Got my Pig back!!!!!

[Shmave23]

So I get a call from Willow Glen Meats and Smokehouse tellin me that my wild pig is ready. Its the same butcher that I used to process my deer and they did such a good job with that one. Well they do not dissapoint let me tell you. It is great to be able to drop them off an animal cleaned and skinned, and then come pick up some boxes of ready to cook and eat meat.
So from my pig I got:
*backstrap bbq cut
*backstrap whole
*tenders
*fresh butt steaks
*louisiana hot links-18lbs
*2 huge smoked hams

But a question I do have is what would be the correct way/directions to heat up a ham without makin it dry???? I wanna serve one on xmas moring to family that is coming over.

-Dave

 

[cheta]

Not sure about the ham, i would say use a smoker. Sounds like pig goodness enjoy the fruits of your labor!

 

[myfriendis410]

The thing about wild pork is it tends to be dry. To combat that you need to introduce some fat to the ham. I would probably use some kind of glaze i.e. mustard, honey, etc. and inject some fat into the ham. You could use lard, but I would kind of lean toward butter or olive oil. You should cook covered at a low temperature, and add water to the vessel the ham is in. Remember: moistness (mouth-feel) is FAT, not water. Just use the healthiest fat you can find.

 

[inchr48]

I'm guessing the ham has been cured, and "cold smoked", meaning it still needs to be cooked. You can verify with your processors.

I tent my hams with loose foil until the last half hour of cooking. Remove the foil to brown. I use a shallow cast iron skillet to roast it in at 350 for 20 minutes/pound.

I like to slit the skin/fat in a diamond pattern and stud mine with whole cloves. You can glaze with a mix of brown sugar, a little flour, and dry mustard. Thin with apple cider vinegar until liquid enough to pour onto the ham. Keep it thick tho' since it will melt over the hot ham. Glaze the last 10 minutes of cooking and again while cooling for 15 or 20 minutes to allow the juices to set.

 

[jagdman]

You can also use the turkey oven bags, they will not let any of the liquid in the meet to cook off. We use them when we do our pit BBQs at our Cedar Canyon Ranch. The meat that we cook is always very moist and tender.

 

[jerryt]

I typically take the wild smoked hams and cut slits in it in a diamond pattern and then fill them with honey and brown sugar and it never seems to dry out.

 

[hunterdoug]

dave are the hams smoked? they should be and to do that they prob brought it to 140deg. I haven't used W G before, but willowside in Santa Rosa smoked em for me and I would cook em just like incher said, shallow to med roasting pan tented. throw some (3,4,6) garlic cloves in the bottom of the pan when you baste it'll be real nice.

 

[hunterdoug]

Ham dipping sauce

had to find this one for you dave great with wild ham, especially for those skeptics that may be afraid of "wild game". (dipping sauce not glaze)
2 eggs well beaten, 1 Tbs dry mustard, 1/2 cup vinegar, 2Tbs butter (not margarine), 1 1/4 cup sugar. bring to slow boil (don't turn eggs into scramble), serve warm or cool with leftovers, can you say YUMMMY!!

 

[Huntr Pat]

Dave, Bring them over my house and I'll show ya how its done hawaiian style.