I love falling-apart, perfectly-baked, sweet-cured ham. It embodies all my fave crave-flaves. But now, somebody has come up with something even better: Honey-Baked Pulled Ham!
Disclaimer: I love pulled pork even more than sweet-cured baked ham. It has everything to do with the jus/gravy, and the intense umami undertones of the swavoury Carolina BBQ sauce that tradi-tionally goes with it.
But Delish contributor Francesca Zani has taken the two, combined them and come up with a rare combo which is greater than the simple sum of its parts…
The ultimate game day favourite?
Pulled Pork has been hailed as the ultimate Game Day sandwich and snacking platter. But it’s a lot of work, and involves a lot of cooking time. I’m not saying the investment isn’t worth it. But it’s a big production, and you want to watch the game as much as your guests do, right?
Dissecting the recipe I’m spotlighting today, the aforementioned fears and complaints seem unfounded…
Zani insists
“It feels like a secret that a preserved ham can deconstruct into pulled pork after hours of slow cooking. The initial steam takes about 3 hours, until the ham starts to soften and heat through. At this point, it may be safe to eat and slice, BUT KEEP GOING,” she urges.
“You’ll rub a vibrant yellow South Carolina BBQ sauce all over the outside of the ham and continue to let it go in the oven. Leave the pieces in larger chunks, and leave behind some of the melted bits of fat (my favorite). The result is a pulled ham dinner that will not only upgrade the basic baked ham at your Easter spread, but is the perfect post-holiday meal piled high onto sliders.”
Ham tips…
One of the first things I saw as a potential drawback when trying to execute this absolutely heavenly-sounding recipe was the Ham itself.
As Zani is quick to point out, it’s getting harder and harder these days to source a whole, bone-in ham that hasn’t been spiral sliced. And it’s essential to this dish that your ham NOT be pre-sliced like that. A spiral-sliced ham can’t be ‘pulled’ in the traditional sense. And it may dry out during cooking if you’re not careful.
Moisture a central issue
A quick read-over of the recipe ingredients and procedure will reveal that Zani prizes, particularly, the fat right next to the bone in the conventional bone-in roast. It will help moisturize the meat from the inside out.
You also get a thicker external fat cap on the bone-in solid ham.
And the recipe itself calls for 2 cups of beer (a conventional lager is recommended), to add to the baking dish or pan to ensure the ham comes out as juicy and flavourful as it’s possible for any mere human cook to achieve. In fact the recipe calls for two cups divided (for adding at different times). I’d set aside 2 x 12 oz. / 355 ml cans or bottles and eyeball it as the afternoon progresses…
Further to the quest for moistness and juiciness… DO cook low and slow as Zani instructs – at 325 F.
My take
I suggest you try Zani’s Carlolina Sauce (recipe included in her post) as directed the first time out making this recipe. You can adjust the sweet, sour and other keynote flavours per your personal preference in future versions.
Zani also provides storage and recipe suggestions for any leftovers. But I don’t see even a single shred of this delicious ham being left over after the final whistle has sounded!
~ Maggie J.