Ham: An Obsession With The Hindquarter

I have a new favorite cookbook!

Okay, so I have a new favorite cookbook every couple of weeks but this week it’s Ham: An Obsession with the Hindquarter. Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough have come up with a well written, enjoyable book to read If you enjoy ham as much as I do, you’re going to want this book.

Bruce and Mark are the authors of the “Ultimate” cookbook series. Even those this book doesn’t have the word Ultimate in the title they have written what may be the ultimate ham cookbook.

The cookbook is divided into four primary sections that deal with the four basic types of ham: Fresh Ham, Old World Dry-Cured Ham, New World Dry-Cured Ham and Wet-Cured Ham. Each section not only has representative recipes from around the world it is interspersed with stories, definitions, cooking tips and humor that illustrate the versatility of the back-end of the pig.

By “ham” we mean the hindquarter, the joint that becomes Italian prosciutto crudo and Spanish jamon iberico, the meat that comes to the table at a holiday meal –sometimes with those nasty canned pineapple rings and maraschino cherries stapled to it, sometimes tarted up with canned soda and unspeakable marinades, but many times just on its own: glorious simple smoked or not, cured or not–a large cut of pork the ultimate roast.

Many of the recipes include “Slash The Shopping List” and “Tester Tips.” These two features provide keen insight into how to actually cook the recipes. With “Slash The Shopping List” the authors provide home cooks the ability to not go out and purchase ingredients that might only be used once. As an example in their “Grilled Country Ham Steak with Plum Grill Mop” they explain how to eliminate 11 ingredients by substituting a store bought fruit based BBQ sauce. For the thrifty or budget conscious cook this will allow them to experiment with recipes they might not normally use. With “Tester Tips” Mark and Bruce might explain some of the regional differences in ingredients or maybe the history behind something.

Ham! It’s certainly not bacon but Ham: An Obsession with the Hindquarter will help you to appreciate the second most popular part of the pig.