HAM! and leftovers...

BEFORE the glaze

I cooked a picnic ham from my share of the pig.  This ham is very different than commercial  ham. For one, it is not pastel pink. And it does not have that silvery glisten you often see. With no salty after-taste, it is, in the words of my guests, more 'porky', yet definitely cured.
This was an 8 pound bone-in picnic ham. Even with my two sons, daughter-in-law, and three guests there are tons of leftovers. The mildness of the cure allows more possibilities in using the ham. This week it will be a traditional use of leftover ham- lentil soup as well as a version of Spaghetti Carbonara.
Here's the original menu:

Glazed Baked Ham

Mashed Potatoes with Scallions

Roasted Green Beans

salad

Fresh Pineapple Upside Down Cake

I made the mashed potatoes the day before, without the scallions and trimmed and washed the green beans. While the roast was resting, I put the potatoes in a 350 degree oven (adding a bit more milk), covered, to heat along with the beans that were tossed with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper. I stirred the scallions into the potatoes just before I served them.

Glazed Baked Ham

1 8 to 10 pound ham (preferably bone-in picnic)

1 large onion

1 Tablespoon dry mustard, such as Colman’s

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup stone ground mustard

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup orange marmalade

1. Peel and slice the onion. Carefully slice off the skin from the ham, leaving the fat. Set the skin aside.

2. Combine the dry mustard and black pepper. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

3. Put the brown sugar, mustard, vinegar and marmalade in a saucepan and simmer, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until thickened, about 15 minutes. 

4. Score the fat on the ham by making diagonal slashes from top to bottom. Turn it and score from the other direction to make a diamond pattern.

5. Place the sliced onion in a baking pan (if you have a deep enough one with a cover, that’s great—otherwise you can cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil). Place the ham, with the bone pointing up, on top of the onion. 

6. Rub the dry mustard and pepper mixture all over the ham. Cover tightly (with lid or aluminum foil) and bake 2 to 3 hours, until the internal thermometer registers 140 degrees (use a meat thermometer or instant read thermometer). 

7. Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees.Remove the ham from the oven. . Either drain off any liquid in the pan, or place the ham in a clean baking pan and generously brush with glaze. Bake 25 minutes, until the glaze is browned. Remove from the oven, and let rest 20 minutes.

8. Meanwhile, add about 1 cup of the drained liquid to the remaining glaze. Cook over medium heat to thicken slightly.

9. Slice the ham and serve with the sauce.

Leftover Ham Lentil Soup

A perfect lunch with a grilled cheese sandwich

LUNCH!

1 ham bone from a picnic ham

1/4 cup pieces of ham fat, drippings from 2 slices of bacon, or 2 Tablespoons oil

1 large onion

2 carrots

2 stalks of celery

1/4 small head of white cabbage

2 cloves garlic

1 pound dry lentils

8 cups water

2 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1 cup diced ham

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill

salt and pepper

1. Carefully sort through the lentils, picking out any that are discolored or wrinkled. Rinse them in cold water.

2. Dice the onion, carrot, cabbage and celery. (If you want to have more texture, you can slice the cabbage into thin strips). Finely mince the garlic.

3. If using ham fat, place in a large, heavy skillet and cook over very low heat until all of the fat has rendered. Remove any cracklings. If using bacon fat or oil, heat in the skillet. 

4. Add the vegetables and cook over very low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions and celery are translucent. 

5. Place the ham bone in a large soup pot and add the lentils, vegetables, water and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 2 hours, until the lentils are soft.

6. Add the dill and ham and cook another 10 minutes. Check for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.

Other ideas for leftover ham: add to Red Beans and Rice, use in Fried Rice or Jambalaya, add cubes to Macaroni and Cheese, toss cubes with vinegar and fresh rosemary and serve cold with hot crusty bread, put into 'twice-baked potatoes' along with some steamed broccoli and cheddar-- the possibilities are endless!

Bourbon Brined Chops, Sesame Noodles and Mou Shu Pork!

Patty of Springdell Farm

Another week gone with my pork share! With the incredibly lean chops I made Maple Glazed Pork Chops and Bourbon Brined Chops. I  also made Sesame Noodles with Pork and Mou Shu Pork with Cantonese Pancakes.
The Sesame Noodles and Mou Shu are recipes that are very adaptable. Add broccoli, beans, bok choy or whatever you have about to the Sesame Noodles. The key is to slice them very thinly and keep them crisp. Mou Shu is also versatile- don't be intimidated by the long list of ingredients. If you don't have black mushrooms, use fresh shitake mushrooms. If you don't have bean sprouts, use bok choy or cabbage or even green beans.

Bourbon Brined Pork Chops with Bourbon Glaze

For the brine:
3 cups water
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
one cup bourbon
4 thick pork chops
1. Combine the water, salt and brown sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let cool to lukewarm and add the bourbon. Add the chops and let brine in the refrigerator for 6 to 24 hours.
2. To cook chops, remove them from the brine and pat dry. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. Heat a small amount of oil in a heavy skillet and brown the chops until golden – about 4 minutes per side. Remove to a baking sheet and place in oven for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, make the glaze.
For the glaze:
1 small onion or 2 shallots
1 clove garlic
2 Tablespoons butter
1/3 cup bourbon
1/4 cup maple syrup
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1. Finely dice the onion or shallots and finely mince the garlic. Heat the butter in a skillet and add the onion. Saute over low heat until translucent. Turn the heat to high and cook until the onion begins to brown.
2. Add the bourbon, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove all the browned bits. Reduce the heat and add the maple syrup. Cook, stirring, until thickened.
3. Pour over the chops and serve.

Mou Shu Pork

Mandarin Pancakes (below)
Hoisin Sauce
1- 1/2 pound boneless pork
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
6 large dried black mushrooms
2 scallions
2 tablespoons cold water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon soy sauce (light or dark)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash of white pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
2 cups bean sprouts
1/2 cup chicken broth or water

1. Prepare the Mandarin Pancakes, below.
2. Shred pork into slivers. Toss with cornstarch, salt, soy sauce, sugar and white pepper. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.
3. Soak the mushrooms in hot water until soft, about 30 minutes. Drain, rinse in water and drain again. Remove and discard the stems and cut the caps into thin slices. Cut green onions into 2 inch pieces. Mix water, 1 teaspoon cornstarch and 1 teaspoon soy sauce.
4. Heat a wok or large skillet until 1 or 2 drops of water bubble and skitter when sprinkled into the wok. Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Mix egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt and dash of white pepper; pour into wok. Rotate the wok to coat the bottom with egg. Fry the egg until firm, turning once, about 10 seconds. Remove the egg from the wok; cut into thin strips.
5. Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to wok. Add the garlic and stir-fry until brown. Add the pork and stir-fry until no longer pink. Add mushrooms and bamboo shoots; stir-fry 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth; cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in cornstarch mixture; cook and stir until thickened, about 10 seconds. Add green onions and egg strips. Cook and stir 30 seconds.
6. To serve, each person takes a pancake and spreads it with hoisin sauce, then spoons about 1/4 cup pork mixture into center. Fold two opposite sides over filling, overlapping edges about 1/2-inch in center. Fold one unfolded edge over folded sides to form a pocket.
Mandarin Pancakes:
2 –1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup boiling water
sesame oil as needed

1. Mix the flour and water with a fork until dough holds together. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 8 minutes. Shape the dough into an 8-inch roll (like the ‘snakes’ you used to make with playdoh). Cut the roll into eight 1” slices. Cut each slice into halves. Cover the pieces of dough with plastic wrap to keep them from drying out.
2. Shape each of 2 pieces of dough into a ball. Flatten slightly and then roll each ball of dough into a 4” circle on a lightly floured surface. Brush the top of one circle with sesame oil; top with remaining circle. Roll each double circle into a 7-inch circle, sprinkling the surface with flour sparingly, as needed. Repeat with remaining pieces.
3. Heat an ungreased skillet over medium heat until warm. Cook one circle at a time, turning frequently, until the pancake is blistered with air pockets, turns slightly translucent and feels dry. Do not overcook the pancake or it will become brittle. Carefully separate the 2 pancakes. Repeat each step with remaining circles.

Szechwan Noodles with Sesame Sauce

1/2 cup (or more) water
1/2 cup smooth sesame tahini
2 Tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon chili-garlic sauce
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound fettuccini
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 large pork chop
1 red bell pepper
1 large carrot
2 to 3 scallions
1/4 cup chopped peanuts
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1. Peel and mince the garlic and chop the peanuts. Slice the pork into thin slivers. Cut the bell pepper and carrot into matchstick slices. Finely chop the scallions.
2. Mix 1/2 cup of water, tahini, peanut butter, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, chili-garlic sauce and minced garlic in medium bowl to blend well (sauce will be thick). Set aside.
3. Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to the bite, about 6 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Toss the noodles with one tablespoon of oil in a large bowl.
4. Saute the pork strips in the remaining tablespoon of oil until no longer pink.
5. Add the bell pepper, carrot and pork to the noodles. Toss with enough peanut sauce to coat. Sprinkle with scallions, peanuts and sesame seeds.

Next week: What I did with a huge ham steak!