Some of our favorite recipes...

• Roasted Ham
• Barbecued Spare Ribs
• Grilled Pork Chops

Roasted Ham

This recipe is great for either our traditional cured ham or our uncured ham. Start with a bone-in ham that's been thawed. You'll need a probe-type thermometer, preferably digital, but a dial meat thermometer will also work if it's fairly accurate. Although guidelines for roasting time based on weight are helpful in your scheduling, there is no substitute for an accurate thermometer. Generally plan on allowing 20 to 30 minutes per pound for hams between 6 and 13 lbs. You will also need a roasting pan, preferably with a lid, such as a turkey roaster. If you don't have a lidded roaster, you will need aluminum foil. With our compliments to Alton Brown for the basis for this recipe.

Ingredients:

• One bone-in city ham (cured or uncured)
• Brown mustard
• Dark brown sugar
• Two or three ounces of one of the following glazing liquids:
• Bourbon
• Root beer
• Dr. Pepper
• Apple cider
• Gingersnaps cookies, finely crushed in the food processor

Method:

Preheat the oven to 250° F

Using a very sharp knife or a clean utility knife, score the skin of the ham. You want to just cut through the skin and a little of the fat. Avoid cutting into the meat. Your cuts should be about 1 to 2 inches apart, in a criss-cross pattern, so that the pieces of skin are diamond shaped.

Place the ham cut side down in the roasting pan. Insert the thermometer probe into the thickest part of the ham, taking care not to touch the probe to the bone or to the bottom of the roasting pan. Cover with the lid or with a tent of aluminum foil. Roast at 250° until the thermometer registers an internal temperature of 120° F. This will take quite a bit of time - most of the alotted roasting time.

Remove the ham from the oven and uncover the roasting pan. Preheat the oven to 350° F. With a tongs, grasp the pieces of skin and pull them off the ham, together with whatever fat clings to them. Pat the ham dry with paper towels. Using your hands, smear on a generous layer of brown mustard. Again with your hands, pack on as much brown sugar as will stick to the mustard layer. Then spritz with the glazing liquid of your choice to evenly moisten. Next, pack on a layer of the crumbled gingersnap cookies, again as much as will stick to the surface of the ham.

Return the ham to the roasting pan. Insert the thermometer probe into the thickest part of the ham, but avoid the hole you used earlier. Roast, uncovered, in a 350° F oven until the thermometer registers an internal temperature of 140° F. This will take a fraction of the time it took for the ham to reach the original temperature of 120° F.

If the ham finishes early, remove it from the oven in its roasting pan. Cover with the roaster lid or foil, and wrap several layers of blanket or towels around it. The ham should stay warm for a few hours.

Barbecued Spare Ribs

This is how we like to do ribs. Rubs and sauces can vary, but the method is essentially the same. We have two styles we like to do, one a traditional rub and one an Asian-style rub. Both are delicious. If you want some tips on building your own rub, please email us. If you'd rather buy your rub, Schultzes Gourmet rub is excellent, and is available at Taste of Life and other stores.

Ingredients:

• Pork spare ribs. We package our ribs with trimmings, and these can be barbecued in the same way.
• Dry rub of your choice, about 1/4 cup per rib slab.

Method:

Ribs must be thawed prior to preparation. The first step is to remove the membrane that covers the concave side. Scrape with your fingernail until you start to peel back a thin, translucent membrane. Once it's started, we often grab it with a paper towel between the fingers, to help grip it better. The membrane should peel back from the ribs in one piece.

Next, dock the rib slab, which means to puncture it with a fork in several locations between each rib. Dock from the concave side, i.e. the side with the membrane. This process allows more of the rub to penetrate to the meat. Rub the rib slab with the dry rub. The goal is to get complete coverage. Place the rib slabs in a roasting pan. We use a turkey roaster that has a lid. Refrigerate for a few hours to allow the rub to liquefy and penetrate the meat. If timing is tight, we have rubbed ribs and roasted them immediately, and had great results.

Roast in a covered roaster in a 225 degree oven for about two hours. If your roasting pan does not have a cover, cover the pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. The two hour timing may vary. You'll know the ribs are ready for the next step if the ends of the rib bones are exposed and the meat is pulling back (shrinking). We have roasted them in one or two layers and had good results. We have also roasted larger quantities in about six layers and found the inner layers to be not done when the outer layers are done. If you are doing numerous layers, you might want to rotate the layers after an hour and increase the roasting time. The real judge of doneness is when the meat is pulling back from the bone and the bone end is exposed.

Fire up the grill (charcoal is best). Slather on a good layer of your favorite sauce and place the rib slabs on the grill. Watch them closely, because most sauces contain sweeteners, which burn quickly. You just want a caramelized layer and the smoky flavor. Generally five minutes of grilling per side is plenty. When the ribs look caramelized and delicious, remove, slather with more sauce, and serve. We cut our ribs apart on a carving board with a sturdy knive or cleaver, so diners can just grab a few ribs off the platter instead of having to deal with a whole slab.

Grilled Pork Chops

This method is great with our brined pork chops. It is also the method that gives the best results with non-brined pork chops. We prefer bone-in chops, as we think they provide better flavor. This is best on the grill, but if the weather is bad, it's still our preferred method if you have to cook indoors. We give methods for both below.

Ingredients:

• Pork chops, regular or brined

Method:

On the grill:

Heat the grill very hot. If you are using charcoal, place the coals on one side of the grill to create an area with very high heat and an area with lower, indirect heat. Place the chops on the hottest part of the grill. Sear the chops for about five minutes per side. Don't let them burn - you are just looking for a golden brown color. Move the chops to the cooler side of the grill and cook over indirect heat for a total of about 10 minutes more, turning once. You'll get the most accurate cooking if you have a digital thermometer. Insert the probe into the edge of the chop, with the tip in the center about 1/2 inch from the bone. We cook ours to an internal temperature of about 140° F, which results in a delicious, juicy chop.

When cooked, remove the chops from the grill to a serving platter, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for five minutes before serving.

In the frying pan:

If you are using a frying pan (cast iron is best for this, but definitely something with an oven-proof handle) preheat it over high heat until a droplet of water sizzles and dances when dropped on the surface. Simultaneously preheat your oven to 350° F. Add a bit of canola oil to the pan and sear the chops for about five minutes on each side. Don't let them burn - you are just looking for a golden brown color. Move the pan to the preheated oven and roast for an additional 10 minutes or so. You'll get the most accurate cooking if you have a digital thermometer. Insert the probe into the edge of the chop, with the tip in the center about 1/2 inch from the bone. We cook ours to an internal temperature of about 140° F, which results in a delicious, juicy chop.

When cooked, remove the pan from the oven, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for five minutes before serving.

Note that the USDA does not consider pork "done" until it is cooked to an internal temperature of 160° F. Many folks, including us, believe this final temperature results in a product suitable only for replacing soles on shoes. We usually cook our chops to 140° F, and never beyond a maximum of 145° F. We believe that pork raised naturally and humanely and handled properly in processing is as free of pathogens as you can get, and we have never had a problem with eating our pork cooked to 140° F. Do what you feel comfortable with, but we'll stick with our preferred temperature ... and juiciness.