As you can tell from our name, we at Hobe’s Country Ham are experts at, well, country ham. Naturally, we are big fans of country ham and want to help more people experience the great flavor it has to offer. Our family-owned business has been in operation since 1973, and in our nearly 50 years of experience, we have heard and answered just about every question you can imagine on the subject. In this article, we’ll go over a few of the most common questions we get with their answers to give you more information about our great products.
- What is curing? One term you’ll encounter a lot when shopping for country ham is curing. This refers to a step in the preparation process in which salt, sugar, pepper, and other seasonings are hand rubbed onto fresh hams. Country hams can be cured twice during their first 40 days in refrigeration.
- What does it mean to age a ham? As you might infer from the last paragraph, turning a fresh ham into a country ham is a process that takes an extended period of time. Our hams here at Hobe’s Country Hams cure & age for at least 90 days. This allows the flavors to penetrate further into the meat and allows the salt to slowly decrease the amount of moisture in the ham so that it can eventually be stored at room temperature.
- How should I store my country ham? If you buy a cooked country ham from our team at Hobe’s Country Ham, you should store it in the refrigerator to prevent it from drying out or freeze it for future use. On the other hand, an uncooked and unsliced ham can be stored in your pantry for up to a year–however, the longer you wait to cook it, the drier and saltier it will become.