Unsmoked Gammon

Cooking tips

To boil a gammon joint: place it in a pan and cover with cold water, add cloves, black peppercorns or bay leaves to flavour if required. <br>
Bring the water to the boil, when the water boils, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes per 450g plus 20 minutes or until thoroughly cooked. <br>
To boil and bake a joint (this gives an attractive glazed finish to the fat): boil as above for half the cooking time, drain the joint and wrap well in foil and place in a roasting tin. <br>
Bake for the remainder of the cooking time in a preheated oven at 180°C, gas mark 4 until thoroughly cooked.<br>
If a glazed finish is required: increase the oven temperature to 220°C, gas mark 7. Thirty minutes before the end of the cooking time, remove the joint from the oven and open the foil, remove the rind and score the fat into a diamond pattern. Stud the fat with cloves and sprinkle with brown sugar or brush with a mixture of 4 tbsp marmalade and 5 tbsp clear hone. Return the joint to the oven and cook for the remaining cooking time, until the fat is a golden brown colour.