Spiced pomegranate and orange glazed ham
Learn how to make Donna Hay’s showstopping Christmas ham, glazed to sticky perfection.
For a full spread, serve alongside Donna's prosciutto-wrapped carrots and champagne parsnips.
Ingredients
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 4 star anise
- 250ml/9fl oz fresh orange juice
- 360²µ/12½´Ç³ú brown sugar
- 60ml/4 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 90²µ/3¼´Ç³ú honey
- 6–7kg/13lb 4oz–15lb 7oz pre-cured, pre-cooked ham leg (see Recipe Tip)
- 4 oranges, peeled, thinly sliced and patted dry
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. To make the spiced pomegranate and orange glaze, place the cinnamon, star anise, juice, sugar, pomegranate molasses and honey in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Cook for 4–6 minutes or until syrupy.
Lightly grease a large wire rack and place over a roasting tin. Use a sharp knife to score the skin around the sides and hock (bone) of the ham, before using your fingers to gently remove the rind (the thick layer of rubbery skin). Trim any excess fat. Wrap the exposed ham bone in baking paper, then kitchen foil. Place the ham, top-side down, on the wire rack and brush with the glaze. Arrange the orange slices over the ham, overlapping slightly. Carefully brush with the glaze and roast the ham for 40 minutes, brushing again with glaze halfway.
Increase the oven temperature to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Brush the ham with the glaze and roast for a further 5 minutes or until golden and caramelised. Serve the ham with the remaining glaze.
Recipe Tips
This recipe calls for a whole leg of ham, with the bone in, that has been pre-cured and pre-cooked. If you can’t buy a pre-cooked ham in your part of the world (sometimes the case in the UK), ask your local butcher for a cured leg and follow their cooking instructions before starting step one of this recipe.