Hams, Types of Ham, Cooking Times for Ham
Hams: They can be fresh, cook-before-eating, fully-cooked, picnic
and country types. There are so many kinds, and their storage times
and cooking times can be quite confusing. This background
information serves to carve up the facts and make them easier to
understand.
Definition
The word HAM means pork which comes from the hind leg of a hog. Ham
made from the front leg of a hog will be labeled "pork shoulder
picnic." "Turkey" Ham must be made from the thigh meat of turkey.
Hams may be fresh, cured, or cured-and-smoked. The usual color for
cured ham is deep rose or pink; fresh ham (which is not cured) has
the pale pink or beige color of a fresh pork roast; country hams and
prosciutto (which are dry cured) range from pink to mahogany color.
Hams are either ready-to-eat or not. Ready-to-eat hams include
prosciutto and fully cooked hams; they can be eaten right out of the
package. Fresh hams and hams that are only trichina treated must be
cooked by the consumer before eating; these hams will bear the safe
handling label.
Curing Solutions
Curing is the addition of salt, sodium nitrate (or saltpeter),
nitrites and sometimes sugars, seasonings, phosphates and ascorbates
to pork for preservation, color development and flavor enhancement.
Nitrate and nitrites contribute to the characteristic cured flavor
and reddish-pink color of cured pork. Nitrite and salt inhibit the
outgrowth of Clostridium botulinum, a deadly microorganism which can
occur in foods.
The two most-used methods of adding solutions to pork are: injection
into muscle by needle; and tumbling or massaging into muscle to
produce a more tender product.
Dry Curing
In dry curing, the process used to make country hams and prosciutto,
fresh meat is rubbed with a dry-cure mixture of salt and other
ingredients. Dry curing produces a salty product. In 1992, FSIS
approved a trichina treatment method that permits substituting up to
half of the sodium chloride with potassium chloride to result in
lower sodium levels. Since dry curing draws out moisture, it reduces
ham weight by at least 18% -- usually 20 to 25%; this results in a
more concentrated ham flavor.
Dry-cured hams may be aged from a few weeks to more than a year. Six
months is the traditional process but may be shortened according to
aging temperature.
These uncooked hams are safe stored at room temperature because they
contain so little water, bacteria can't multiply in them. Country
hams may not be injected with curing solutions or placed in curing
solutions but they may be smoked.
Wet Curing or Brine Cure
Brine curing is the most popular way of producing hams. It is a wet
cure whereby fresh meat is injected with a curing solution before
cooking. Brining ingredients can be salt, sugar, sodium nitrite,
sodium nitrate, sodium erythorbate, sodium phosphate, potassium
chloride, water and flavorings. Smoke flavoring (liquid smoke) may
also be injected with brine solution. Cooking may occur during this
process.
Smoking & Smoke Flavoring
After curing, some hams are smoked. Smoking is a process by which
ham is hung in a smokehouse and allowed to absorb smoke from
smoldering fires. This gives added flavor and color to meat and
slows the development of rancidity.
Foodborne Organisms
These organisms are associated with ham:
Trichinella spiralis (trichina) - worms sometimes present in hogs.
All hams are specifically processed to USDA guidelines to kill
trichinae.
Staphylococcus aureus (staph) - is destroyed by cooking and
processing but can be re-introduced via mishandling; the bacteria
can then produce a toxin which is not destroyed by further cooking.
Dry curing may or may not destroy S. aureus, but the high salt
content on the exterior inhibits these bacteria. When the ham is
sliced, the moister interior will permit staphylococcal
multiplication; thus sliced dry-cured hams must be refrigerated.
Mold - can often be found on country cured ham. We believe most of
these are harmless but some molds can produce mycotoxins. Molds grow
on hams during the long curing and drying process because the high
salt and low temperatures do not inhibit these robust organisms. DO
NOT DISCARD the ham. Wash it with hot water and scrub off the mold
with a stiff vegetable brush.
Quantity to Buy
When buying a ham, estimate the size needed according to the number
of servings the type of ham should yield:
1/4 - 1/3 lb. per serving of boneless ham
1/3 - 1/2 lb. of meat per serving of ham with little bone
3/4 - 1 lb. of meat per serving of ham with large bone.
Cooking or Reheating Hams
Both vacuum-packaged fully cooked and canned hams can be eaten cold
just as they come from their packaging. However, if you want to
reheat these fully cooked hams, set the oven no lower than 325�F and
heat to an internal temperature of 140�F as measured with a meat
thermometer.
For fully cooked ham that has been repackaged in any other location
outside the plant or for leftover fully cooked ham, heat to 165�F.
Cook-before-eating hams must reach 160�F to be safely cooked before
serving. Cook in an oven set no lower than 325�F. Hams can also be
safely cooked in a microwave oven, other countertop appliances and
on the stove top. Consult a cookbook for specific methods and
timing.
Country hams can be soaked 4 to 12 hours or longer in the
refrigerator to reduce the salt content before cooking. Then they
can be cooked by boiling or baking. Follow the manufacturer's
cooking instructions.
HAM GLOSSARY
BUTT END, HALF OR PORTION - the upper, meatier part of the whole
leg; a butt portion has had some center slices removed for separate
sale as ham steaks or center cut ham slices. The half includes this
meat.
CANNED HAM -- Canned hams come in two forms:
Shelf stable - store on shelf up to 2 years at room temperature.
Generally not over 3 pounds in size. Processed to kill all spoilage
bacteria and pathogenic organisms such as Clostridium botulinum,
Salmonella and Trichinella spiralis. The product is free of
microorganisms capable of growing at ordinary room temperature.
However, high temperature storage -- above 122�F (50�C) -- may
result in harmless thermophylic bacteria multiplying and swelling or
souring the product.
Refrigerated - may be stored in refrigerator up to 6 to 9 months.
Its weight can be up to 8% more than original uncured weight due to
uptake of water during curing. It need not be labeled "Added water"
except for "In Natural Juices." Net Weight is the weight of the
actual ham excluding the container. Processed at a time/temperature
sufficient to kill infectious organisms (including Trichinae) but
the ham is not sterilized so spoilage bacteria may grow eventually.
CAPACOLLA - Boneless pork shoulder butts which are dry cured; not
necessarily cooked.
HAM CAPACOLLA is made with ham instead of pork shoulder butts.
COOK BEFORE EATING - needs further cooking. Is not completely cooked
in the plant and should be cooked to 160�F.
COTTAGE HAM - a ham made from the shoulder butt end.
COUNTRY HAM - uncooked, cured, dried, smoked-or-unsmoked meat
products made from a single piece of meat from the hind leg of a hog
or from a single piece of meat from a pork shoulder. Smithfield and
country hams are not fully cooked but are dry cured to be safe
stored at room temperature. They should be cooked before eating
according to manufacturer's instructions. A ham labeled "Smithfield
Ham" must be processed in the city of Smithfield, Virginia.
FRESH HAM - the uncured leg of pork. Since the meat is not cured or
smoked, it has the flavor of a fresh pork loin roast or pork chops.
Its raw color is pinkish red and after cooking, greyish white.
FULLY COOKED - needs no further cooking. Fully cooked in plant. Can
be eaten directly as it comes from its packaging or reheated.
GELATIN - about one-fourth ounce of dry gelatin is often added
before a canned ham is sealed to cushion the ham during shipment.
During processing, natural juices cook out of the ham and combine
with the gelatin. When the ham cools, a jell forms. Gelatin is
included in the net weight statement on the label.
HAM - the product is at least 20.5% protein in lean portion and
contains no added water.
HAM with NATURAL JUICES - the product is at least 18.5% protein. Can
weigh 8% more than uncured weight. Example: canned hams.
HAM -- WATER ADDED - the product is at least 17.0% protein with 10%
added solution; it can weigh 8% more after curing than uncured.
HAM AND WATER PRODUCTS - Product may contain any amount of water but
label must indicate percent of "added ingredients." For example, "X
% of weight is added ingredients" for any canned ham with less than
17.0% protein.
HAM STEAK - another name for center cut ham slices.
HICKORY-SMOKED HAM - a cured ham which has been smoked by hanging
over burning hickory wood chips in a smokehouse. May not be labeled
"hickory smoked" unless hickory wood has been used.
HONEY-CURED - may be shown on the labeling of a cured product if
honey is the only sweetening ingredient or is at least half the
sweetening ingredients used, and if the honey is used in an amount
sufficient to flavor and/or affect the appearance of the finished
product.
"LEAN" HAM - The term "lean" may be used on a ham's label provided
the product contains less than 10 grams fat, 4.5 grams or less of
saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams cholesterol per 100 grams
and Reference Amount Customarily Consumed (RACC).
"EXTRA LEAN" HAM - A ham labeled "extra lean" must contain less than
5 grams fat, less than 2 grams saturated fat and the same
cholesterol as allowed per the amount of "lean" ham.
PICNIC, PORK SHOULDER PICNIC - a front shoulder cut of pork which
has been cured in the same manner as ham.
PROSCIUTTO HAM - An Italian-style dry cured raw ham; not smoked;
often coated with pepper. Proscuitti can be eaten raw because of the
way they are processed. PARMA HAM is prosciutto from the Parma
locale in Italy. These hams tend to be larger than the U.S. produced
product, as Italian hogs are larger at slaughter.
SECTIONED AND FORMED or CHUNKED AND FORMED - a boneless ham that is
made from different cuts, tumbled or massaged and reassembled into a
casing or mold and fully cooked. During this process it is usually
thoroughly defatted.
SHANK END, HALF OR PORTION - the lower, slightly pointed part of the
leg. A "portion" has the center slices removed for separate sale as
"ham steaks" or center cut ham slices. The half includes this meat.
SKINLESS, SHANKLESS - A ham with all of the skin and the shank
removed. The leg bone and aitch (hip) bone remain.
SUGAR CURED - a term that may appear on ham labels if cane or beet
sugar is at least half the sweetening ingredients used and if the
sugar is used in an amount sufficient to flavor and/or affect the
appearance of the finished product. Most hams contain sugar in the
curing mixture.
WESTPHALIAN HAM - A German-style dry cured ham that is similar to
Prosciutto; smoked, sometimes with juniper berries. Also called
Westfalischer Schinken
Type of Ham |
Refrigerate |
Freeze |
Fresh (uncured) Ham, uncooked |
3 to 5 days |
6 mos |
Fresh (uncured) Ham, cooked
|
3 to 4 days |
3 to 4 mos |
Cured Ham,
cook-before-eating; uncooked |
5 to 7 days OR Use-by date*
|
3 to 4 mos |
Cured Ham,
cook-before-eating; after consumer cooks it
|
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, vacuum
sealed at plant, undated; unopened
|
2 weeks |
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, vacuum
sealed at plant, dated; unopened
|
Use by date*
|
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, vacuum
sealed at plant, undated or dated; opened |
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, whole,
store wrapped |
7 days |
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, half, store
wrapped |
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Fully Cooked Ham, slices,
store wrapped |
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
**Country Ham, uncooked, cut
|
2 to 3 mos
|
1 month |
Country Ham, cooked
|
7 days |
1 month |
Canned Ham, labeled "Keep
Refrigerated," unopened |
6 to 9 mos
|
Do not freeze |
Canned Ham, labeled "Keep
Refrigerated," opened |
7 days |
1 to 2 mos |
***Canned Ham, shelf stable,
opened |
3 to 4 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Lunch Meat Ham, sealed at
plant, unopened |
2 weeks OR Use-by date*
|
1 to 2 mos |
Lunch Meat Ham, sealed at
plant, after opening |
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Lunch Meat Ham, sliced in
store |
3 to 5 days
|
1 to 2 mos |
Proscuitto, Parma or Serrano
Ham, dry Italian or Spanish type, cut |
2 to 3 mos |
1 month |
*Company stands by its "Use-by" date.
** A whole, uncut Country Ham can be stored safely at room
temperature for up to 1 year. After one year the ham is safe but the
quality may suffer.
*** An unopened Shelf Stable Canned Ham may be stored at room
temperature for 2 years.
Timetable For Cooking Ham
NOTE: Set oven temperature to 325�F. Both cook-before-eating cured
and fresh hams should be cooked to 160�F. Reheat fully cooked ham to
140�F.
NOTE: Freezer storage is for quality only. Frozen
hams remain safe indefinitely.
Source: USDA |