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Christmas is celebrated in South Africa much the same way as in other countries except that for them it occurs in summer instead of winter. Families gather for a large Christmas feast with ham, in a variety of forms, as a very popular entree. The most popular is gammon, which is a Chinese type of cured ham that is uncooked and very salty. Since it is not readily available, probably Smithfield and Virginia hams are the closest we can come to a true gammon. If an uncooked ham is unavailable, you can alter the cooking time in this recipe and still have an elegant entree to grace any holiday table. After lunch, families then visit the homes of friends to exchange a “Christmas box” of food.
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| 8-10 servings |
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Christmas is celebrated in South Africa much the same way as in other countries except that for them it occurs in summer instead of winter. Families gather for a large Christmas feast with ham, in a variety of forms, as a very popular entree. The most popular is gammon, which is a Chinese type of cured ham that is uncooked and very salty. Since it is not readily available, probably Smithfield and Virginia hams are the closest we can come to a true gammon. If an uncooked ham is unavailable, you can alter the cooking time in this recipe and still have an elegant entree to grace any holiday table. After lunch, families then visit the homes of friends to exchange a “Christmas box” of food.
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Ingredients
- 1 5-6 lb ham
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 3 tbsp ground ginger
- 2 tbsp dry mustard
- 2 tbsp ground piri piri chile or substitute ground piquin
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
- 6 canned apricot halves
- 10-15 whole cloves
Glaze
- 1 cup apricot nectar
- 2/3 cup honey
- 1/3 cup Dijon-style mustard
- 1/4 cup red wine
- 2 tbsp ground piri piri chile or substitute ground piquin
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
Servings: servings
Units:
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and liberally oil a large baking pan.
- Place the ham, fat side up, in the baking pan, and pour the broth over the top. Dust the ham with the ginger, mustard and chile, add the bay leaves and peppercorns and cover the roast with a lid or aluminum foil.
- Bake the ham for 3 to 4 hours, or until an internal thermometer reads 125 degrees F. Remove the meat from the oven and raise the heat to 400 degrees F.
- Remove the meat from the pan and pour off the liquid. Peel the outer layer of the skin off the fat of the ham, leaving a good layer of fat. Score the fat with a sharp knife to form a crisscross diamond pattern.
- Combine all the ingredients for the glaze in a bowl and stir to mix. Spoon the glaze over the ham and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes or to an internal temperature of 140 degrees F., basting often with the glaze.
- Remove the ham and place on a large serving platter. Garnish with the apricot halves using the cloves to anchor them in place, and serve.
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