Start with a whole Bone-in Ham and make the most of every part. The Ham meat becomes a delicious Braised Ham. While the Ham Bone and surrounding meat create a rich Ham Bone Broth. Simmering the Bone & Fat forms a flavorful Fat Cap that you can scoop off and refine by heating to evaporate any water. It's perfect for frying or making a roux. The meat left on the bone becomes incredibly tender as it soaks in the broth. During the second boil, aromatics are added to elevate the flavors even further. Creating a versatile base for soups, stews, and so much more.You’ll love this recipe because it transforms a whole ham into pure culinary magic, ensuring nothing goes to waste. The broth is deeply flavorful, the tender meat practically melts in your mouth, and the rendered fat is like liquid gold for your kitchen. It’s versatile, letting you create soups, stews, gravies, and even fried dishes that burst with savory goodness. This recipe isn’t just cooking—it’s turning simple ingredients into something extraordinary.
Servings: 10 Cups
Equipment
- 1 Large Stock Pot
- 1 Deep Sauce Pot
- 1 Fine Sieve
- 1 Splatter Screen optional
Ingredients
- 1 Ham Bone - with surrounding meat
- Ham Fat - chopped into small pieces
- As Needed Water - to fill the large pot
- 1 Onion - Cut in half skin stil on
- 3 Cloves Garlic - Crushed
- 2 Carrots - snapped in pieces
- 2 Celery - snapped in pieces
- 1 tsp Black Peppercorn
- 1-2 Bay Leaves
Instructions
- Place the ham bone, fat, and trimmings in a stockpot, fill with water, and bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 4–6 hours, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half.
- Strain the Broth, return the bones and meat to the pot with the broth, refill with cold water, and let cool for 1 hour before refrigerating overnight. The chopped pieces of fat can be portioned out and saved in Ziploc bags to freeze and add to various bean recipes requiring fat.
- The next day, skim off the fat with a slotted spoon and transfer it to a deep sauce pot. Heat over medium-high until it reaches the frying stage, swirling the pot occasionally. Once it settles, cool slightly and strain through a fine sieve.Be careful here, while there should be no bits of fat when heating the oil, if there is they should be removed or strained out, there will be pockets of water and when reheated will explode in the oil. Optionally, use a splatter screen. The Oil should hit around 250F before being removed from the heat.
- Remove the bones and meat. Shred the meat, cover and refrigerated to use in various dishes. Return the bones to the stockpot. Add aromatics (onion, carrot, celery, garlic, peppercorns, bay leaves). Bring to a boil, Then simmer on medium heat uncovered until flavorful. Adjust strength by simmering longer or adding water, then strain through a fine sieve.
Notes
How much Broth: How much Ham Bone Broth you get really depends on how much meat is included with the Ham Bone and how weak or strong you want it, along with simmer time. Generally, you can expect anywhere from 8 to 10 cups of Ham Bone Broth or less
With about 10 cups of Ham Bone Broth, you'll have a rich and flavorful base that can be used for soups, stews, or even as a savory addition to rice or sauces. If you find it too concentrated, you can dilute it with water, but with that much broth, you should have a lot of flexibility to create hearty dishes. If you find it too weak, simmer it longer to reduce and concentrate the flavors.