Bought me a Kuributa ham - am I gonna be impressed?

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Dropped $100 on a SRF Kurobuta ham (avg 7 lbs). Boneless.

First time ordering anything online. We're a pork family.

Wife wants to know if my feelers are gonna be hurt when we eat it and they like it - but say it just tastes like ham?






So is Kurobuta so much head and shoulders above regular big box store bought ham that everyone will rave, or are we gonna go, "Eh, yeah, that's really good. Now pass the mashed taters."


I'm just curious. I'll know next weekend, I had it scheduled for delivery on Thursday, as I have family coming in and wanted to do a special dinner for them even before Turkey Day.

[Jerod Broussard]

Is it fresh or already smoked?

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

They say they are lightly smoked.

"These are made the same way as all our hams with a special curing process using a signature recipe and a final smoke over real hardwood."

"Snake River Farms boneless hams (like all our gourmet hams) are fully cooked. Even so, we highly recommend heating them for the best results. Just heat in a 325 degree oven and heat until the internal temperature is 140 degrees, let rest and you’re ready to carve. "

[Jfrosty27]

I am anxious to hear about how this works for you. I have eyeballed these online many times but have yet to pull the trigger. Keep us updated please.

[wu7y]

Don't know about hams but the Berkshire Pork chops are head and shoulders above the supermarket stuff and I will happily pay the difference when I can find it.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

That's really encouraging to know. I've wondered if the ham is something good to use as a yardstick, just because curing something changes it so much anyways. So I dunno, I guess we'll see.

[JoeSousa]

I have had a couple SRF hams in the past. I know most people who try them love them but honestly it wasn't my favorite. Not sure what they did to it but it kind of had a corned beef taste to it. Definitely more going on flavorwise than most other hams I have had. Maybe some juniper or something?

[lemayp]

I'm with you. I've only had it once it turned out very dry and flavor was not great. The time in my oven warming it hopefully caused most of my issues with it, but wasn't something I would want to try again.

[Murdy]

It can be the greatest meat, but if you don't like the particular curing process, it may not be appealing to you.

[ofelles]

I have smoked several of these. I think they are excellent. Used this recipe:

Sarsaparilla Basted Ham

Yield: 25 servings

Ingredients:

• 1-12-pound cured ham
• 1½ cup pineapple juice
• 5 tablespoons sarsaparilla
• 4 tablespoons brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter

Preparation:

Score the skin and fat of the ham in a diamond pattern. Heat smoker to 225°F, used Kingsford charcoal and pecan/cherry chunks.

Combine the pineapple juice, sarsaparilla, sugar, and butter water in a small saucepan. Heat over med-high heat, stirring frequently until the sugar is dissolved.

Place the ham in a shallow roasting pan. Baste with the pineapple juice mixture, and then, basting with the pineapple mixture about every 45 minutes. Smoke at 225°F for 2 hours then raise temp to 275°F for 1 to 3 hours until IT reaches 140°F basting as above.

Modified http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/b...ml?oc=linkback

[ofelles]

BFlynn Enjoy, it's always a hit at our house!

[Troutman]

I wanna come eat at your house ....

[ofelles]

Troutman I will be sure to set a place for you!

[wrgilb]

I haven't tried SRF hams, but I get Wildforks Berkshire boneless for $5.78/lb., so a 7 pounder would be a little over $40. I like the boneless, makes slicing much easier, they do have bone-in also. I think there is a noticeable taste difference to the Berkshire pork. We also get the ribs and chops. I've used Chris Lilly's apricot glaze and it is good. Chris Lilly's Spicy Apricot Glaze

[bbqLuv]

On a scale of 1 to 10 let us know.

[Sweaty Paul]

Anxiously following!

[Mosca]

I got one once, didn’t think it was anything special. It was good, but not better than some I’ve had.

[bbqLuv]

Just wanted to ask,
Are you impressed with the price?

[Troutman]

I have not tried their ham, we're not that big on ham to begin with. I do eat a lot of Berkshire (Japanese call it Kurobuta) in other cuts (ribs and chops mainly) and find it to be superior to commodity pork. It is considered the Wagyu of pork in Japan.

As far as ham is concerned, I would think a lot of your observation is going to be tainted by the way it was seasoned, cured and smoked, as well as your final smoking/heating. That may mask the true essence of what the flavor profile of the meat is all about. But again I don't eat the stuff so I can't say for sure. Just know it is a superior product, once again like Wagyu is to beef.

[CandySueQ]

I have a bone-in one that I'll re-heat for Thanksgiving. My glaze is a 50/50 mix of pineapple jam and pepper jelly. It's good. I especially like left overs for soups, beans, sandwiches, etc.

I cooked 2 Berkshire pork porterhouse chops for the KCBS World Invitational last weekend in Shawnee, OK. Pretty awesome pork!

purchased at dartangnon.com

[bbqLuv]

Is that spam with the porterhouse pork chop? I think that would give you an advantage.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Well, I smoked the ham this weekend. It was good, it wasn't anything special, I feel silly for spending that kind of money on it, sadly.

Flavor in the cure was just a tad bit different, but not bad, it was just not the usual Frick's (I think that's it) we usually get. It was good - could have been slightly more tender? I dunno, not much to say about it. I won't order another.

[STEbbq]

That is disappointing. Given the price and SRF involvement, I would let them know, and see what they say.

We are not ham people either, but if I had to guess, I'd bet that you could probably improve on the ham by buying some good quality pork and turning it into ham yourself. At least for pastrami, I do find curing it yourself is superior than buying corned beef. Maybe something to look forward to for next time.

[Sweaty Paul]

Thanks for updating us. I certainly appreciate you following up and letting us know. Sounds like an area that I don't need to try.