Sage-Tips

Where does the ham come from on a pig?

leg
Another common cut of pork comes from the leg – ham. Groceries tend to have a wide selection of ham products available – from whole hams to ham sliced for deli meat. All of these come from the leg of the pig. Ham is often cured, smoked or processed before purchase.

How is a ham made?

Ham is produced by curing raw pork by salting, also known as dry curing, or brining, also known as wet curing. Additionally, smoking may be employed, and seasonings may be added.

Does a ham come from the back of the pig or front?

A ham comes from the upper rear leg, while a shank would be the section farther down the leg. But some hams are cut to contain a portion of the leg. Shanks also turn up as ham hocks. The butt, usually called a Boston butt, comes from the front of the pig.

How is ham made step by step?

Ham manufacturing process:

1. Salting. Salt and nitrite/nitrate are rubbed in all over meat and skin.
2. Equalizing. Spices and sugar may be rubbed in.
3. Smoking. Hams are cold smoked for 24-30 hours.
4. Drying/Maturing. Hams lose more moisture and develop a characteristic flavor.

What part of the pig is bone in ham?

“When you hear “ham” you think of the rear leg. But the picnic ham is the lower part of shoulder.” This is another relatively tough and fatty cut, though it is often sold bone-in. Cook: Braise or smoke ”“ two good long, slow cooking methods to render the fat and make the meat tender and juicy.

What is the ham shank?

+ Larger Image. A processed cut taken from the bottom half of the leg. The shank end contains less fat, is not as meaty as the butt end, but it contains only one leg bone, making it easier to carve. It has a slightly sweeter flavor.

What is the difference between country ham and ham?

Most basically, city hams are wet-cured, and country hams are dry-cured. Country hams are older, drier and saltier, while city hams have a milder, juicier consistency. If you’ve never had country ham, you might be surprised by its saltiness and flavor, and you may be unfamiliar with how it is best cooked and served.

What part of pig is ham hock?

pork leg
Okay, but what is a ham hock? Cut from the bottom half of the pork leg, it’s a chunky, 4-inch section of bone surrounded by collagen, connective tissue, and some meat, all encased in a thick band of fat and skin.

What is a bone in ham called?

The “shank end” is the lower end, more leg and less fatty. The shank end has just one bone so is easier to slice. When I cooked half a ham recently, a nine-pound bone-in, shank-end ham yielded nearly eight pounds of cooked ham meat. A ham hock is usually sold fully cooked.

Is Ham made from a pig?

Ham is both the name of a food product and a particular portion location on a pig. In the USA, according to the FDA Standards of Identity, by definition ham is made of pork, from the hindquarters of a pig, and if any other meat is used, it cannot legally be called just “ham.”

What is the history of pork leg as Ham?

The preserving of pork leg as ham has a long history, with Cato the Elder writing about the “salting of hams” in his De Agri Cultura tome around 160 BC.

How do you make Ham with the bone in or out?

Ham can be made with the bone in or out. Basically, you need to pump the ham with a certain percentage of brine (usually around 25\% of its weight as per your recipe). Pump/inject in areas close to the bone and 75mm (3 inches) from the surface.

What part of the cow is Ham?

Ham comes from the shoulder muscles of a pig and it is almost always cured in salt and smoked. The corresponding cut of meat on a cow is called a chuck roast, and that cut always comes fresh, not cured or smoked.