A long time ago my husband cooked a ham in apple cider and we remembered that it was a big hit, so in keeping with the season, I decided to try something similar for Sunday dinner. This time we are making a spiced apple cider braised ham, which starts with a fresh ham shank.

You don’t often see fresh ham shanks in the grocery store, but I was shopping in the strip district with my sister and girlfriend, and we stopped in Wholey’s, a huge market specializing in seafood and meat products. Originally I was looking for a country ham but when I saw the fresh ham shank I decided to give it a try.

Using local apple cider, spices, and some brown sugar and honey we braised the ham for 3-4 hours until the internal temperature reached 160 degrees.

Okay, it really tasted more like a spiced cider pork roast and not at all like a ham. Still, it was something different and in the end we all liked it. My brother-in-law, a huge ham fan, ended up taking home the leftovers.

Sound tasty but prefer the taste of ham. Try this with a regular fully cooked ham. It should cook in less time and the internal temperature only needs to reach 140 degrees.

Here’s the recipe:

Spiced Apple Cider Braised Ham

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Ingredients

• 1 - 8 lb Fresh Ham Shank
• 2 quarts apple cider
• 4-5 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tablespoon - whole cloves
• 2 tablespoons - allspice berries
• 1/2 - brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons - honey

Instructions

1. Pour cider into a large heavy pot. Add spices, brown sugar and honey.
2. Heat on medium and stir until sugar dissolves.
3. Trim the rind from the ham then transfer into the pot.
4. Bring to a boil then turn to low and let simmer covered for 4-5 hours.
5. Check for an internal temperature of 160 degrees.