Cider & clove glazed ham with apple & beetroot salad – Christmas is coming

 

I think it was perfect decision to try this cider & clove flavoured ham before Christmas. The apple & beetroot salad was originally created for the winter issue of the Stahl magazine (in a slightly different version, of course), and I liked it so much that I immediately knew that it would be a perfect pairing with this ham, as well.

Cider & clove glazed ham with apple & beetroot salad

For the cider & clove glazed ham:

- 750 ml cider

- 60 ml apple cider vinegar

- 1 bulb of garlic, cleaned, cloves grated

- 2 tsp. mustard

- 1 tsp. ground clove

- 200 g brown sugar

- 4 tsp. salt

- 1 leg of pork (5,5 kg)

For the apple & beetroot salad:

- 50 g butter

- 8 large beetroots, cut into cubes

- salt and freshly ground pepper

- 8 large apples, cut into cubes

- 1 orange’s zest

- ½ tsp. grated horse-radish

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C.

2. Cook the cider, apple cider vinegar, mustard, clove and 100 g brown sugar on moderate heat for 10-15 minutes until it thickens, then strain it.

3. Score the skin of the ham in a criss-cross pattern (or if you have a larger ham, remove the skin and score only the fat). Rub the mixture of the remaining sugar and salt into the skin, then place the ham onto a large baking sheet covered with baking paper and put it in the preheated oven. After five minutes, pour 3 tbsp. of cider sauce on the ham. Bake the ham for two hours, and pour some cider sauce on it regularly, do not let it dry out.

4. Steam the beetroot on the butter for 10 minutes in a covered pan. Salt and pepper it, then add the apple, horse-radish and orange zest and continue to steam for another ten minutes.

Serve the ham with the beetroot & apple salad and bread.