What’s a Pinoy Christmas without Christmas Hams? I mean, seriously! How can we Pinoys not have ham every Christmas? Hindi kumpleto ang pasko ‘pag wala ito! Serving Christmas hams during Noche Buena is one annual tradition that we Pinoys love dearly.
Here’s a confession – Last year, I tried serving something else during Noche Buena and as expected… huhuhu ang lungkot! After that, I learned my lesson. Never again will I not serve ham during holiday feasts.
To all our avid readers who have been asking on how to pick the best ham for the holidays, here are some simple rules to remember:
4. Thou shall not be too stingy when it comes to buying ham.
Before, I used to be super budget-conscious about its cost, but I realized that these “budget hams” are full of extenders and the meat quality isn’t good.
My philosophy now is like this… if you truly love your family, give them the best. That’s the reason why we’re working hard anyway ‘di ba?
Always give your family the BEST!
Best advice is to allot a few more pesos and invest in a premium ham that’s 100% whole-meat.
Caution: there are premium hams misrepresenting themselves as premium hams by pricing high. Make sure the ham you choose is whole-meat and free from extenders. I will discuss more on this in the next tips.
3. Aim for whole boneless meat from the hind leg.
In case you did not know, the word HAM basically means “hind leg of pork” that is either cured, smoked, or salted. Although you can cure other parts, the hind leg is still considered most ideal due to its shape, size and fat ratio. Go for boneless one so you can enjoy meat of course.
2. Choose one with no extenders.
Some hams in the market, even those priced at premium, have extenders. Uh-oh. Better shy away from these. One way to ensure that your ham has no extenders is to check its texture. It should be naturally-meaty. By looking closely at the texture of hams, you can already have an idea which one has no extenders and which one has.
Hams with no extenders are juicy and naturally-flavorful.
1. Look for the net marks.
Be extra careful when choosing hams as others may only be made from various meat chunks and extenders that are formed together to resemble an actual ham. Scary no!!! To ensure that your precious ham is made from whole-meat, look for the net marks. Only whole-meat hams can be smoked in ham nets.
This Christmas, do yourself a favor and don’t settle for anything less even if it’s your nakasanayang product. C’mon! You can do better than that! Make your holiday extra special and your feasts more bongga this year by serving the best Christmas Hams.
And so, after trying out various hams in the supermarket, I’ve decided to go for Holiday Ham this Christmas due to its premium quality and taste. I swear, I never thought it would taste sooo good!
Taste the difference!
Remember the tips I gave earlier? Holiday Ham possesses all of them so you simply gotta try it and taste the difference!
SRP of Holiday Ham is only P490 for 1kg whole or even pre-sliced and P735 for 1.5kg whole or pre-sliced! I’m trying to buy another 1kg whole and 1kg pre-sliced. The pre-sliced offering is so convenient! I noticed that there are also Holiday Ham Carving Stations in leading supermarkets where you can have your ham carved or sliced into your desired thickness. Minimum purchase is only 100grams!
Feeling more experimental? You can do many things with your Holiday Ham! Try out unique and easy-to-do recipes by watching Sarap with Family Christmas Edition which airs on GMA News TV on the following days….
Oh and before I forget, to those asking which cheese ball to purchase, Danes Cheeseball is also pretty good and affordable for only P191 for 350g.
I’ll do my best to post recipes on social media before Christmas so stay tuned for more updates!
To know more about #HolidayHam, visit www.facebook.com/HolidayHam
