I’m embarrassed to actually admit this but it wasn’t that long ago I wasn’t sure whether or not ham was actually already cooked when you bought it. I knew it was smoked but did that mean it was ready to eat? I spent an inordinate amount of time googling an answer to that question. And the reason I was confused was because I had seen all these recipes for “cooking” ham for Christmas. You know the clove-studded marmalade spread ones? They looked really pretty and it was still a mystery to me this cooking bit. Luckily I watched Donna Hay’s Christmas special a few years ago and I realised the ham was ready to rock and roll but it needed to be dressed in her Sunday best before being presented. A-ha.

So I made Donna’s glazed ham that year. And last year. And I’m making it again this year. It is the most delicious ham I have ever tasted. It is both sweet and savoury at the same time and it is to die for. And it is super easy – boil up the ingredients, chuck it in a roasting dish, pop the ham on top and turn and glaze halfway through. The leftover glaze can and must be served on the side in a jug so if you aren’t lucky enough to grab some of those caramelised outside bits you can pour this delicious sauce on top anyway. So if you have had blah, boring ham in the past I swear to you, this will be on your Christmas table from now on too.

For best results, buy the best ham you can get your hands on and make it a double smoked ham. Depending on the ham you get you may or may not have to remove the skin. If your ham does have a skin on it, remove it by scoring with a sharp knife around the hock, then peel it straight off.

Adapted from Donna Hay’s recipe

Ingredients

1/2 – whole leg ham
375ml orange juice
8 sprigs thyme
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
4 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
375ml port

Pre-heat oven to 200C. Put the orange juice, thyme, vinegar, sugar, cloves and cinnamon stick into a large pot and simmer on a low heat until thick and syrupy.

Then add the port and strain into a large baking dish. Place the ham, fat side down into the glaze and bake for 40 minutes. Then turn the ham over, spooning over the glaze. Reduce temperature to 180C and bake for a further half hour. Reserve 1 cup of the marinade to serve with the ham. I poured mine straight over the sliced ham.

Carolyn started her blog Pinkpostitnote.com just over a year ago as a way to deal with her obsession of trying new recipes from the copious collection of cookbooks that she owns (and continues to buy). She is particularly fond of “man” food, both cooking it and eating it. She will happily elbow people out of the road at the sight, sound and smell of a pulled pork burger. When she’s not lying awake at 5am wondering if she should buy chooks and a cow to deal with the constant need for eggs and butter, she’s dealing with all the paperwork associated with owning a bunch of tip trucks and her favorite time of the day is wine five o-clock.