Whenever you go to a French market, there’s usually a street food stall selling spit roasted chickens, little roasted potatoes and, if you’re lucky, braised ham. It’s a firm favourite with the French and it’s super easy to prepare at home with this scrumptious recipe.
Serves 4
Active time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 3 hours 20 minutes
Storage: 4 days in the refrigerator
EQUIPMENT
Thin-bladed knife
INGREDIENTS
Braised ham
6½-lb. (3-kg) ham, preferably milk-fed
Coarse grey sea salt, as needed
Freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
Glaze
Scant ½ cup (5 oz./150 g) acacia honey
3 tbsp (1¾ oz./50 g) butter
2 tsp (10 ml) soy sauce
METHOD
Preparing the braised ham
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C/Gas Mark 6). Using the thin-bladed knife, score the ham skin in a criss-cross pattern, then pierce all over. Rub the outside with coarse grey sea salt, pressing it into the scored pattern. Season with pepper and place in a baking dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake for 40 minutes, then cover with aluminium foil and continue to bake for 1 hour. Lower the oven temperature to 290°F (145°C/Gas Mark 1) and bake for an additional 1 hour.
Glazing the ham
Warm the honey, butter, and soy sauce in a saucepan until liquefied. Remove the ham from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C/Gas Mark 4). When the oven reaches this temperature, brush the glaze over the ham and bake for 12 minutes. Repeat this process twice more until the ham is glossy and golden brown, and the meat comes away easily from the bone.
Extracted from Charcuterie: Pâtés, Terrines, Savory Pies – Recipes and Techniques From the Ferrandi School of Culinary Arts by Ferrandi Paris (Flammarion, 2023)
Photography credit © Rina Nurra
