HAM WITH POMEGRANATE GLAZE

MAKES APPROX 1 CUP / PREPARATION 15 MINUTES / COOKING TIME VARIES ACCORDING TO THE SIZE OF YOUR HAM

This makes more than enough glaze for a whole ham.

I like the play of tartness here courtesy of the pomegranate molasses, but feel free to increase the brown sugar if you like things a little sweeter.

POMEGRANATE MOLASSES HAM GLAZE

3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses zest and juice of 1 orange

3 tablespoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons wholegrain or Dijon mustard ¼ teaspoon ground allspice

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring up to a simmer, cook for a minute then set aside to cool. This can be made a few days ahead.

FOR THE HAM

1 ham whole cloves and pomegranate arils,

to dress the ham

At the shank end of the ham, use a sharp knife to cut a zigzag pattern through the skin 6cm from the end. Carefully use your fingers to remove the skin, leaving all the fat behind (which helps keep the meat moist during cooking as well as providing flavour). Score through the fat in a diamond pattern, ensuring you don’t cut through to the meat. Push a whole clove or pomegranate aril into the centre of each diamond. This can be done a day ahead and the ham stored in the fridge.

Take the ham out of the fridge at least 1 hour before baking to bring it up to room temperature. Take a note of its weight.

Preheat the oven to 150°C. Place the ham in a large roasting dish lined with baking paper (this is really just to prevent the glaze sticking to the dish) along with 1 cup of water, then brush with the glaze.

Allow 15 minutes cooking time for each 500g meat. Baste every 20 minutes with any extra glaze and juices from the bottom of the roasting dish. If the liquid starts to dry out add a splash more water. Lower the temperature if the glaze starts to brown too fast. If some areas are browning faster than others then cover those bits with a piece of foil.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before slicing. I often reserve the glaze, skimming off any fat and then serve along with the ham.

Keep any leftover ham wrapped in a ham bag or muslin that has been rinsed with water and a little vinegar (rinse out the bag every couple of days to keep the ham fresh).