This recipe has been in my family for decades; so you have to think that if something has been around for that long, it must be good! I make this at least twice a year, and people rave about the meal every time. The trick is buying the right ham…make sure it isn’t the spiraled kind! This will cause a dry ham that’s falling apart. My absolute favorite way to have eat George’s Ham is pretty untraditional: a King’s Hawaiian Roll, topped with homemade Mac n cheese and ham. It. Is. Scrumptious.  

Boiling Ham Ingredients:

• Smoked or sugar cured ham, NOT a country style ham
• 4 chopped carrots
• 4 onions cut into large pieces
• 2-3 pieces of chopped celery
• 2-3 bay leaves
• 1 ½ tsp whole cloves

Glaze Ingredients:

• 4 cups of brown sugar
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 4 tsp dry mustard.

Instructions:

1. Trim most of the fat off ham and put into a large pot and cover with water.
2. Add the rest of the “boiling ham ingredients” to the water.
3. Bring water to a boil, then turn heat down. Let simmer for 2 ½ hours with the pot covered.
4. Turn heat off and let ham sit in liquid overnight – I really don’t recommend skipping this step, because it makes all the difference! (you can leave the ham out of the fridge all night because the boiling will sterilize the pot).
5. When you are ready to bake your ham the next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6. Take ham out of liquid, remove the rest of the fat, and place in a large pan.
7. Add all the glaze ingredients into a small saucepan and heat until sugar is dissolved, whisking continuously.
8. Coat ham generously with newly made glaze.
9. Cook ham for 1- 1 ½ hours, basting every 15 minutes with glaze.
10. Serve with mashed potatoes and green beans!