Cutting ham

[Pat Barnes]

As you might remember from a previous post,I am going to attempt to smoke some fresh ham. My wife raised a question I hadn't thought of and need some help with.I want to separate the ham into butt and shank portions for eating. Do I have to cure/smoke the whole ham and then cut it or can I get it separated first before I smoke them? We are concerned about the large surface of meat that will be exposed by the cutting and how it will affect the final product. Any help/advice will be appreciated by both of us.
Pat&Claire Barnes

 

[Guest]

I'm not going to claim to be an expert, but I think that the answer is that it depends upon your ultimate objective. And your most favorite advice to hear, "either one will work". I'm a little unclear whether you intend to cure the ham in the traditional manner, or to smoke it more like conventional barbeque.

To state the obvious, if you're looking for maximum smoke flavor, the more surface you have, the more smoke flavor you should obtain.

Aside from that, I would think that separating the parts would reduce your cooking and/or curing time.

-- Ken

 

[Pat Barnes]

I ordered a ham curing kit from Allied-Kenco there in Houston. It has two packs of seasoning,
one for injection and one for emersion brining.
So I guess it's "semi-traditional" if that term exists. I wasn't concerned about it but my wife
started worrying so I told the slaughterhouse to leave the hams whole and I will deal with them in that state. The hams are supposed to be about 20 lbs each so I don't know how long it will take to cure them or if they will even fit in the WSM. It matters not 'cause that porkers gonna get eaten one way or another!!! /infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif Thanks for the reply.