Like turkey at Thanksgiving, a ham is synonymous with Easter and springtime. The cases in grocery store meat departments start filling up with hams, from giant, bone-in whole hams to 1-pound, presliced boneless hams. How do you know which ham is the best-tasting, most-succulent option for your big Easter celebration? Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place; Chef Tim Ziga, a ham expert with The Honey Baked Ham Company, spoke exclusively with Chowhound to share his tips for selecting the perfect ham for Easter, or any other occasion when you have a crowd to feed.
Chef Ziga’s top advice for selecting ham at the supermarket? “You get what you pay for,” he said, explaining that when he’s entertaining friends and family, he opts for the highest-quality product he can find — “within reason” — even if it means he pays a little extra for that special occasion. Of course, as a representative of The Honey Baked Ham Company, that’s his go-to. “We source our hams from suppliers that lead the pork industry in ensuring the utmost quality in meat, as well as in animal care and well-being,” he explained. However, not everyone has a Honey Baked Ham Compay store nearby or can have one shipped. In that case, Ziga suggests seeking out a ham with a nice pink hue. “There will be a beautiful, mahogany-like finish on the outside from the smoking process,” he said. “A lighter-colored ham generally means that it wasn’t smoked long enough.”
Other tips for picking the best possible ham
Understanding the types of ham you might find in the grocery store is important. First, know the difference between city and country ham. Country ham, popular in the South, is dry rubbed with salt and other spices, dry cured, smoked, aged, then sold either cooked or uncooked. A city ham is typically what you see in the grocery store; it’s cured with a brine and sold fully cooked so you only need to reheat it at home when you’re ready to eat. In fact, most ham available at the store is precooked. If you’re looking for a fresh, uncooked, uncured ham (or if you’re unsure about what type to buy or how much you need) ask your local butcher.
You also need to decide how much ham you want. A full ham is the whole rear side of a hog’s leg and it generally weighs about 18 to 20 pounds. Many stores sell half hams, usually with the bone because it’s believed that bone-in hams have the most flavor (plus that bone is great for making soup later). It may be from the lower half of the leg, called the shank, or the top half of the ham, called the butt. “The butt ham will be more rounded and meatier, while a shank will be longer and have more connective tissue,” Chef Tim Ziga said. Be sure to check out our 12 tips for cooking ham, and try topping the finished product with a honey mustard glaze. Your Easter feast is served!
