Gammon too salty

[FlyingUnicornWings]

Hi all.

I’m trying to reduce upf in our household and one thing that’s got me stumped is ham.

I’ve cooked and sliced a gammon, but it’s far too salty, I find.

Is there an effective way of cooking it so it’s not salty?

Any wisdom would be gratefully received.

You need to soak it in water before you cook it. If you change the water a couple of times that will help too.

I boil it for 5 mins, skim off the scum, discard the water then start again with fresh water and boil for as long as required before roasting.

Soak, boil to cook it and then just roast for 15-20 minutes to glaze if you want. That will help, but gammon and ham will always be salty, and aren’t ever a really health choice especially if cured with nitrites.

I think if trying to reduce UPFs, I’d skip the gammon. It’s very processed as far as meats go.

If you really want to do it, you need to boil it first. I always boil fully covered for half the total cooking time, so an hour. Then drain off all the salty water, rinse, put in roasting tray to cook with chosen glaze for, say, 30-45 minutes depending on weight.

Buy unsmoked gammon. Then you don't need to soak it.

Before cooking it, soak the gammon joint overnight in a large bowl of water. If possible change the water a couple of times.

Does everyone boil and roast their gammon?

I either roast it or boil it.

I use Nigella's recipe slightly fiddled with and I haven't found better for a ham.

Soak to get the salt out (only if using Smoked gammon; unsmoked you don't need to) then boil for a couple of hours with a cinnamon stick etc. Leave to cool in the water (that's the trick to prevent it drying out). Then remove skin, score the fat, add the sugar and mustard and then roast quickly on a high heat just to caramelise the top.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I’m getting a soak it vibe 😆

I’ll give it a go and see how I get on.

But only if you buy Smoked gammon!🤣

You can buy unsmoked you know.....no soaking needed.....

boil with a potato,
change the water and boil again

There's the same amount of salt in smoked and unsmoked gammon, isn't there? Smoking adds smokiness, not salt?

I've always found unsmoked gammon tastes significantly less salty, so much so that you don't need to soak it. Same with bacon types. I am very sensitive to salt taste though.

I've tried lidl and Waitrose ones and the lidl gammon was much saltier. I'm going to try the boiling water trick though because if it's Waitrose I need to wait for a reduction

I always soak mine overnight. I find unsmoked too salty, soaking does the trick!

If ham is too salty, freeze it in portions and use it in recipes, but omit the salt. Don’t throw it away.

Add apple cider vinegar when cooking either to the glaze or in the liquid when boiling.

I buy the unsmoked gammon and slow cook it with a tin of pineapple and it's juice...I don't find it salty