ROASTED FRESH HAM

Roasted Fresh Ham image

This is a huge piece of meat that is simple to prepare and inevitably leads to applause and awe. A fresh ham weighing in at north of 15 pound yields the variety of doneness needed for a big party of eaters: well-done white meat, pink slices for the medium-rare crowd, and crispy fat and dark-meat bits from the shank for those who like to snack. If there are leftovers the next day, carve the rest of the meat from the bone and make yourself a phenomenal ham sandwich. Then use the bones for stock and soup!

Provided by Matt Lee And Ted Lee

Categories dinner, roasts, main course

Time 4h30m

Yield 12 to 14 servings

Number Of Ingredients 6

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Ingredients

1 16-to-18-pound fresh ham
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh thyme (from 14 to 16 stems)
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons dry white wine
1/4 cup half-and-half

Steps:

Place a rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 425 degrees. Trim skin and excess fat from ham, leaving a layer of fat. Score ham all over in a diamond pattern of 1/2-inch-deep cuts about 1 1/2 inches apart.
In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and thyme, pinching and sifting mixture until thyme becomes fragrant. Pat mixture all over ham and into crevices.
Place ham fat-side up on a rack in a large roasting pan and roast uncovered for 1/2 an hour. Turn heat down to 350 degrees, pour 2 cups wine and 1/2 cup water into pan and loosely tent with aluminum foil. Continue to roast, basting every hour. Add water to pan, if necessary, to keep pan juices from scorching; bake until a meat thermometer pressed into thickest part of ham reads 155 degrees, about 3 1/2 hours.
Let ham stand 15 to 20 minutes before carving. Pour pan juices and remaining 2 tablespoons wine into a small saucepan and simmer about 2 minutes. Turn off flame, add half-and-half, and serve with ham.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 1156, UnsaturatedFat 48 grams, Carbohydrate 2 grams, Fat 87 grams, Fiber 0 grams, Protein 80 grams, SaturatedFat 30 grams, Sodium 823 milligrams, Sugar 1 gram