TentHunter
Moderator
Update - Success!
Update - Well, here's my second attempt at curing & smoking a ham from scratch and I'm pleased as punch that I have what I consider to be a very good lower salt Ham on just my second try.
Based on the previous post, I decided to stick with the lower salt brine and go with option #4 - injecting - and it worked beautifully.
I started with an almost 10 lb. Picnic Shoulder. I made up the following low sodium Honey & Sugar Brine:
1 1/2 gallons Filtered Water
1 1/4 cup Pickling Salt
4 tsp. Cure #1
1 cup Honey
1 3/4 cup sugar
Important Note: this only contains 1/3 the normal recommended amount of cure #1 since I didn't cold smoke this. I just wanted to see if it would help keep a deeper pink color while maintaining a low salt solution. If you plan to cold smoke, then for safety's sake use the recommended amount of cure #1.
Some of the brine was injected into the shoulder then it was immersed in the brine and put into the fridge to brine/cure for about five days.
After five days I scored it and put it on the pit with some Hickory Pellets to hot smoke at about 325° for 4 hours. I made a glaze of Honey, a bit of Water and Ground Allspice.
The Picnic Ham was perfectly cured all the way through and very juicy.
We sliced a bit up to try. It has a very nice deep flavor with a hint of hickory & honey. I can't believe how moist and tasty it was WITHOUT being overly salty! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I can't wait for my Mom, who's salt intake is even more restricted than mine, to try this
.
Next time I may try adding a bit more honey to see how it turns out.
Update - Well, here's my second attempt at curing & smoking a ham from scratch and I'm pleased as punch that I have what I consider to be a very good lower salt Ham on just my second try.
Based on the previous post, I decided to stick with the lower salt brine and go with option #4 - injecting - and it worked beautifully.
I started with an almost 10 lb. Picnic Shoulder. I made up the following low sodium Honey & Sugar Brine:
1 1/2 gallons Filtered Water
1 1/4 cup Pickling Salt
4 tsp. Cure #1
1 cup Honey
1 3/4 cup sugar
Important Note: this only contains 1/3 the normal recommended amount of cure #1 since I didn't cold smoke this. I just wanted to see if it would help keep a deeper pink color while maintaining a low salt solution. If you plan to cold smoke, then for safety's sake use the recommended amount of cure #1.
Some of the brine was injected into the shoulder then it was immersed in the brine and put into the fridge to brine/cure for about five days.
After five days I scored it and put it on the pit with some Hickory Pellets to hot smoke at about 325° for 4 hours. I made a glaze of Honey, a bit of Water and Ground Allspice.
The Picnic Ham was perfectly cured all the way through and very juicy.
We sliced a bit up to try. It has a very nice deep flavor with a hint of hickory & honey. I can't believe how moist and tasty it was WITHOUT being overly salty! This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I can't wait for my Mom, who's salt intake is even more restricted than mine, to try this
.Next time I may try adding a bit more honey to see how it turns out.
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