Padow’s Old Cure Country Hams

Padow’s Old Cure Country Hams are salt and sugar cured and can be purchased Raw, Cooked with the Bone-In or Cooked Boneless.  (Some people want the bones
for soup, stew or beans.) These hams are aged a minimum of 6 months in the tradition which made Old Cure Hams famous. If you have a cooked ham, it is
ready to enjoy (best at room temperature and sliced very thin).  These do not require any further cooking as it could make them dry. 

Padow’s Mild Cure Country Hams

The Mild Cure Country Hams are also cured in the same tradition as our Old Cure Hams, but aged a minimum of 3 months.  The results are a milder, less
salty tasting ham. Again, if you have a cooked ham, it does not require any further cooking, it is ready to enjoy (best at room temperature and sliced very
thin).  These hams can also be purchased Raw.  In this case, you would need to soak, scrub, cook, & trim.  The cooked Bone-In Country ham is vacuum rapped. 
It has been soaked, scrubbed, cooked, trimmed, and glazed and it still has the bone! Our Boneless Country Ham is one of the most popular.  Everything has already been done and it is served at room temperature, sliced thin. 
It also comes vacuum wrapped. 

Country Buffet Hams

Sliced or Not Sliced are the 2 options for the country buffet hams.The sliced buffet hams are about 2.5 pounds and the unsliced average 3-4 pounds. Both are fully cooked, vacuum wrapped, and placed in a cloth sack.

Honey Hams

Sugar cured Honey Glazed Spiral Hams are fully cooked and are available in half bone-in.  

#1 recommendation: It is best to 'underheat' rather than overheat your ham, as these are already cooked.

Peel off label on ham for instructions. Padow's offers our complimentary glaze packet with our honey hams, this is optional, but adds additional flavor.

Padow's Smoked Turkey and Honey Hams must be shipped NEXT
DAY Air outside of Virginia!

Preparing Your Honey Ham

If your ham is frozen, place in refrigerator for 24 - 48 hours to thaw before heating. To warm and glaze your honey ham, many families have recommended using the rectangular glass pan. Line the pan with foil so you don't have to spend time in the kitchen cleaning up after the meal. Place the ham on the foil, add about a quarter cup of water and close the foil tightly. You want to keep the moisture in!

While your ham is heating, empty the contents of the foil glaze packet into a small saucepan on top of your stove and add several tablespoons of water to create a glaze. Heat until the sugar and spices have dissolved. Then, about 10 minutes before serving take the ham from the oven, pour the smooth glaze over the ham (the slices will have started separating) and return the ham to the oven for a few more minutes. [The pineapple slices and cherries are optional.]

If you have leftovers, wrap in foil, and then place the foil packets in baggies to keep the air out.

Storing Old Cure or Country Hams

All cooked hams should be refrigerated. After opening, you can keep it covered in your refrigerator for up to 30 days. You can freeze your uncooked or cooked ham for up to 90 days if well wrapped. If you plan to use the uncooked country ham within 60 days of receipt, it will be best stored in the original sack having the shank side down in a cool dry room.

Complete Cooking Directions

After washing and soaking your RAW Old Cure or Country Ham overnight, you may cook the ham using either of these two easy methods or follow the directions on the bag.


Baking Method Number One

After washing the ham, place it in a roaster with 5 cups of water, skin side up. Cover the roaster. Next, preheat the oven to 375 degrees (F), put roaster in the oven, and turn the oven to 500 degrees (F) for 10 minutes only. Turn oven off and leave for 3 hours. Finally, turn the oven to 500 degrees (F) for not more than a total of 25 minutes. Leave the ham in the oven for 6 to 8 hours. Do Not Open Oven Door at any point during this process until it is complete. When done, insert thermometer to check temperature has reached 160 degrees (F). Remove the skin while warm and trim away fat as desired.

Baking Method Number Two

Shake one tablespoon of flour into a turkey size (19" x 23 1/2") oven cooking bag. Place bag in large roasting pan at least 2 inches deep. Place ham in the bag. Add 4 cups of liquid into the bag (apple juice, wine or any carbonated beverage) and close the bag with a nylon tie. Make six slits in top - approximately 1/2" each. Through the slit in the bag, puncture the thickest part of the ham with a knife and insert a meat thermometer into the ham, but not touching the bone. Cook 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours or until the meat thermometer registers 160 degrees (F). Remove from the oven, discarding bag and drippings. Remove the skin while warm and trim away fat as desired. Follow directions for glazing an Old Cure or Country Ham.


Glazing your Old Cure or Country Ham

Brown Sugar Glaze - 1 cup brown sugar; 1 tablespoon dry mustard; 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves or cinnamon orange marmalade or any of your favorite fruit jams. This recipe can be doubled if you like a generous glaze orif your ham is larger than 13 pounds. Mix brown sugar, mustard and round cloves or cinnamon, adding just enough jam to make a stiff paste. Spread over ham. Put ham in 400 degree (F) oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Allow the glaze on your ham to caramelize and brown nicely. You may optionally score and dot your ham with cloves before glazing. 

reminder... Fully Cooked Old Cure and Country Hams do not require additional cooking.

To restore the glaze, place in preheated 375 degree (F) oven for 5 to 10 minutes only.

... then carve into very thin slices to enjoy the unique flavor and texture!

Carving Instructions

for "Bone-In" Old Cure or Country Hams

Trim all excess fat off of ham if you desire. Turn ham lean side up, bone side down. Pick up knife with cutting hand.

Grasp shank of ham with other hand so that the center of the ham is in front of you and not off to the side.

Going down about a third of the shank side of the ham, make a straight cross cut to give you a stopping point for the slices. Slice all the way down to the bone, rolling the knife forward and backward until ham is cut apart except for the bone.

Put knife on 45 degree angle and begin slicing from the center of ham to the cut you made in the ham earlier. Be sure to make slices even and very very thin. Move the knife forward and backward around ham while slicing, continue slicing until most of the top of the ham is sliced. Turn ham on side, and continue slicing around the whole ham.

Support ham with cutting stand or towel while slicing. Save the bones and scraps for seasoning. Your ham should be used within two weeks or sliced and frozen for later use.

Heating Instructions

for Spiral Honey Ham Thaw Ham out completely before warming. Place ham in shallow side pan with fat side up. Add 1/2 cup warm water & cover tightly with aluminum foil. Heat in 325 degree (F) oven 30 - 45 minutes for Half Ham

*remember, this product is already fully cooked



"Quantity Guidelines" for Entertaining

1 lb. of ham will make approximately 4 dozen ham biscuits or 80 bite size biscuits. Estimate 2 large size (2 1/2" diameter) ham biscuits per person for lunch, Estimate 3 cocktail size (bite size) ham biscuits per person for Hors d'oeuvre. l lb. of ham yields approximately 16 slices. Old Cure Ham must be sliced wafer thin and piled high for best results. For a buffet line, use 2-3 thin slices of ham per person. 7 lb. boneless or 12 lb. bone-in ham will serve approximately. 35 people for a buffet or 30 people for dinner.