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City Ham

Alton Brown

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Ham I Am

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (280)

  • Cook Time:

    6 hr 0 min

  • Level:

    --

  • Yield:

    10 to 15 portions, depending o

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Times:

Prep
15 min
Inactive Prep
--
Cook
6 hr 0 min
Total:
6 hr 15 min
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Ingredients

  • 1 city style (brined) ham, hock end*
  • 1/4 cup brown mustard
  • 2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1-ounce bourbon (poured into a spritz bottle)
  • 2 cups crushed ginger snap cookies

Directions

Heat oven to 250 degrees F.

Remove ham from bag, rinse and drain thoroughly. Place ham, cut side down, in a roasting pan. Using a small paring knife or clean utility knife set to the smallest blade setting, score the ham from bottom to top, spiraling clockwise as you cut. (If you're using a paring knife, be careful to only cut through the skin and first few layers of fat). Rotate the ham after each cut so that the scores are no more than 2-inches across. Once you've made it all the way around, move the knife to the other hand and repeat, spiraling counter clockwise. The aim is to create a diamond pattern all over the ham. (Don't worry too much about precision here.)

Tent the ham with heavy duty foil, insert a thermometer, and cook for 3 to 4 hours or until the internal temperature at the deepest part of the meat registers 130 degrees F.

Remove and use tongs to pull away the diamonds of skin and any sheets of fat that come off with them.

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Dab dry with paper towels, then brush on a liberal coat of mustard, using either a basting brush or a clean paint brush (clean as in never-touched paint). Sprinkle on brown sugar, packing loosely as you go until the ham is coated. Spritz this layer lightly with bourbon, then loosely pack on as much of the crushed cookies as you can.

Insert the thermometer (don't use the old hole) and return to the oven (uncovered). Cook until interior temperature reaches 140 degrees F, approximately 1 hour.

Let the roast rest for 1/2 hour before carving.

*Cook's note: A city ham is basically any brined ham that's packed in a plastic bag, held in a refrigerated case and marked "ready to cook", "partially cooked" or "ready to serve". Better city hams are also labeled "ham in natural juices".

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Read more Comments & Reviews (280)

Comments & Reviews

  • recipe City Ham
    Peter Stou, WI 11-09-2009

    Flag

    Exellent

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    Best Ham Ever!
  • recipe City Ham
    Janice Springville, IA 10-12-2009

    Flag

    The Best Ham EVER!!!!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    My husband has made this ham for like 3-4 years..Everyone loves it so much he is now catering my cousins wedding with it..We... hardly ever have any left over cause everyone takes some home with them... I would recommend this ham for any occasion!!!!Read more
  • recipe City Ham
    Susan Maidens, VA 10-08-2009

    Flag

    Another hit for Alton!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I made this for a family celebration and followed the directions exactly - everybody went back for seconds, and comments... renged from 'awesome' to 'unbelievable' to 'best ham I ever had' - and I used an off-brand shank on sale for 79 cents/pound! I will definitely make this again. And other family members have all asked for the recipe as well!Read more
  • recipe City Ham
    Frank Katy, TX 09-13-2009

    Flag

    Why ham was invented!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    The best reason to buy a ham is to give it the Alton Brown City Ham treatment. If you haven't tried this yet you are not... getting the most flavor from your ham. And as others have noted, the leftovers are perhaps even better. Make some sandwiches and serve with The Barefoot Contessa's Cream of Tomato Soup (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cream-of-fresh-tomato-soup-recipe/index.html) for an awesome fall lunch.Read more
  • recipe City Ham
    stephanie amarillo, TX 07-08-2009

    Flag

    THE BEST EVER!!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    We have been making this ham for almost a year. Have made it at least 5 times..and it turns out great every time! We slice... the left overs with the meat slicer, freeze it in small portions and serve it with breakfast (on a whole wheat/double fiber english muffin, weight watcher cheese, fried egg and salsa). Talk about great, fast breakfasts! Thanks for the recipe Alton. Read more
  • recipe City Ham
    Debby Corona, CA 04-17-2009

    Flag

    Excellent!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I can't say I am a huge ham fan but I was hosting Easter this year so I turned to Food Network for some ham ideas. I made... this and everyone LOVED it! My sister said it was the best ham she ever had and many people could not stop eating it. It was a little more time consuming than your average ham but I loved that you cut the skin and all the fat off and the coating was amazing. I will definitely only make this version whenever I make ham again. You certainly won't be disappointed.Read more
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