Orange & ginger beer gammon with sweet mustard

Slightly sweet and spiced, this gammon recipe is a winner!

Orange & ginger beer gammon with sweet mustard

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

2.5-2.8kg smoked boneless gammon
1L ginger beer
3 cups orange juice
1 cinnamon stick
2-3 whole star anise
4-6 cloves
1 Tbsp black peppercorns
½ Tbsp sea salt flakes
Pinch bicarbonate of soda (optional)
1 orange, peeled and sliced
Bunch of bay leaves

Method

Place the gammon in a large pot then add ginger beer, juice and aromatics
Simmer covered on a low heat for about 1½ hours, turning the gammon over halfway through cooking.
Remove gammon and allow to cool slightly.
Strain the cooking liquid and place back on medium heat to reduce until syrupy.
Preheat oven to 200°C. Once the gammon is cool enough to handle, but not yet cold, remove any netting from the gammon and gently peel off the skin, keeping fat in tact.
Discard skin or crisp up in the air fryer or oven, break into pieces and eat as a snack.
Gently score the fat in a diamond shape, mix the sea salt and bicarbonate of soda, if using, and rub this mixture onto the fat.
Place the gammon in an ovenproof dish and pop in the oven for 25 minutes.
Lower the temperature to 180°C and cook for another 30-40 minutes.
Once the fat has crisped up, glaze the gammon with the ginger beer syrup and cook for another 20 minutes, basting again halfway.
Remove from the oven and allow to rest.
Heat a pan with about 3 Tbsp of the glaze on a high heat. Add orange slices and allow to caramelise for 2-3 minutes. Add bay leaves and remove from heat.
Garnish the gammon with orange slices and bay leaves. Slice and serve with sweet mustard sauce and your favourite festive side dishes.