busyAmazing Mango Ham
Ingredients:
5-lb ham “picnic” cut
whole cloves
½ tsp lemon thyme
½ tsp rose baises red peppercorns, crushed
½ tsp dried parsley flakes (should be sweet marjoram)
1/8 tsp ground mace
1/8 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp Saigon cinnamon
½ cup Shamiana Kesar Mango Pulp (Sweetened)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350º. Grease a 9x13” baking pan with cooking spray (or butter).
Remove ham from package, rinse, and pat dry. Place ham facedown in the pan. Use a large picnic fork to pierce the ham at least a dozen times. Stick whole cloves into the holes left by the fork.
In a small bowl, combine the lemon thyme, peppercorns, parsley (or marjoram), ground mace, paprika, and Saigon cinnamon. Then add the mango pulp and mix thoroughly.
Lift the ham and use a pastry brush to apply spiced mango to the underside. (This works best as a two-person task.) Place the ham facedown again and brush spiced mango to the upper surfaces. There will be some spiced mango left over; put it in the refrigerator for future basting.
Add water to the pan, about ½” deep. Cover the ham with aluminum foil, folding it around the sides of the pan. Place the ham in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes per pound; for a 5-lb ham, a total of 2 ½ hours. After the first hour, take out the pan, lift the aluminum foil, and baste the ham with more spiced mango. Replace foil and return ham to oven. After second hour, baste again and check for doneness; ham should be almost done. Shorten or lengthen remaining cooking time if necessary.
After cooking, remove ham to platter to slice and serve. Feeds 4-6 people.
Notes: The ham wanted sweet marjoram, but we didn’t have any; will try that next time instead of parsley flakes. A ham “picnic” is a fairly cheap cut, but this turned out amazingly tender and juicy. Large pieces of skin with attached fat may be removed for later use in a pot of beans.
