Boiled Ham with Deviled Duck Egg and Fried Beans

A piece of rolled ham like the one featured in this recipe is not only extremely tasty if cooked properly, it generally represents excellent value for money. The ham is boneless and although it does have some fat on it, this fat is necessary both for flavor and to keep the ham moist during cooking. It can easily be cut away and discarded after the meat is cooked and cooled. It is also possible to make excellent soup from the stock left behind when this ham has been boiled but if you are choosing to exercise this option, it is a good idea to begin by soaking the ham in a large bowl of cold water for twenty-four hours in your fridge prior to beginning the cooking process. This rids it of the excess salt which will otherwise largely be imparted to the cooking liquid during boiling.

Ingredients

This two and a half pound piece of ham will easily serve four and perhaps up to six people. The accompanying ingredients for this serving suggestion are listed in the quantities required per person.

• 2¼ pound (approximately) piece of rolled, unsmoked ham
• 1 medium to large carrot
• 1 medium to large onion
• 1 stick of celery
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 or 7 baby new potatoes
• Salt
• 1 duck egg
• 1 teaspoon Dijon or similar mustard
• ½ 14 ounce can mixed beans of choice
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 medium size and strength red chili
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• Black pepper
• Malt vinegar

Wash the carrot, cut off and discard the top and roughly chop. Wash and roughly chop the celery stick. Peel and quarter the onion.

The boiling time for the ham is determined by its weight, the formula being twenty minutes per pound and twenty extra minutes. This 2¼ pound joint therefore required one hour and five minutes.

Make sure that you remove and discard all the ham's packaging. Sometimes, pieces of meat like this are encased in a tight plastic sleeve as well as the external packaging which is not always easily visible. Sit the ham in a large soup or stock pot before adding the chopped vegetables, whole peppercorns and bay leaves. Do not add any salt as the salt in the ham's cure is more than sufficient.

Pour in enough cold water to comfortably cover the ham and put the pot on to a high heat. When the water reaches a simmer, reduce the heat to just maintain and cover the pot. It is from this point that the cooking time should start being measured.

Put the potatoes in to a pot of cold, salted water and bring to a simmer for twenty to twenty-five minutes until just softened.

Drain the potatoes through a colander and let them sit for around ten minutes until they stop visibly steaming. Return to the empty pot, cover and leave to cool completely.

When the simmering time for the ham is up, turn off the heat under the pot.

Lift the ham carefully from the water with a large slotted spoon, steadying it with a carving fork. Sit it in a deep plate, cover and leave to cool.

Put the duck egg in to a pot of cold water and bring to a gentle simmer for ten minutes. Lift the pot to your sink and run cold water in to it until the egg is cool enough to handle. Crack the shell on a hard surface and peel the egg. Re-submerge it in cold water to cool it quickly and prevent the green/grey discoloration forming around the edges of the yolk.

Lift the cooled ham to a chopping board. Use a carving knife to cut away the large piece of fat and discard.

Carve the ham across the grain to slices of around a quarter of an inch in thickness.

As well as five different types of beans, this can contained corn kernels and finely chopped red bell pepper. Simply use the brand/variety of your choice.

Pour the contents of the can in to a colander in your sink and rinse thoroughly with cold water. This gets rid of the canning impurities and excess salt. Transfer half the contents to a plastic tub and your fridge for later use and leave the remainder to drain off briefly through the colander.

Carefully peel the potatoes with your fingers and discard the skin.

Bring a deep pan of vegetable oil up to a high heat and deep fry the potatoes until golden. Alternatively, you could use a deep fryer. They should take four to five minutes.

Cut the duck egg in half down through the center.

Pop the yolk halves in to a small bowl or deep plate and add the teaspoon of mustard. Mash and combine with the back of a fork.

Divide the mashed yolk and mustard evenly between the two vacated sections of the egg whites. Plate with two or three slices of the ham.

Lift the potatoes to a plate covered with kitchen paper to drain. Season at this stage with salt and malt vinegar.

Peel the garlic clove and finely dice. Top, seed and finely dice the red chili.

Pour the olive oil in to a small, non-stick frying pan. Add the garlic only in the first instance and gently saute for about thirty seconds to soften and impart the flavors to the oil.

Add the beans and chili to the pan and season with a little salt and black pepper.

Saute the beans for two or three minutes. Spoon on to the serving plate, add the potatoes and enjoy.