Ho! Ho! Ho! Or rather Yum! Yum! Yum! That's what you'll be saying as you dig into this succulent and festive Easy Christmas Ham.
If the thought of making your own Xmas ham seems daunting, this recipe is perfect for you and could not be simpler! The natural saltiness of the ham works so well with the sweetness of marmalade, along with a hint of horseradish, ground cloves and some fresh, caramelized oranges to create a ham worthy enough to grace any Christmas table!
The most important thing to remember when baking a ham is that you need to bake your ham for around 15-18 minutes for every 500g/pound at a temperature of 160C/325F and you want to bake it for 2/3 of the total cooking time covered (generally with foil). You'll know your ham is cooked through when you insert a meat thermometer into the center of the ham and the internal temperature is 63C/145F.
Many people recommend using a large throw away foil tray to make the clean-up quicker but if you're weary of using foil tray due to chemicals leaching into your food a lined large ceramic dish or deep baking dish all work very well. I just used my Chasseur pot. Don't worry if you get a bit of a char on your ham or oranges, that is just the delicious caramelization of the marmalade and orange, however if it seems to be getting too brown for you, keep your ham lightly covered with aluminium foil until cooked.
If your ham is a little bigger, no problem! The quantities and cooking time can all be easily adjusted making this recipe super easy to do! It's a simple ratio of 1/4 cup marmalade, to 1 teaspoon horseradish, to a small pinch of ground cloves.
And that's it! This Easy Christmas Ham is so easy - I am sure it will rock your Jingle Bells!
YOU WILL NEED
1 x 2.2kg | 5 pound semi boned smoked ham
1.5 cups marmalade
3 teaspoons horseradish
1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (start with less and see if you need a touch (less is more with ground cloves)
1 fresh orange thinly sliced
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 160C/325F.
Remove the skin from the ham but keep the fat.
Score the fat (not the flesh) with a sharp knife in a diamond making the lines about 2.5cm/1 Inches apart.
Place the ham into your large baking dish or foil tray.
in a small mixing bowl, mix the marmalade, horseradish and ground cloves and then baste/brush the ham all over with the mixture - be generous and use it all up!
Add some of the orange slices over the ham and press down onto the ham, so that the marmalade holds them in place, cut the slices into halves or quarters if it makes them easier to stay in place.
Place in your preheated oven for 1 and 15 minutes and remove foil just after 45 minutes of baking and allow to cook uncovered for the remaining time. If you are unsure if you ham is cooked check the internal temperature has reached 63C/145F and continue cooking until done.
Remove from oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes and then slice and serve in the remaining pan juices for extra-delicious flavor along with all your favorite Christmas sides. Enjoy and Merry Eating!
SERVES 8-10
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