I'm going to be smoking my first ham this weekend and I'm wondering about what to buy. I'm going to be trying the Maple-mustard Ham recipe (http://bbq.about.com/od/hamrecipes/r/bl81128c.htm) but Derrick does not make it clear what ham to buy. I'm assuming I should pick a bone-in "city" ham (8-10 lbs), but I'm confused about whether a spiral-cut ham is appropriate for re-smoking. Any advice would be appreciated.

Bob

Most spiral cut hams that I am familiar with are already cooked and are intended to be just warmed up, I do think that I recall a spiral ham I got from a grocery stor called Publix down here in the south that was essentially raw and had to be cooked. So just be aware.

Another thing about all the spiral cut hams is that they typically have a sugary coating on them so between the smoke and the sugar they may come out a tad dark. I would use very small amount of smoke wood and a short cooking period up to the desired temp and maybe just foil it after you get to 140 F.

I am sure other folks here can suggest what to do...

Merry Christmas,
Preston D

So you're suggesting that I should avoid the spiral cut?
From what I'm reading, all "city" hams are pre-cooked.

IMO skip the spiral cut.

Like Preston says,they are sugar coated,they are just meant to be warmed,they dry out-because they are sliced.

Buy the typical grocery store ham and cook it to about 150�, at a low temp.

215�-225� with some fruit ,or nut, wood will be fine.

You are adding some smoke and drying out the 18% water they pumped into it.

Thanks, Tom.

Yessir

Tom, by 'typical grocery store ham' are you referring to fully cooked?

My question is can one re-smoke a fully cooked ham; I believe searching this cagegory that was referred to as double smoking?

I have to agree that the spiral cut hams dry out too fast. My bro-in-law wrecked one in the oven by not serving it soon enough. But by that time into the party, nobody really cared.

Watch your internal temp, as others have stated.

The "in natural juices" [water] don't dry out as quickly.

Good luck! Roger

My recommendations for a Spiral Ham?

Go figure, brine it for about 4 to 6 hours (no more). The flavor gets in those slices. I resmoke it to about a 160 internal.

Note, I tie it up with Butchers Twine as during the reheat, it WILL get so the slices start to separate.

You can also F*(& the thing if you need to to keep them from drying out. That's FOIL for those that don't know.

In this case, using Foil to help prevent drying out is a good thing.

Bob, I fixed a 7# spiral sliced ham(BJ's)for Thanksgiving to compliment the Turkey. It was fully cooked & just needed to be reheated. I put it in my 08 face down(to keep slices together) @ 225*. I used 2 oz apple & cooked for 2 hours. I removed from smoker, added glaze and put in a 325* oven for 30 min. to set the glaze. It was flat out delicious.I've been doin them in oven for years, but family said this was the best one yet by leaps & bounds.

quote:

Originally posted by SmokinOkie:
[qb] My recommendations for a Spiral Ham?

Go figure, brine it for about 4 to 6 hours (no more). The flavor gets in those slices. I resmoke it to about a 160 internal.

Note, I tie it up with Butchers Twine as during the reheat, it WILL get so the slices start to separate.

You can also F*(& the thing if you need to to keep them from drying out. That's FOIL for those that don't know.

In this case, using Foil to help prevent drying out is a good thing. [/qb]

Any special brine recipes for ham? Or just use the same brine as used for turkey?

I would expect, given the amount of flavor already in a ham, that the brine would need to be as simple as possible, right? Just salt, sugar and a few simple spices (no garlic?).

And, given the saltiness of a ham, you would want to have a higher concentration of salt in the brine than you would have in a turkey brine. Is my thinking on target?

Like Bob, keep the flavors simple. Since we use a Honey Glaze method (sweet) I like to add some extra sweet to the brine. More syrup and more sugar, but keep the salt normal.

And keep it short, only 4 hours or so.

quote:

Originally posted by SmokinOkie:
[qb] Like Bob, keep the flavors simple. Since we use a Honey Glaze method (sweet) I like to add some extra sweet to the brine. More syrup and more sugar, but keep the salt normal.

And keep it short, only 4 hours or so. [/qb]

You have a "simple pork brine" in your "brining 101" that includes a chopped up onion. Wouldn't onion be adding the wrong flavor for ham?

quote:

You have a "simple pork brine" in your "brining 101" that includes a chopped up onion. Wouldn't onion be adding the wrong flavor for ham?

I followed my instincts and left out the onion.

After brining for 4 hrs, I put it in the smoker (Brinkman SnP Pro). After a couple hours I checked it and noticed some blackening, so, afraid it would dry out, I wrapped it in foil and put it back in. About an hour later, it hit 130 so, figuring another hour would do it, I removed the foil and started adding the glaze. However, the internal temp hit 135 and seemed to "stall", so after a total of 4 hrs in the smoker, I removed it from the smoker, foiled it and put it in a 350 degree oven for a half hour which took it over 145.

It still seemed quite moist at the party (thank heavens).

I'm not a ham-lover so I can only go by the positive reviews I received from the party guests.
Thanks all.