Let's Talk BBQ

Outdoor Cooking Equipment => Grills & Smokers => Pellet Grills and Smokers => Topic started by: pmillen on January 02, 2015, 03:54:11 PM

Title: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: pmillen on January 02, 2015, 03:54:11 PM
This isn’t an original recipe.  It was given to me.

Throw away the glaze packet

Make glaze
½ cup Orange Juice
½ cup Apple Juice
¼ cup Brown Sugar
¼ cup Honey

Sugar Mix
½ cup Brown Sugar
½ cup Natural Sugar in the Raw (Turbinado Sugar)
½ tea Ground Ginger
½ tea Cinnamon
½ tea Fresh Ground Nutmeg
½ tea Spanish Paprika

Directions
1.  Rub the ham with the glaze squirted from a bottle.  (Put ham in a pan to reduce mess.)
2.  Shake on a heavy coating of the sugar mix and pat it to ensure sticking
3.  Smoke at 275° to 300° 2½ to 3 hours
4.  Drizzle glaze liquid on each hour to keep it moist
5.  Pull it at 140° IT

Here’s what it looked like when I unwrapped it.
(http://i448.photobucket.com/albums/qq206/pmillen/HamAsPurchasedResized.jpg)

It went into my Cookshack Fast Eddy PG-500 set at 290°.  (For Fast Eddy owners—the LHt was 20 with HHt at 75.)  The ambient temperature was 32° F with a variable wind that never exceeded 10 mph.  The light blue smoke was fairly constant.  Temperatures swung from 267° to 293°.  I was happy with that.
(http://i448.photobucket.com/albums/qq206/pmillen/HamInSmokerResized.jpg)

The salesman told me that I would love my PG-500.  He was right.  I felt good about its performance.

I squirted more glaze on each hour.  At the two-hour point I slipped a temperature probe in the thick part.  It only registered 68°.  What the…?  I suppose that the 2½ to 3-hour projected cooking time was correct if the ham had been at room temperature before cooking.  Mine was straight from the refrigerator.  I don't recall being told to have it at room temperature.  Maybe he thought that I would know that.

I had guests coming to eat and watch the two semi-final National Championship football games.  I had only allowed three hours for cooking.

I raised the temperature setpoint to 350° and the HHt to 100.  The temperatures swung between 333° and 356°.  The internal temperature still wasn’t climbing fast enough to make my projected dinner time.

At the 2½ hour point I raised the setpoint to 400°.  After 15 more minutes the pit temperature was only 389° and climbing very slowly so I changed the HHt to 120.  The pit temperature swung between 390° and 400°.

After 3½ hours of cooking the IT was 100° and I removed it from the pit.  The high temperatures charred the glaze making it inedible (like a rock). 
(http://i448.photobucket.com/albums/qq206/pmillen/HamReadyToServeResized.jpg)

But it was an excellent ham otherwise.  It had smoke and glaze flavor.  We hurriedly ate and watched the Seminoles get thumped.

I’ll do another ham using this recipe but I’ll start with it at room temperature.  I could allow more cooking time but I think that’ll just increase the possibility of drying it out.

Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: drholly on January 02, 2015, 03:58:59 PM
Dang, that looks good! Thanks for sharing.
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: muebe on January 02, 2015, 04:02:39 PM
Quite a crust on there!

Bet it tasted real good!
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: HighOnSmoke on January 02, 2015, 04:15:15 PM
That looks delicious! I used the exact same recipe on our ham for Christmas. (Got it from Killer Hogs website)
I didn't take any photos, but that combination of glaze and rub is killer!
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: sliding_billy on January 02, 2015, 05:04:02 PM
Nice looking ham.
Title: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: Pappymn on January 02, 2015, 05:33:18 PM
Looks great from here. I wouldn't worry too much about the IT as the ham is already cooked. ;)
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: pmillen on January 02, 2015, 06:19:13 PM
That looks delicious! I used the exact same recipe on our ham for Christmas.

The crusted glaze photographs better than it eats.

I'm curious about your results.
   !.  Was it straight from the refrigerator when you put it on the pit?
   2.  What pit did you use to cook it?
   3.  Did you have fairly tight temperature control?
   4.  How close did the internal temperature/cook time track to the recipe?
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: Big Dawg on January 02, 2015, 06:21:40 PM
Good looking ham and a couple of good games (a blowout & an upset, fun night!).





BD
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: pmillen on January 02, 2015, 06:21:59 PM
I wouldn't worry too much about the IT as the ham is already cooked. ;)

True, Pappy, but I wanted to serve hot ham.
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: smokeasaurus on January 03, 2015, 11:23:27 AM
When a recipe starts out with "Throw out the glaze", I am all ears..... ;D

That is a darn good looking ham.  What kind of pellets did you use?
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: sparky on January 03, 2015, 11:29:48 AM
Looks pretty good from here.
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: IR2dum on January 03, 2015, 12:27:00 PM
That looks delicious.
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: CDN Smoker on January 03, 2015, 12:57:37 PM
Fantastic, Bookmarked ;D
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: TMB on January 03, 2015, 01:25:03 PM
Bookmarked thanks
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: Las Vegan Cajun on January 03, 2015, 05:24:26 PM
Great looking ham, nicely done. ;)
Title: Re: Smoking and Glazing a Spiral Cut Ham in a Cookshack PG-500
Post by: pmillen on January 03, 2015, 11:32:00 PM
What kind of pellets did you use?

BBQr's Delight Hickory.

I've posted this before, but I'm not ashamed to post it again.  I can't tell the difference in the taste of different pellet woods I've used.  (I could probably identify mesquite—I've never used it and never will.)  I can smell the difference in the smoke but I don't taste the difference on the finished product.