Glazed ham with mango relish
A perfectly glazed ham always looks stunning, but loin of bacon is ideal for this recipe too, and is much easier to carve.
SERVES
12
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
25
MINUTES
COOKING TIME
20
MINUTES
Ingredients
1 x 4.5-5.4kg (10-12lb) fresh or lightly smoked ham (make sure it has a nice layer of fat)
60-80 whole cloves, depending on the size of the diamonds
350-450g (3/4-1lb) Demerara sugar
1 small tin of pineapple. Use 75-125ml (3-4fl oz) of the juice
For the mango relish:
50ml (2fl oz) medium sherry
50ml (2fl oz) white wine vinegar
50ml (2fl oz) water 2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
2 cinnamon sticks
1 star anise
Pinch of ground mace
1 mango, peeled and diced
1 small red pepper, seeded and diced
1 tbsp lemon juice
Method
If the ham is salty, soak it in cold water overnight. The next day, discard the water. Cover the ham with fresh cold water and bring it slowly to the boil. If the meat is still salty there will be a white froth on top of the water. In this case it is preferable to discard this water, cover the ham with fresh cold water again and repeat the process. Finally, cover the ham with hot water and simmer until it is almost cooked. Allow 25 minutes to 450g (1lb) approx for ham, 20 minutes for a loin of bacon.
Meanwhile, make the mango relish. Put the sherry, vinegar, water, sugar, salt, cinnamon, star anise and mace into a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the mango, red pepper and lemon juice, lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes more. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Spoon into a screw-top jar and refrigerate until required.
Preheat the oven to 250°C/475°F/gas mark 9.
Peel the rind off the ham, cut the fat into a diamond pattern and stud each diamond with a whole clove. Blend the brown sugar to a paste with a little pineapple juice. Be careful not to make it too liquid.
Spread this over the ham. Bake it in the hot oven for 20 minutes, or until the top has caramelised. While it is glazing, baste regularly with the syrup and juices. Serve hot or cold with mango relish.
