I cook this ham every Christmas, twice. Sometimes even thrice (so Shakespearean!). I serve it on Christmas day, on the buffet next to the Turkey. Any left-overs make the BEST holiday breakfast toasties, loaded with mustard of course.
It took me a long time to decide on my best recipe for gammon. A lot of trials and hundreds of sandwiches later, I present to you my absolute favourite. The maple syrup glazed ham. I cook the ham in apple cider for hours, glaze it with a delicious mixture of mustard, orange marmalade, port and maple syrup, then roast it in the oven until sticky and gorgeously caramelized. Foolproof and absolutely delicious.
Maple-glazed Festive Gammon
I cook this ham every Christmas, twice.Sometimes even thrice (so Shakespearean!). I serve it on Christmas day, on the buffet next to the Turkey. Any left-overs make the BEST holiday breakfast toasties, loaded with mustard of course.
Ingredients
- One smoked gammon, 2-3 kg
- 6 cups apple cider
- 5 cm piece root ginger
- 1 large onion, halved
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 5-6 thyme sprigs
- Water as needed
- A few whole cloves
For the glaze
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/2 cup orange marmalade
- 1/2 cup Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup “koumantaria” or Port
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 orange, juice and zest
- 1/4 cup soft brown sugar
Instructions
- Place gammon in a large pot. Add the rest of the ingredients and as much water is needed to totally cover the ham. Bring to a boil, cover the pot, lower the heat and simmer for 3 hours. You can do this the day before. Leave the ham in the pot with it’s juices until cool and ready to glaze.
- When you are ready to roast, preheat oven to 220° C, fan. Make the glaze by combining all ingredients together in a blender or food processor.
- Using scissors, remove twine or net from the ham (if any). Remove most of the fat (it will probably stick on the twine anyway). Stick a few cloves here and there for that extra Christmassy flavour. Place ham in a baking pan (a one-use aluminum pan will save you a lot of scrubbing afterwards). Pour over all the glaze and add 1/4 cup water around it. Bake for 30-40 minutes, basting 4-5 times with the pan juices until gorgeously caramelized. If glaze seems to burn in the pan, just add some more water. Don’t make it too runny though. You want a jam-like consistency.
- Serve glazed ham with the delicious sauce (pan juices) on the side. Happy, delicious Christmas.
