Any hostess wants to pamper guests and cook something unusual for the holiday. To do this, there is a great alternative for all dishes that everyone knows - this is a delicious pork ham baked in the oven. Tender meat, filled with a range of aromas and tastes, which simply dissolves in the mouth, will not leave anyone indifferent. Spices and seasonings that are used in the preparation saturate the dish with special notes and accents so that it can be compared with the dish of some fashionable restaurant.
Pork: cooking fast and easy
Not for nothing that many professionals believe that pork ham is a real festive meal that can decorate any banquet table and amuse the appetite of true gourmets.
There are many recipes, and each of them differs in cooking time and quantity of ingredients. Whatever method is chosen, it will turn out deliciously.
The preparation of this dish takes a minimum amount of time and cost. There is nothing heavy in it and, therefore, even a beginner can handle it. Even children can help in the kitchen chores, not to mention the soul mates. A common cause will create a unique family atmosphere.
The photos of the baked pork ham presented in this article will serve as proof that such a dish is a wonderful decoration of the banquet table. Even if the house does not have any specific ingredients, you can use just pepper or mustard, the dish will still be tasty and aromatic.
Baked meat: benefit or harm
Undoubtedly, during the baking process in aluminum foil, the products retain their natural moisture, aroma and taste, as a result of which the food, especially meat, is juicy. Also in the process of such processing, most of the beneficial substances are preserved.
This method of cooking pork is better for people struggling with overweight: the technology does not include the addition of fats. Roasting is recognized as one of the most useful ways of processing food. This is why meat from the oven, including pork ham baked in foil, is a popular dish among healthy food enthusiasts.
But do not forget about the dangers of this method of cooking: non-compliance with the heat treatment technology, for example, exceeding the prescription temperature, can lead to the burning of fats, which leads to the formation of carcinogens.
Also, during the baking process, vitamins of group B are lost, vitamin C is destroyed.
Selection and preparation of meat for baking
In order to make the baked pork ham soft and juicy, it is necessary to choose the upper thigh part of the pig carcass, since the bacon has a more juicy and fatty structure with layers of bacon. Such meat is best suited for baking. Whereas the anterior scapular region - less oily and fibrous - with this method of preparation will turn out to be stiff and dry.
When the ham is selected, it is prepared for baking as follows:
- they are washed under a stream of cold water, cleaning from the remnants of dirt, blood, chips of bones and hairs of bristles;
- after washing, the surface is scraped with a knife to clean and open the pores;
- in several places make cruciform incisions for better impregnation with brine or marinade. This is necessary to obtain the best taste characteristics and reduce cooking time;
- then they cook the marinade, put the whole piece of meat into it and keep it in the refrigerator for three to twenty-four hours (depending on the recipe);
- then the pork is removed from the container, dipped in a napkin to remove excess moisture and wrapped in foil so that there are no holes;
- the ham is placed in the oven warmed to the desired temperature and baked;
- if provided by the recipe, before packing in foil, the meat is coated with various compounds.
Pork roast marinade
It is no secret that the main flavoring qualities of the meat to be baked are marinades.
There are a lot of recipes for their preparation, and each will give the meat an original flavor (recipes for baked pork ham with a photo can be seen in this article).
Commonly used components for the base of marinades are:
- table wine;
- kefir;
- pomegranate juice;
- citrus fruit juice;
- mineral water.
As flavorings to the marinade base in the recipes of baked pork ham use:
- honey;
- Provencal herbs;
- spice;
- garlic;
- black or red pepper;
- bouillon;
- mayonnaise;
- spices;
- a mixture of vegetables.
With the right and organic combination of marinade components, the meat becomes juicy, tasty, soft and aromatic.
Wine marinated meat
In order for the pork leg baked in the oven in foil using such a marinade to be of high quality, you will need an ordinary medical syringe complete with a large diameter needle. Ideally, you can use a special device for introducing marinade into the meat pulp.
The ingredients will need the following:
- dry wine (Sauvignon, Cabernet) - 250 ml;
- rosemary - up to one and a half teaspoons (depending on taste preferences);
- ham or bacon - 1 kg;
- finely ground salt - from one to one and a half tablespoons;
- olive or other vegetable refined oil - three to four tablespoons;
- garlic - seven cloves.
Pork ham baked according to this recipe is excellent.
Application of marinade and baking:
- using a syringe, wine is introduced into the pulp in an amount of 10-20% of the weight of a piece of meat with punctures at a distance of one and a half centimeters from one another (until it starts to flow out);
- the pulp is coated on all sides with a mixture of chopped garlic, salt, pepper and rosemary and transferred to a bag for half an hour;
- wrap a piece in foil and bake for forty-five minutes at a temperature of 220 ° C.
Pork in mustard honey marinade
Pork ham baked in a sleeve differs little from that prepared in foil, so all recipes can be applicable for such an interpretation.
Thanks to this recipe, the meat tastes good with a small sweet and sour note.
Ingredients required:
- pork bacon or ham - 1kg;
- garlic - six cloves;
- salt and ground black pepper - to taste;
- mustard - about four tablespoons;
- medium-sized onion - two to three pcs .;
- Refined vegetable oil - up to three tablespoons;
- honey - two tablespoons.
Cooking process:
- Wash the meat, scrape, cut into several places.
- Fill a piece with a mixture of chopped garlic, vegetable oil, salt and pepper.
- Cooking marinade: melt honey, add mustard, salt, pepper.
- Coat a piece of ham with marinade, sprinkle with chopped onion on top and leave in the refrigerator for eight hours.
- Wrap pork in foil or sleeve and put on a baking sheet in a preheated oven to two hundred degrees for an hour and a half.
Ham in beer and mustard marinade
This recipe is perfect for spice lovers.
For pork ham baked in the oven (photo can be seen below), you will need the following components:
- pork ham - 1 kg;
- medium onions - two to three pieces;
- mustard and dark beer - up to three tablespoons each;
- soy sauce - four tablespoons;
- chopped basil - up to two tablespoons (to taste);
- a pinch of caraway and cinnamon;
- ground black pepper and salt to taste;
- vegetable oil - up to three tablespoons.
The cooking process consists of several steps:
- Wash the meat, cut into several places, stuff and grate with a mixture of soy sauce, vegetable oil, mustard and beer. Leave in a cool place for three hours.
- After that, grate a piece of meat with a composition of salt, basil, caraway seeds and cinnamon.
- Place the ham in foil, sprinkle with onion on top, wrap and bake in the oven for one and a half hours at a temperature of 200 ° C.
How to serve and store
When serving the finished ham to the table, you can decorate it to make it look more festive.
To do this, the finished meat is removed from the foil, peeled from the skin and placed on a dish with a layer of lettuce leaves lined at the bottom. For convenience, you can cut several slices and leave them near the remaining whole piece. Cutting all meat at once is not recommended, since baked pork ham tends to dry quickly, losing its juiciness.
A plate with salad and ham is decorated with fresh vegetables, contrasting in color - red and yellow tomatoes, green onion feathers, boiled potatoes and others.
Another way to decorate baked pork is to glaze it. The mixture is prepared from mustard and honey, then with the help of a silicone brush they lubricate the surface of the meat, which makes it festive brilliant and mouth-watering. After that, you can make incisions with a sharp knife and season them with clove flowers.
To increase the shelf life, if necessary, pork is stored in a cold place, wrapped in foil. Cold meat is also quite tasty and is used for making sandwiches and sandwiches.
Useful Tips
The pork leg baked in the oven in foil will be even tastier with a crispy crust. The secret is that for its formation at the last stage of meat readiness, the foil is opened and the dish is brought to readiness in this form. Thanks to this, the meat will acquire an appetizing and attractive golden color and a golden brown.
When baking pork ham, it is not recommended to use butter: it can burn and spoil the taste of the dish.
To check the readiness, the meat is cut with a knife: if the cut color is gray - it is time to remove, if pink - you need to bake.
You can not save on marinade - the more it is, the juicier and tastier the ham will be.
With care, you need to treat the amount of salt, pepper and herbs. Not everyone may like a salty dish with a sugary taste.
Pork ham cooked in the oven is an excellent dish not only for the festive table, but also on weekdays. The main thing is to bake meat in compliance with the rules of heat treatment so that it retains its qualities.