I’m not sure about you, but we have just about finished eating our way through the Christmas ham. The 24 hours before Christmas was the most agonising as we wondered if the stock-standard oven result would be a better and a more predictable than trying to BBQ the ham.
Finally, a couple of hours before Christmas lunch and with the oven pre-heating, we thought why not try the bbq!
Well, let me tell you that I am so glad we went with that method – this was the best ham I’ve ever had. We glazed it using a sticky maple glaze. I’ve included a little mini recipe here for how to cook a ham on a bbq so that you don’t have to agonise over it like we did.
- 4-5kg ham on the bone
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
- Remove ham from the fridge and gently lift off the skin, leaving the fat layer intact. Discard skin or freeze for adding to soups and stews for flavour.
- Using a sharp knife score the fat in a diamond pattern. using a pastry brush, brush 3 tablespoons of the glaze all over the ham and let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, turn on the barbecue to medium-high with the hood on. Place the ham on a roasting tray and place onto the barbecue. Cover with the hood and allow the temperature to come up to 180C. Turn down the heat and cook the ham for 20 minutes per kilo of ham, basting every 10-15 minutes.
Matt did a wonderful job glazing and barbecuing the ham. Our glaze was simple and we skipped the clove-studding because the flavour can be quite strong. It turned out perfectly. The fat rendered around and into the ham and the glaze caramelised and seeped into the crevices and outer layer of the meat.
In our attempt to finish it all before summer’s end, I’ve portioned off bits; freezing the fatty pieces for melting and cooking eggs in, dicing smaller bits and freezing those to add to scrambles, soups and quiches and freezing the hock that will go into a lentil soup during winter.
Yesterday I diced up the last of the misshaped ham slices that tend to be so when close to the bone, rendered the fattier bits and made a delicious fried rice with the ham as the base.
Nothing is wasted.
Don’t get me wrong, most other hams will do, too it’s just that most Christmas hams still need using up somehow long after Boxing Day is over.
Leftover Christmas Ham Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ham fat diced
- 1/2 cup diced baked ham
- 1 sprig spring onion sliced finely
- 1/2 cup broccoli florets
- 1 small carrot grated
- 1 cup cooked cooled rice see note above
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped coriander
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- pinch sea salt flakes
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Heat ham fat in a large frying pan or wok set over medium heat for the fat to render. Remove any gristly bits and discard. Add diced ham and cook, stirring for a minute. Add spring onion, broccoli and carrot. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes until lightly cooked. Add rice and mix well.
- Push the rice to the side of the pan and crack in an egg, scramble and when almost cooked, stir through the rice. Season with ginger, coriander and salt. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.
3 comments
I now have your cookbook and am starting to use your great recipes! Ngaire
I swear leftover recipes are better than the original dished they’re made out of. Well, at least that’s the case here! Looks SO good!
I certainly agree that there are bbq leftovers after the holidays and heating them into the oven is a common way to consume these. Good thing there’s this nice, hearty and delicious recipe to try. Thanks for sharing. This is such great meal to start the year.