Gammon with a sticky orange glaze

For the gammon:

a large gammon, weighing 2.5 to 3 kg, bone in or out

one can (330 ml) ginger ale

one bottle (330 ml) of your favourite beer

2 whole star anise

3 bay leaves

3 whole cloves

1 large onion, peeled and quartered

2 carrots, scraped and roughly chopped

a small stick of celery

a few parsley stalks

1 tsp (5 ml) whole black peppercorns

water, to cover

whole cloves, to stud

For the glaze:

finely grated zest of a large orange

juice of two oranges

3 T (45 ml) Kikkoman soy sauce

3 T (45 ml) rice vinegar

3 T (45 ml) soft dark sugar

2 T (30 ml) honey

2 T (30 ml) grated fresh ginger

1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped

the juice of half a lemon

Make a note of the weight of the gammon before you discard the packaging. Put the gammon, ginger ale, beer, star anise, bay leaves, cloves, onion, carrots, celery, parsley stalks and peppercorns into a deep pot. Add enough water just to cover the gammon to a depth of 1 cm. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat so that the gammon cooks at a simmer. Partially cover the pot with a tilted lid. If you’re using a boneless gammon, cook the meat for 30 minutes per kilogram. If you’re using a gammon with a large bone, cook it for 45-55 minutes per kilogram, or according to the instructions on the wrapping. Check the pot now and then, and top up with more water if necessary. Turn off the heat and leave the gammon in the liquid to cool completely.

Put all the ingredients for the glaze, except the lemon juice, into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Bubble the the glaze for about 10 minutes, or until it has reduced by about half, is slightly syrupy and is forming big, slow-popping bubbles. Remove it from the heat and stir in the lemon juice.

Lift the gammon out of the cooking broth, pat it dry on kitchen paper and place in a roasting pan. (Strain the stock and freeze it for future use in stews and soups). Peel away the rind and discard it. If there is a very thick layer of fat below the rind, scrape most of it away, leaving behind a thin layer. Using a sharp knife, score the top of the gammon in a diamond pattern. Stud the gammon with whole cloves.

Pour the glaze over the gammon and place the pan under the hot grill, on the middle shelf of the oven. Every two minutes or so, baste the meat by scooping the glaze off the bottom of the pan and trickling it all over the top and sides. Leave the oven door slightly open and watch it like a hawk: the glaze burns easily. When the gammon has a rich, sticky crust, and there is just a little glaze left in the bottom of the pan, remove it from the oven. Let the pan cool for 10 minutes then, using a pastry brush, paint any remaining glaze over the top and sides of the gammon (or dribble it on with a teaspoon). Serve hot or cold, with a green salad and potatoes.

This recipe was originally published on Scrumptious SA.

– Sourced from https://blog.getaway.co.za