I have always wondered what ham actually is and how you go from a raw pork leg to the ham that we eat at Christmas. So obviously, I had to try making one completely from scratch!
It turns out you really only need two slightly unusual things to do it at home: curing salt and a big meat injector. The injector lets you get the curing brine right into the thickest parts of the pork and close to the bone so the ham cures properly all the way through.
Once you have injected it, the whole pork leg gets submerged in curing brine in a big container and left in the fridge. Make sure you have a BIG container for this, and also be aware that it is going to look pretty scary at this point… I also could NOT believe how long my ham needed to sit in the fridge, and I will admit it looked a little questionable during the process, but it came out SO good.
Mine took around nine days to cure before I could finally cook it, so this definitely isn’t a recipe you decide to make the night before Christmas. The actual amount of work involved though is surprisingly small – most of the time the ham is literally just sitting in your fridge doing its thing.
I cooked mine in the smoker because I wanted a smoked ham, but you absolutely do not need a smoker to make this! You can cook it low and slow in the oven as well and still end up with a beautiful homemade ham.
One thing I only recently found out is that champagne ham, which used to be my favourite, isn’t necessarily one whole pork leg. It can be made using different pieces of pork that are formed together into one uniform ham. I was honestly pretty disappointed when I found that out, so making my own from an actual bone-in pork leg made the whole experiment even more satisfying.
For the outside I went with a really classic honey mustard glaze made with brown sugar, honey and Dijon mustard. It becomes thick, sticky and caramelised as the ham cooks and was SO good! You can definitely switch the glaze up and make it your own, especially around Christmas time.
Making Ham From Scratch Is Actually So Much Fun
Obviously you can go to the shops and buy a beautiful ham that is already cured and ready to glaze for Christmas, but there is something SO satisfying about starting with a completely raw pork leg and doing the entire process yourself.
It sounds like a massive project when you realise the curing process takes days, but there really isn’t that much hands-on work. You prepare your curing brine, inject the pork, leave it submerged in the fridge and then basically forget about it until it is ready to soak and cook.
My finished ham was SO good and I absolutely loved making it. It is such a fun experiment if you are someone who loves making things from scratch, and cutting into an actual ham that you cured and smoked yourself is pretty satisfying. All of the special things I used, including the curing salt and meat injector, are linked in the Erin’s Favourite Items section of this website.
A Few Things Before You Start
Give yourself PLENTY of time if you are making this for Christmas! The curing time depends on the weight of your pork leg, so I would give yourself at least 10 days to be safe. It is also really important to follow the directions for the exact curing salt you are using, as curing products can have different concentrations.
Homemade Ham From Scratch Recipe
Below is the full recipe for my homemade ham from scratch. Starting with a raw bone-in pork leg, it is cured, soaked, glazed with honey and mustard and then slowly cooked in the smoker or oven. It takes a bit of planning, but the actual amount of work is surprisingly small and the finished ham is SO worth it.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Weigh your pork leg before beginning. This weight will determine both the curing time and how much brine needs to be injected.
- Prepare the curing brine according to the directions for your curing mix. For the curing mix I used, I dissolved 130 g of curing mix per 1 L of cold water. Make enough brine to completely submerge the pork leg in your container, plus additional brine for injecting.
- Calculate the amount of brine to inject by taking 25% of the pork leg’s starting weight. For example, a 4 kg pork leg requires approximately 1 kg (roughly 1 L) of prepared brine for injecting.
- Using a meat injector, inject the calculated amount of brine throughout the pork leg. Focus particularly on the thickest sections of meat and around the bone, distributing the brine as evenly as possible.
- Place the injected pork leg into a large food-safe container and completely cover it with the remaining prepared brine. Refrigerate for 24 hours per 500 g of meat. For example, my approximately 4.5 kg ham cured for 9 days. Keep the ham refrigerated for the entire curing period.
- Once cured, remove the ham from the brine and discard the used brine. Rinse the ham thoroughly under cold water, gently massaging the outside as you rinse.
- Place the ham into a clean container, completely cover with fresh cold water and soak for approximately 4 hours to remove some of the excess salt.
- Remove the ham from the water and pat completely dry with paper towel.
- Score the outside of the ham in a diamond pattern, cutting through the outer layer without cutting deeply into the meat.
- Combine the brown sugar, honey and Dijon mustard to make the glaze. Do not add any additional salt.
- Brush the ham generously with the glaze, reserving the remaining glaze for basting.
- Preheat your smoker or oven to approximately 110°C. Cook the ham slowly until the internal temperature reaches at least 65°C in the thickest part of the meat near the bone, without the thermometer touching the bone.
- Approximately every hour during cooking, brush the ham with another layer of glaze. Continue cooking and glazing until the outside develops a thick, caramelised coating.
- Once the ham has reached temperature, remove it from the smoker or oven and allow it to rest and cool before slicing.
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