Help! Lost my source for Missouri country ham for Christmas

The smokehouse in Cape Girardeau where I have gotten my whole, cooked country ham suddenly went out os business after 72 years.

I need a whole, cooked country ham. Hickory smoked, salt- or papper-cured, and hung for six to twelve months, and cooked before shipping; delivered a week or so before Christmas.

I will really appreciate any leads or ideas. Thanks

Burger's has an attic-aged whole ham, they'll cook for you. Burger's is high-quality, altho' not quite as strongly-flavored as I prefer. But I find that all my foodie buddies think that the flavor is plenty strong enough! They're probably right... : )

Geo

http://www.smokehouse.com/burgers.nsf/x ... 3500728FC2

I'll second the recommendation for Burger's.
Beef jerky and Summer Sausage are outstanding too.

I've had good results with Scott Hams. I prefer cooking them myself, but they do offer a cooked version:
http://www.scotthams.com/index.php?meth ... GroupsId=4

If you search Burger's herein, there is a very detailed thread involving several folks' experience with their product. IMO, it is an excellent ham.

This is the best country ham I've ever had. We lived about 10 miles from Princeton and shopped in the country store, it was like stepping back in time about 75 years. They sold ground country ham that we used to use to make ham salad....spectacular!

http://www.newsomscountryham.com/

I don't want to be too nerdfurious about this recommendation, but Kite's Ham from Virginia is the best you'll ever have, and I'll challenge any takers to a ham smackdown to prove it.

Kite's Hams: www.kiteshams.com
(888) 808-4267
(540) 948-4742

I like the idea of a ham smackdown. When/where?

nr706 wrote:I like the idea of a ham smackdown. When/where?

I should know better than to throw down the piggy gauntlet and not expect 98 percent of the readers to take it seriously. So, you called my bluff. However, I am willing to follow through with the challenge, as soon as the sin-laws send the goods--usually after Thanksgiving.

ccrush--you KNEW this would happen! What surprizes me is that we haven't heard from GWIV on this... yet. Bet he wouldn't miss a ham smackdown for all the whatevers in BBQLand. :^)

Now you gotta run this thing right: double-blind, and with FULL documentation, so all us kibbutzers can enjoy the blow-by-blow (? or is it chew-by-chew?)

Geo

Geo wrote:Now you gotta run this thing right: double-blind, and with FULL documentation, so all us kibbutzers can enjoy the blow-by-blow (? or is it chew-by-chew?)

Some ideas on how to do it might be found within the links here.

Geo wrote:ccrush--you KNEW this would happen! What surprizes me is that we haven't heard from GWIV on this... yet. Bet he wouldn't miss a ham smackdown for all the whatevers in BBQLand. :^)

Geo,

Ham Smackdown, when, where and what can I bring?*

Actually, I've had the Kite's ham in question and it's top tier ham, though I've tasted Dukesdad recommendation of Newsom, that's the ham I have hanging in my basement, which is also terrific. Steve Z had some killer ham a while ago, maybe he will chime in with the name.

Well worth a click and a read are Mike Sula's Nov 1st blog postHello, Gorgeous, bonus picture of Pigmon cradling a ham, and Mike's article on Ham Country.

Tomorrow is not too soon

Enjoy,
Gary

I've put in a request for a Kite's delivery a.s.a.p., but it probably won't arrive until after Thanksgiving. If the timing is right, it could be part of the holiday party festivities, although I'm not sure if Manny's would allow it.

crrush wrote:I've put in a request for a Kite's delivery a.s.a.p., but it probably won't arrive until after Thanksgiving. If the timing is right, it could be part of the holiday party festivities, although I'm not sure if Manny's would allow it.

Ditto for Scott Hams

Rose Meat Packing sells their hams and other products at their country store in Barrington. All their types of ham are availible for sampling. Millrose Brewing Company Restaurant is part of the complex.


http://www.millrosecountrystore.com/our_store.asp

But Rose doesn't make country hams ... not even sure if they sell 'em in the store (haven't been there in a couple of years).

(Full disclosure - I have done some work for Rose Packing in the past.)

dukesdad-

OK, the Newsom's ham description sounded the closest to what I've gotten from the defunct Esicar's Smokehouse in Cape Girardeau, and I went with them. Thank you.

About twice as expensive as Esicar's, but what the heck...

Thanks to all who generously helped with my somewhat frantic quest.

Christmas will not be celebrated at MacDonalds, after all.

Happy to help. Nancy is a wonderful lady.

If you're ever stuck for a country ham on short notice, remember that Paulina usually has some hanging around. A decent Smithfield, VA brand if I recall correctly. You might also seek out a local Cracker Barrel. That's right, Cracker Barrel usually has them. Though, around here, there might not be enough turnover to make it worthwhile to stock.

How was the Newsom's ham?

Dukesdad-

I have been VERY happy with the Newsome's Kentuckey country ham,and am still knawing happliy on it.

Funny sequence- I posted an email order and said BE SURE YOU COOK IT.

I received an uncooked ham. Called Nancy and complained (politely). She said she'd sent a UPS prepaid return label and send a cooked one. The ham was in the fridge at my son's house nearby, as I didn't have room. I got the label and made elaborate arrangements with UPS to go around to the back porch and pick up the still-wrapped ham from inside the BBQ (it was plenty cold enough to do this.) This was because my son works and DIL is out most of most days running the kids around.

Ingenious plan. Didn't work. Ham still in BBQ.

Got the cooked ham, and, not unexpectedly, heard from Nancy about my having two hams for the price of one. When she explained that the uncooked one could be hung where not too warm and next Christmas I would have a two-year-old country ham, though still uncooked. She warned that as an amateur country ham eater, I might be a little put off by a two-year ham. I assured her I was FAR from inexperienced country-ham-wise, so maybe I would like to keep it. I'm sure that in a year we could figure out how to cook it, though from my extensive experience I am well aware that this in a HUGE PITA unless you have a really big stove and turkey-sized pot.

She also said if kept in the fridge till next Xmas it would remain essentialy a one-year old ham, without aging much.

So, she gave me a nice discount on the raw ham - saving her the price of return shipping, and I'm all set for neat year. (My wife will only let me eat one of those things a year.)

If you want some more discussion, I'd love to do it, or a smackdown, since I come from a line of German-immigrant, Missouri hog-slaughterers and ham-hangers dating back to about 1848.

Thanks again, Dukesdad.

Mike

Ingenious plan. Didn't work. Ham still in BBQ.

Ok. This right here (above), should be a forum tagline.

This:

HUGE PITA

also wins some kind of award, since I know on first read it made you think of giant hammy falafel, just like I did.

Santander-

"BIG PITA"

You maybe don't have much military experience -- don't dig acronyms.

I'd explain, but this is, after all, a family forum.

Mike

Believe me, I got it, Mike. I'm just pointing out the most inocuous (and food related) of the triple entendre inherent there.

OK, what's the third?

Geo

It's the one even less family-appropriate than Mike's.