HAM FACTS

Curing hams for over 100 years
Our founder, William Meacham learned the art and secrets to curing great hams from his grandmother, with a recipe handed down to her from her family before 1900! My father would cure hams, bacon and sausage for his family and would sometimes share those special hams with friends and relatives. Before long he saw the need to cure more hams and a business was born.

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the unmistakable taste of country ham

It’s good in omelets, bean soup, with Brie on crackers, and on Grandma’s buttermilk biscuits. Not to mention a few million other dishes.

But what makes it different than, say regular ham?

City Ham vs. Country Hams

Ham is ham, you say. Well, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. First, the preparation of ham begins with the cured and smoked hind leg of a pig. “City” ham, found in most city supermarkets, is usually boneless, mild tasting with water-added, meaning the salt and cure are dissolved in water and are pumped into the meat. This process usually takes 24 hours. “Country” ham is dry-cured, a time-honored tradition where hams are packed in salt mixed with other curing ingredients, and slowly cured, up to forty days, sometimes smoked and always aged. The salt draws out the meat’s moisture, yielding a firmer, very flavorful finished product.

You Can’t Rush a Good Ham! You can’t rush a good ham, not unlike a fine wine; a good ham needs to age slowly and naturally. Our entire process is done with care and extra time. Country hams are dry cured, which means the cure is added to enhance or speed up the process. It can take up to a full year to produce the flavor and texture of a true country ham. Some Tips About Storage Cooked or sliced country ham should be refrigerated immediately upon arrival. For long periods of storage, freezing is acceptable. Uncooked country ham may be stored at room temperature in a dry, cool place for up to 3 months where it will continue to age. Additional aging produces a sharper taste that many ham aficionados prefer. The milder taste may be maintained by refrigeration or freezing to slow the aging process.