How large a ham and how much time do I need?

The recipe uses a ham of 5–6 kg, fresh or lightly salted and smoked, for about 12 servings. Allow plenty of time: the ham is rubbed with the spice mixture and rests for a day and night before cooking, then a 15-minute boil at 100° and about 4 hours steeping at 85° – nearly 30 hours in all.

Why is a dough ring placed around the lid?

The ham is cooked in white wine that should stand level with the meat, and the lid is sealed with a ring of dough made from rye flour and water. This makes the pot airtight so that steam and aroma from the wine and truffles do not escape.

What must I watch out for during the steeping?

Keep the temperature at 85° (no hard boiling), turn the ham after 2 hours, and shake the pot often so the ham does not settle onto the bottom.

What do the spice mixture and glaze consist of?

The ham is rubbed with 50 g salt, 25 g sugar, 1 tsp pepper and 1 tsp ginger. For the surface, egg white, 1 tsp dry mustard, 2 tsp sugar and 50 g finely pounded rusk are used; otherwise 1 bottle white wine, ½ bottle sherry and 50 g truffles.

Ham with Truffles (jambon aux truffes) – recipe from 1914

Name: Ham with Truffles (jambon aux truffes)
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 28 h 5 min
Total time: 29 h 20 min
Yield: 12 servings
Cuisine: Norwegian
Ingredients: 5.5 kg ham (fresh or lightly salted and smoked); 50 g salt; 1 tsp pepper; 1 tsp ginger (ground); 25 g sugar; 7.5 dl white wine (1 bottle); 3.5 dl sherry (½ bottle); 50 g truffles (cut into strips); 1 pcs egg white; 1 tsp dry mustard; 2 tsp sugar (for brushing); 50 g rusk (finely pounded and sifted); 200 g rye flour (for the dough ring that seals the lid); 1 dl water (for the dough ring)

About the dish

A festive ham from the pork chapter of Stor kokebok. Here Erken uses low-temperature poaching in wine – a method she recommends for keeping the ham juicy – and finishes with gratinéeing under a rusk crust. Truffle, Madeira and sherry were among the expensive delicacies in bourgeois Norwegian homes around 1914.

How to make it

1
Season the ham
Mix the salt, sugar, pepper and ginger and rub the mixture well into the ham. Let it rest in a cold place for a day and night.
2
Place in the pot
Place the ham in a suitable pot and pour over the white wine and sherry, so the liquid stands level with the ham.
3
Seal the pot
Knead a firm dough of rye flour and water, lay it as a ring along the rim, put on the lid and seal well.
4
Boil up and steep
Bring quickly to a boil and let it boil 15 minutes at 100 °C (210 °F). Cool the stock to 85 °C (185 °F) and let the ham steep at this temperature for about 4 hours. Turn the ham after 2 hours, and shake the pot often so it does not settle against the bottom.
5
Cool in the stock
Place the ham in a deep dish, pour the stock over it and let it cool in the stock.
6
Lard with truffle
Press a meat cloth against the ham to draw out all the dissolved fat, and lard the ham densely with neatly cut truffle strips.
7
Bread
Beat the egg white, mix in the mustard and 2 tsp sugar and brush the top of the ham. Strew over the sifted, pounded rusk.
8
Roast
Place the ham in a warm roasting pan and set it in a hot oven (about 200 °C (390 °F)) until it gets a nice brown crust, around ½ hour.
9
Assembly
Place the ham on a warm platter, slice it and put the pieces back so the ham looks whole. Serve with assorted vegetables and truffle sauce made from the juices, reduced to a suitable consistency.

Changes from the original

Measurements are converted to modern units (bottle of wine = 7.5 dl, sherry = 3.5 dl). "Løk lægges paa" (onion is put on) in the OCR has been corrected to "laaket lægges paa" (the lid is put on and sealed with a dough ring). Temperature indications are kept (100 °C (210 °F) / 85 °C (185 °F)), and the oven temperature specified as 200 °C (390 °F). The ingredient list is structured and the language of the steps modernized.

Original 1914 recipe

Verbatim from the first edition of the Big Cookbook.

Facsimile of the 1914 page at the National Library of Norway — Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket

ProofreadPage 255

1 skinke, fersk eller let saltet og røket, 5 å 6 kg. 50 gr. salt 1 teske pepper 1 teske ingefær 25 gr. sukker 1 fl. hvitvin ½ fl. sherry 50 gr. trøfler 1 eggehvite 1 teske tør sennep 2 teskeer sukker 50 gr. finstøtt kavring Skinken gnides ind med en blanding av salt, sukker, pepper og ingefær, ligger et døgn. Lægges i kjelen; paaheldes vinen, som bør staa jevnhøit med skinken. Laaket lægges paa, dette tættes med en krans av deig, laget av rugmel og vand. Kokes hurtig op og koker i 15 minutter ved 100°; kraften avkjøles derefter til 85°, og ved denne temperatur trækker skinken omkring 4 timer, men vendes, naar den har trukket i 2 timer; ryst kjelen ofte, saa skinken ikke lægger sig ved bunden. Skinken lægges op i et dypt fat, naar den er færdig; kraften heldes over, og skinken avkjøles heri. Et kjøtklæde trykkes mot flesket for at faa bort alt opløst fett, og skinken spækkes tæt med pent skaarne trøffelstrimler. Eggehviten vispes, blandes med sennep og 2 teskeer sukker; oversiden av skinken bestrykes hermed. Den støtte, sigtede kavring strøes over; skinken lægges i varm pande, sættes i het ovn, til den faar en pen brun skorpe, omkring ½ time. Den lægges paa varmt fat, opskjæres, stykkerne lægges ind igjen, saa skinken ser hel ut. Serveres med forskjellige grønsaker og trøffelsaus, som tilsættes skyen og koker ind, til den er passe jevn.

Revised 1949 recipe

From the revised edition of the Big Cookbook.

Facsimile of the 1949 page at the National Library of Norway — Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket

ProofreadPage 284

1 skinke, fersk eller lett saltet og røket, 5 å 6 kg. 50 gr. salt 1 teskje pepper ½ — ingefær 25 gr. sukker hvitvin sherry 50 gr. trøfler ¾ eggehvite 1 teskje tørr sennep 2 teskjeer sukker 50 gr. finstøtt kavring. Skinken gnis inn med en blanding av salt, sukker, pepper og ingefær, ligger et døgn. Legges i kjelen; påhelles vinen, som helst bør stå jevnhøit med skinken. Lokk legges på, dette tettes med en krans av deig, laget av rugmel og vann. Kokes hurtig op og koker i 15 minutter ved 100°; kraften avkjøles derefter til 85°, og ved denne temperatur trekker skinken omkring 4 timer, men vendes når den har trukket i 2 timer; ryst kjelen ofte, så skinken ikke legger sig ved bunnen. Skinken legges op i et dypt fat når den er ferdig; kraften helles over, og skinken avkjøles heri. Et kjøttklæde trykkes mot flesket for å få bort alt opløst fett, og skinken spekkes tett med pent skårne trøffelstrimler. Eggekviten vispes, blandes med sennep og 2 teskjeer sukker; oversiden av skinken bestrykes med dette. Den støtte, siktede kavring strøes over; skinken legges i varm panne, settes i het ovn til den får en pen brun skorpe, omkring ½ time. Den legges på varmt fat, opskjæres, stykkene legges igjen, så skinken ser hel ut. Serveres med forskjellige grønnsaker og trøffelsaus, som tilsettes skyen, og koker inn til den er passe jevn.

Ham with Truffles (jambon aux truffes)

About the dish

How to make it

Changes from the original

Time machine – what changed?

Community interpretations

Frequently asked questions

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