Country Ham

Country ham is heavily salted cured pork leg, traditionally associated with the Southern United States. It originated during Colonial times as means of preservation in a humid climate and is nowadays prized as an artisanally made delicacy, different in each of the Southern states.

To produce it, pork leg is first cured with a mixture of salt and sodium nitrate, but some recipes also use sugar (Missouri style, for example) and spices in the cure. The leg is left to age for a month or up to three years, and washed to remove the brine and the mold.

The last step of the process may or may not be hardwood smoking, depending on the region (North Carolina style is usually not smoked). The taste heavily depends on the type of rub used for curing, the time of aging and whether the ham was not or was smoked (and which wood was used for smoking).

Characterized by an intense saltiness, country ham can be enjoyed as it comes, but most recipes call for frying and baking it, or using it as an ingredient in stews, gravies, and soups.