Caribbean Ham
Caribbean Ham for the holidays and the perfect centerpiece for your dinner table. You will love this recipe.
Last weekend, I made my wonderful Caribbean Ham and hoped to post it earlier this week. But unfortunately, my first cold of this season, which I hope, is the final, put me out of commission for a few days. I am glad today that I feel a little better and can finally do a little bit of work on my computer. I am taking advantage of the boost of energy I have to do what I can and post my Caribbean Ham recipe. Should I say one of my recipes of Caribbean Ham, which sounds better?
How to make Caribbean Ham
To make a perfect Caribbean Ham recipe, I use my number one tip for removing the salt in the Ham. The tip is to boil the Ham with spices and veggies before roasting. This great tip has been working for me well for a long time, and I am glad to share it with you today. Buying cured Ham is the easiest and fastest way to make a roasted ham. While this may be the easiest option for a quick holiday meal, soak the Ham in water to remove the salt.
Soaking salted cured or smoked Ham is an excellent idea, but what if you are pressed for time or if you forgot to soak the Ham the day before? What do you do?
You use a boiling method. There are several methods for removing salt from Ham, but there is only one in my opinion that works and gives you more for your effort. Boiling Ham with spices is not only efficient but economical as well. It is economical because you can use the ham broth for cooking pasta, rice, or any other grains you are using. The cured or smoked Ham flavors will add extra flavors to pasta or grain dishes.
The boiling method may not work for all types of cured Ham if you opt-out of the soaking process. The reason is that of the amount of salt. Some brands may have more salt than others. So if you have a brand that you like and trust and know that it does not have a lot of sodium, go for it; you won’t be disappointed. Another great tip is that the boiling method also works well if roasting the Ham in the oven. After boiling, all you have to do is baste the Ham with your preferred sauce and roast it.
I used the soaking method for this recipe because the Ham is boiled with wine, spices, veggies, and water. The Ham is soaked for at least 24 hours and cooked in vegetables, wine, and water. I then roast it for a few minutes under the broiler with brown sugar and complete it with a caramelized sauce made with pineapple slices.
The final step is serving it with both the pineapple slices and the veggies. And voila! You have a complete meal to serve your family and guests for the holidays or any other occasion. Serve the Caribbean Ham with any side dishes you want. And if you’re going to impress your guests, use good white wine and not that cheap stuff. It makes a difference!
Enjoy my Caribbean Ham recipe and Happy cooking!
Caribbean Ham
Ingredients
- 1 3 to 4 pounds cured/salted ham
- 3 medium size carrots
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 medium onion
- 2 – 3 whole cloves
- 1 bouquet garni parsley, thyme and bay leaf
- 2 cups of dry white wine
- 1 – 8 oz. can pineapple slices in syrup
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 teaspoon peppercorn
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- In a large stockpot of large container, add the ham, fill the container or pot with water to cover. Soak the ham for 24 hours, changing the water 3 times.
- Slice the celery stalk, peel and cut the carrots. Stick the cloves to the onion and set everything aside.
- Remove the ham from the soaking liquid and rinse. In another stockpot, place the ham, celery, carrots, onion, bouquet garni made with 2 sprigs of parsley, 1 large sprig of thyme and one large bay leaf. Add wine and peppercorn. You may add a little bit of salt if desired but not necessary. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Let ham cook for about 2 hours over low to medium heat.
- Remove ham from cooking liquid. If desired remove rind from ham. Pour the pineapple syrup over ham and sprinkle brown sugar all over ham also. Place ham under the broiler and let caramelized on all sides. Remove immediately after ham is well caramelized. Set aside
- In a small pan, melt the butter and add the pineapple slices. Heat slices on both sides. Remove from heat and decorate the ham with the pineapple slices and with the veggies
Notes
Nutrition
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.
Nutrition info is automatically generated and provided as a courtesy and as an estimate only.
