Ham

The flavour of ham is attributed to many factors: the breed or age of the pig, its diet and the method of curing. Curing methods can vary, but the process is always based on salt, using either a dry-cure or brine, sometimes with added herbs, spices and treacle ormolasses. The hams are then often either smoked or air-dried and possibly aged for months or even years to give the unique flavour. Hams are eaten raw orcooked according to how much they have been cured. A short curing process followed by smoking does not cure a ham to the same degree as slow-curing (dry-salting) and air-drying over time. Ham is sold either by the whole leg for boiling or baking) or sliced.