A Chinese ham for Easter?

When I was getting ready to move homes I decided to check out Book Sale, a small store that sells second-hand books and old magazines at a reasonable price. That’s how I discovered Martha Stewart’s Living magazine with all sorts of instructions for a crafty person like me. Since then I have decided I like her magazine better than Oprah’s because her people write about crafts and gardens and cooking and decorating, everything I like to do.

This week I picked up last year’s Easter edition because I was attracted to the Easter eggs on the cover. Then, I got overwhelmed by all sorts of Easter memories. I remembered when my daughter and I just moved to Millbrae, outside of San Francisco, in 1984, I think it was. One of the first things I did was call up an old friend of mine, a Maryknoll priest, Fr. John Martin, who lived somewhere else but far from me. I asked him about American holidays. I was new in town. I wanted to know what the rituals were — you know, like having turkey on Thanksgiving. 

I told him about my first Thanksgiving there. I was totally unprepared and on Thanksgiving morning went to Walgreen’s to buy instant turkey dinners for my daughter’s friends and their parents. I was so embarrassed when I realized that that was not your typical Thanksgiving feast. You roasted a turkey and whipped up sidings and cooked almost all week so your family could eat to death. The next year I did it right until finally I got sick of the turkey and decided on cocido for Thanksgiving. But that was for my last Thanksgiving in the United States.

“We serve ham on Easter,” he added.

“Ham? In the Philippines ham is a Christmas thing,” I said.

“Not here. Ham is served on Easter and you go to church in your Easter bonnet,” I could hear him grin over the telephone. 

“I will do that,” I said, “but only because I love wearing hats. The top of my head always feels cold without a hat.”

I remembered all that when I was flipping through last year’s Living Easter magazine. They featured a good-looking ham, even the recipe for it. I don’t cook anymore since I live alone but I remembered what John said and became curious. How do they cook ham in America?

 Wrap the ham in parchment then foil and stick in the oven for 1 1/2 hours. No basting sauce? No seasoning? Oh, it goes on to say mix your sauce — horseradish, honey allspice, salt and pepper. I hate allspice. It makes me think of dentists. 

 Remove ham from oven. When cool enough, remove the skin and the fat, pat dry, score the surface with 1/4-inch parallel lines one to two inches apart making a diagonal pattern.  Bake again for 30 minutes then baste with horseradish and honey mixture and bake again for two hours more basting every 30 minutes. Insert a meat thermometer in the thickest part but not touching the bone. When it says 145 degrees your ham is cooked. Serve with the sauce made of horseradish, fresh cream, thyme and shallots.

 I think about how I used to make our Chinese Christmas ham.  First you soak it in water to remove much of the saltiness.  Do this for two to three days changing the water occasionally. Then put the ham in a large enough oval cooking pot. Poke the skin with a fork creating holes to allow your basting fluid  — one can pineapple juice, a bottle of beer and two panutsa — to enter and flavor the meat. Cook over a low flame for many hours until the ham is tender. I cannot remember if I removed the skin or not. I think I kept the skin on. Let the ham cool. Then cover the top with brown sugar and glaze with any flat iron instrument that you can heat over a flame and apply until the sugar melts and glazes the Chinese ham.

 When I think of these two hams I dream of the Chinese ham.  It tastes delicious when you eat it with hot pandesal or eat it with sinangag for breakfast on the days after Christmas.  You can eat it hot, cold or at room temperature. Thinking about it today I wonder if I can still find Chinese ham for Easter. Not the facsimile thereof, the real Chinese ham that I would recognize on sight.

 Why should I care? I think I’m the only one in the family who misses Chinese ham. Maybe I should just avoid buying year-old magazines at small stalls. 

* * *

Please text your comments to 0917-8155570 or 0999-8457749.