- 1 city style (brined) ham, hock end (* see note)
- ¼ C brown mustard
- 2 C dark brown sugar
- 1 OZ bourbon (poured into a spritz bottle)
- 2 C crushed ginger snap cookies
Oven: 250° F
- Remove ham from the bag, rinse and drain thoroughly. Place ham, cut side down, in a roasting pan.
- Using a small paring knife, or clean utility knife set to the smallest blade setting, score the ham from bottom to top, spiraling clockwise as you cut (if you’re using a paring knife, be careful to only cut through the skin and first few layers of fat). Rotate the ham after each cut so that the scores are no more than 2-inches across. Once you’ve made it all the way around, move the knife to the other hand and repeat, spiraling counter clockwise. The aim is to create a diamond pattern all over the ham (don’t worry too much about precision here).
- Tent the ham with heavy duty foil, insert a thermometer, and cook for 3 to 4 hours or until the internal temperature at the deepest part of the meat registers 130° F.
- Remove and use tongs to pull away the diamonds of skin and any sheets of fat that come off with them.
Oven: 350° F
- Dab the ham dry with paper towels, then brush on a liberal coat of mustard, using either a basting brush or a clean paint brush (clean as in never-touched paint).
- Sprinkle on the brown sugar, packing loosely as you go until the ham is coated.
- Spritz this layer lightly with bourbon, then loosely pack on as much of the crushed cookies as you can.
- Insert the thermometer (don’t use the old hole) and return to the oven uncovered.
- Cook until interior temperature reaches 140° F – approximately 1 hour.
- Let the roast rest for ½ hour before carving.
* NOTE: A city ham is basically any brined ham that’s packed in a plastic bag, held in a refrigerated case and marked “ready to cook”, “partially cooked” or “ready to serve”. Better city hams are also labeled “ham in natural juices”.