Can I Make The Slow Cooked Black Treacle Ham With The Gammon Rind Removed?

Our answer

Nigella's Slow-Cooked Black Treacle Ham (from SIMPLY NIGELLA) cooks a gammon (a cured but uncooked ham) in a tightly sealed foil package. The moisture is trapped inside and this, along with the fat on the gammon, helps to keep the ham moist. Gammons with the rind (skin) on tend to have a good layer of fat, which helps during cooking even if the rind is discarded before the cooked ham is eaten.

The cooking method really depends on how much fat is on your gammon. If it has little or no fat then the ham could dry out during cooking. You may be able to offset some of this by adding liquid, but the risk then is that the ham could steam too much and start to fall apart during cooking. In this case, it may be better to simmer the gammon as you will have more control over the time and texture. Nigella's Ham In Coca Cola is a very popular recipe and would be more suitable for a leaner ham. If there is a good layer of fat on the gammon then it should be suitable for the slow oven cooking method, but as we have not tried cooking a rindless ham in the oven we are unable to guarantee the results.