Roast Fresh Ham with Cracklings

Name: Roast Fresh Ham with Cracklings
Yield: serves 15 or More, with leftovers
Ingredients: Kosher salt; 2 heads of garlic, unpeeled, cut in half crosswise; 1 large yellow onion, cut in half; 1 tablespoon black peppercorns; 1 tablespoon coriander seeds; 3 dried bay leaves; 1 small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley; 1 tablespoon expeller-pressed vegetable oil; 1 (15- to 18-pound) trimmed, skin-on fresh ham

December 9, 2011

Silvia and I have made this often over the years, the first time in my (illegal) home kitchen for an Easter catering gig when we made the entire meal twice, timing it so that the second roast was perfectly blistered and crispy when we arrived back home with a car full of dirty pots and pans to have dinner with our own families. It goes well with wilted spring scallions, roast potatoes (basted in the drippings), lightly dressed spicy arugula, and beans in all forms. One favorite bean dish for this ham is from Amanda Hesser’s The Cook and the Gardener: flavorful white beans simmered with hearty herbs and crème fraîche until slightly thickened.

Recipe notes

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