OTAGO FARMERS MARKET KITCHEN

Christmas is in the air and the time has come to order your hams!!! Today's menu evolves around how to prepare and cook a ham from scratch and Havoc Pork have some beauties; and to be honest it isn't hard work at all.  The biggest challenge is to be patient as good things take time and if your wanting the end result to be succulent and juicy it needs long slow cooking.  I will be teaming it up with a classic parsley sauce with thanks to Ettrick Gardens.  Sunrise bakery will be dropping of some bread which i can already see some fresh ham sandwiches getting made on the side. Yams are still around and if like me i was a little yammed out well it is quite refreshing to be cooking with them once again. 
Broccoli cracked wheat salad is on and this is one of those salads i created by accident one Saturday at the market. This is a true example of only a few ingredients needed, but one where you want quality and thanks to Brydone Organics their crunchy, tasty and very green looking organic broccoli is perfect!

HAVOC’S HAM – HOW TO COOK!

Linda and I were talking ‘ham’ and realised that a lot of us were a little unsure how to cook one from scratch and I mean in the oven for 6-8 hours before glazing!  This might sound a long time but the finished product will be remembered and talked about for many Christmases to come.

Just a note the cooking of the ham can be done the day before and simply glaze it on the day.

UNCOOKED HAM – COOKED
I have two methods which both work fantastically well; one is slowly baked in oven and the other simmered gently on the stove – choice is yours!

METHOD 1:
1(4.5-9kg) uncooked ham ideally on bone (size depending on you)
Tin foil

Preheat oven 150C

Rinse the ham and secure well in tinfoil, place in a suitable sized oven dish and allow 45 mins per kilo. The main thing to remember when cooking such a large joint of meat is to allow plenty of time and don’t be tempted to increase the heat as it will dry out.

Once the ham has cooked you are now able to glaze it if desired. 

METHOD 2:

1 large onion, chopped

2 large carrots, chopped

2 celery sticks, chopped

10 black peppercorns

3-4 bay leaves

5-6 sprigs of thyme

A small bunch parsley stalks (leaves for sauce)

Method
Rinse the ham under cold water and place in a large stockpot.  Cover with fresh cold water and add the vegetables and peppercorns, plus the herbs.  Bring the water to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover partially with a lid and simmer very gently for 4-6 hours.  If after an hour the water tastes very salty, discard the water and replace with fresh boiling water- this helps to reduce saltiness.

Remove the ham from the pot!

GLAZING THE HAM (traditional method)

1 Tbsp English mustard

150g soft brown sugar

100ml rum or whisky (optional) could substitute pineapple juice

15-20 cloves

Method
Remove the ham from the pot and allow it to cool slightly. Meanwhile, place the mustard and sugar in a small mixing bowl and add just enough of the rum or whisky to mix it to a thick, sludgy paste. Carefully cut away the skin of the ham, leaving a smooth, even layer off at over the meat. Place the ham in a large roasting tin, then score the fat layer with the point of a sharp knife in a coarse diamond pattern, but not so deeply as to go right through the fat to the meat.

Slosh the remaining alcohol over the fat and then spread the glaze mixture all over it in an even layer. Stud the fat with cloves at regularly spaced intervals.

Roast the ham in an oven preheated to180°C for 1-1 1/2 hours, until the glaze is a dark, golden-brown, bubbling crust.

Serve hot or cold

PARSLEY SAUCE



25g unsalted butter
15g flour
550ml full-fat milk
25g fresh parsley, stalks removed and chopped

Method

Melt butter in a heavy-based pan and sprinkle over the flour. Stir continuously with a wooden spoon to mix, then cook until the mixture smells nutty.

Gradually pour in the milk, stirring all the time, to make a smooth sauce. Add 290ml of the ham poaching liquid or simply loosen with a water or add more milk, leave to simmer for 12 minutes. Season well with cracked pepper and a little salt, add the parsley and stir to combine.

Serve generously over the glazed ham!

BROCCOLI CRACKED WHEAT SALAD

Broccoli is crisp and vibrantly green at the moment and it makes a delightful and refreshing ingredient to this salad.

Serves 4

1 cup cracked or bulghur wheat

1 lemon, zest and juice

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt and cracked black pepper

1 – 2 heads broccoli

Handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Handful freshly torn mint, chervil, dill or basil leaves

Method

Bring a large pot of water to the boil.  When water is boiling add the whole head of broccoli and cook for 2-3 minutes depending on size. Remove immediately and refresh in cold water, drain and set aside.

To prepare the cracked wheat: Add the cracked wheat grains to a dry fry pan and heat over a moderate heat until lightly toasted (about 3 minutes).  When golden and gives off a toasted aroma add to a bowl, squeeze over lemon juice; add zest and 1-2 tablespoons olive oil, season lightly with salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and add 1 cup of water from the pot which the broccoli was cooked or otherwise from the kettle is fine.  Stir once again and add half cup more of water, let sit to absorb (15 minutes) whilst you prepare the broccoli.

To prepare the broccoli hold the stalk and with a sharp knife run the blade over the head, almost like shaving the broccoli as you only want tiny pieces of green.  Continue until all the broccoli head is done and a little of the tender stalk, discard the tough remainder.  Add the broccoli to the cracked wheat along with the herbs, fluff up with a fork and taste for seasoning and flavour.  Add more lemon and olive oil if needed.  Stir to combine and serve warm or at room temperature.  It is such a versatile dish that it can go with pretty much with anything.

APPLE PIE

Pastry

2 ½ cup flour

Pinch salt and sugar

250g butter (cold), cut into cubes

2-4 Tbsp cold water

Filling

4 cups apples, sliced (about 6-8)

1 lemon, zest and a little juice

½ cup white sugar

¼ cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp ground almonds or flour

½ tsp cinnamon

Pinch freshly grated nutmeg

2 Tbsp butter

Egg wash

1 egg separated, dash of milk

Method

TO MAKE PASTRY: add the flour, salt and sugar to a food processor and add the cold butter.  Pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  With the motor running drizzle in 1-2 tablespoons cold water, watch mixture closely and add one more tablespoon of water if mixture still looks dry and crumbly. If the mixture starts to clump together and form a ball, stop the food processor and feel the mix with your hands.  If damp and will hold together remove onto lightly floured bench and bring all the mixture together.  Wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven 200C

Prepare the apples by peeling and removing the core, slice into thinnish slices and put into large bowl along with spices, sugar, and flour, toss together to evenly mix.

Roll the pastry to fit an 18-20cm round pie dish or something similar, you will need to cut one circle larger than the other as the larger one is needed to line the base and sides of the dish and the other to cover the top. 

Line the pie dish and ensure that you have enough pastry to go up the sides.  Place the apples in the pastry, brush the edge of pastry with a little egg wash (egg yolk and dash of milk) and generously layer over the pastry for the top, allowing plenty of pastries to easily attach onto edge as you don’t want to stretch the pastry to fit! Applying a little pressure to the edge so that the pastry sticks together forming a seal.  Remove excess pastry with a sharp knife.  Brush the surface with remaining egg wash, pierce the surface a few times with the tip of a sharp knife and sprinkle with a little sugar.

Bake for 15 minutes at 200C and then reduce temperature to 160C for a further 30 minutes or until pastry is golden and flaky and you can smell cooking apples.

Serve with plenty of fresh cream and ice cream!

MUSTARD ROASTED YAMS

The addition of mustard, herbs and sticky, sweet honey adds a light crust and a little bite to these wonderful morsels.

2 Tbsp cup whole grain mustard

1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or fresh lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1kg yams, washed

Method

Position 1 rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 200C

Whisk mustard, olive oil, butter, honey, vinegar/lemon juice, garlic, oregano, and salt in large bowl to blend.
Add yams; sprinkle generously with freshly ground black pepper and toss to coat. Spread yams in a single layer over a preheated baking tray. Roast yams for 20 minutes or until the yams are crusty on the outside and tender inside, turning occasionally, (you may need to cook them a little longer).

ALISON WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING VENDORS FOR THEIR FANTASTIC PRODUCE

SUNRISE BAKERY – fresh baked goods

ETTRICK GARDENS – parsley, apples

HAVOC PORK – fresh hams cooked and uncooked

BRYDONE ORGANICS – organic broccoli

GODDARDS – yams

ROSEDALE ORCHARDS – fresh fruit juice

Sunrise Bakery