a raw, uncured picnic ham and a butt.  Considering there will be 10+ people eating this thing, I'd rather not have them be guinea pigs while I try to cook a fresh ham.  This is the route I've done in the past and it has worked great for me.  I think I'm going to save the fresh ham for the SuperBowl. 

24 hours before smoke I'll take the skin off and trim some excess fat and score it.  I'll apply a rub of some sort.  Probably the rub ChefJ mentioned above.

On Christmas Eve I'll get my smoker ready to go.  WSM's charcoal ring will be full and I'll be using the Minion method.  I'll be smoking with Pear wood.  The Picnic and Butt will go on at about 11pm.  I'll try to keep the temp at around 225 or so.  It is supposed to be in the teens that night so we'll see.

I'll spritz the hams with a 50/50 apple juice concentrate and cider vinegar once or twice until I go to bed around midnight.

When I wake up around 6am or so I'll take the hams off of the smoker and put them into the oven at 225 degrees.  I'll be using a roasting pan with some white wine and some apple juice in the pan.  I'll have a foil tent over the hams to keep the moisture in.

I'll be taking the hams off the heat once they hit 180 which hopefully will be  around noon.  They'll get wrapped up in foil and in blankets and then hang out in a cooler for two hours.

Meanwhile I'll mix up some brown sugar and maple syrup for a glaze.  At 2pm I'll put the oven to 350 and apply a couple coats of glaze.  Should be done by 2:30-2:45.

The 9lb picnic will be sliced first and should feed most of the people.  The 9lb butt will be used for leftovers and other yummy things.  I'm hungry now.

 

[rtbbq2]

Sounds like  you are in good hands....Merry Christmas...........

 

[mike johnson]

Good food is Good food. NO MATTER WHAT

 

[donr]

I respect your decision to not experiment on guests at major holidays.  I would not, nor am allowed to do just that.  I prove the experiments worthy throughout the year, then cook the same thing at family gatherings.  

I would recommend trying Pops Curing Brine method to cure your own hams.  You can control the amount of salt used.  I have not tried it, but anyone on this site who has can't rave enough about it.

Don

 

[archernut]

I agree. Brine that baby with pops brine, then put it in the smoker.  It's delicious.