Ham Dictionary

by | Jun 21, 2014 | BBQ, Food, Pork | 0 comments

Below are definitions related to ham.

BIER SCHINKEN

  • The literal translation is “Beer Ham.” German. If product is made of all pork, it may be labeled Bier Schinken.

CANNED HAM

  • “Canned meat with Natural Juices” is acceptable for product that has been pumped or contains up to 10% of a solution before canning and processing. Processed, canned, uncured meat products (when water or broth is added to the can) may not be called “with natural juices.” The acceptable name would be “with juices.
  • Canned hams come in two forms:
    1. Shelf stable – Can be stored on the shelf up to 2 years at room temperature. Generally not over 3 pounds in size. Processed to kill all spoilage bacteria and pathogenic organisms such as Clostridium botulinum, Salmonella and Trichinella spiralis. The product is free of microorganisms capable of growing at ordinary room temperature. However, high temperature storage — above 122 °F (50 °C) — may result in harmless thermophylic bacteria multiplying and swelling or souring the product.
    2. Refrigerated – May be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 to 9 months. Its weight can be up to 8% more than original uncured weight due to the uptake of water during curing. It need not be labeled “Added water” except for “In Natural Juices.” Net Weight is the weight of the actual ham excluding the container. Processed at a cook time and temperature sufficient to kill infectious organisms (including trichinae); however, the ham is not sterilized so spoilage bacteria may grow eventually.

CAPACOLLO, COOKED (Capicola, Capocolla, Capacola, Capicollo, Cappicola, Capacolo – Italian)

  • This product does not meet the definition of ham because it is not from the hind leg of a hog. It is boneless pork shoulder butts which are cured and then cooked. The curing process may be dry curing, immersion curing, or pump curing. The cured product is coated with spices and paprika before cooking. This product shall always be labeled with “Cooked” as part of the product name. Water added is permitted.

CAPACOLLA, HAM, COOKED

  • Ham that has been cured and then cooked.

COTTAGE “HAM”

  • A cut from the top end of the shoulder, known as the shoulder butt, which has been cured in brine. Because it is not from the hind leg of the hog, it doesn’t meet the definition of ham. The meat is not cooked. Another term for it is “cottage roll.”

COUNTRY HAM, COUNTRY STYLE HAM, or DRY CURED HAM, and COUNTRY PORK SHOULDER, COUNTRY STYLE PORK SHOULDER, or DRY CURED PORK SHOULDER

  • The uncooked, cured, dried, smoked or unsmoked meat food products made respectively from a single piece of meat conforming to the definition of “ham,” or from a single piece of meat from a pork shoulder. They are prepared by the dry application of salt or by salt and one or more optional ingredients: nutritive sweeteners, spices, seasonings, flavorings, sodium or potassium nitrate, and sodium or potassium nitrite. They may not be injected with curing solutions nor placed in curing solutions. The product must be treated for the destruction of possible live trichinae.

FULLY COOKED or COOKED

  • Needs no further cooking because it is fully cooked at the establishment where it was produced and packaged. Product can be eaten right out of the package or reheated. Fully cooked is synonymous with cooked.

HALF HAM

  • “Half Ham” is permitted on labels for semi-boneless ham products which have had the shank muscles removed during processing. The two halves of the finished product have approximately an equal amount of bone. The term “No Slices Removed” has also been deemed suitable for use with a ham item referred to as “Half Ham.”

HAM

  • Cured leg of pork. In order to be labeled as “Ham,” the product must be at least 20.5% protein in lean portion. Added water is permitted in a product labeled as “Ham.” In fact, water will be declared in order of predominance in the ingredients statement. This is how the cure solution is introduced into a ham.

HAM, BOILED

  • A fully cooked, boneless product which must be cooked in water and may be processed in a casing or can. The product may be of various shapes and may be partially cooked in boiling water.

HAM, FRESH (or uncured)

  • The uncured leg of pork. Since the meat is not cured or smoked, it has the flavor of a fresh pork loin roast or pork chops. Its raw color is pinkish red and after cooking, grayish white. Ham that does not contain a cure must be labeled either “Fresh” or “Uncured” – prepared without nitrate or nitrite.

HAM, SCOTCH STYLE

  • A cured, uncooked, boned, and rolled whole ham either tied or in a casing.

HAM SHANK END, HAM SHANK HALF or HAM SHANK PORTION

  • The lower, slightly pointed part of the leg. A “portion” has the center slices removed for separate sale as “ham steaks.” A half ham does not have slices removed.

HAM, SKINLESS, SHANKLESS

  • A ham with all of the skin and the shank removed. The leg bone and aitch (hip) bone remain.

HAM, SMITHFIELD

  • This is an aged, dry-cured ham made exclusively in Smithfield, Virginia. The use of the words “brand” or “style,” e.g., “Smithfield Brand Ham,” “Smithfield Style Ham,” does not eliminate this requirement.

HAM STEAK

  • Another name for ham slices.

HICKORY-SMOKED HAM

  • A cured ham which has been smoked by hanging over burning hickory wood chips in a smokehouse. May not be labeled “hickory smoked” unless hickory wood has been used. Atomized liquid hickory smoke and heat can combine to produce “hickory smoke.”

HONEY-CURED

“LEAN” HAM

  • The term “lean” may be used on a ham’s label provided the product contains less than 10 grams fat, 4.5 grams or less of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams cholesterol per 100 grams and Reference Amount Customarily Consumed (RACC).

“EXTRA LEAN” HAM

  • A ham labeled “extra lean” must contain less than 5 grams fat, less than 2 grams saturated fat and the same cholesterol as allowed per the amount of “lean” ham.

PORK SHOULDER PICNIC: Not Always Cured

  • A front shoulder cut of pork. The term “picnic” cannot be used unless accompanied with the primal or subprimal cut. Pork shoulder picnic is not always a cured item. A shoulder “picnic” comes from the lower portion of the shoulder.

PROSCIUTTO

  • Italian for ham, dry cured. The product name “Prosciutto” is acceptable on labeling to identify a dry-cured ham. An Italian-style dry cured raw ham; not smoked; often coated with pepper. Prosciutto can be eaten raw because the low water content prevents bacterial growth.

    • PARMA HAM

      Parma Ham is prosciutto from the Parma locale in Italy, in accordance to Italian Law which defines the denomination of origin, territorial limits, product characteristic, and manufacture. These hams tend to be larger than the U.S. produced product, as Italian hogs are larger at slaughter.

PROSCIUTTO, COOKED

  • The product name “Cooked Prosciutto” is acceptable on labeling to identify a Prosciutto that is cooked.

SECTIONED AND FORMED HAM or CHUNKED AND FORMED HAM

  • A boneless ham that is made from different cuts, tumbled or massaged and reassembled into a casing or mold and cooked. During this process it is usually thoroughly defatted. The qualifying phrase “sectioned and formed” is no longer required on boneless ham products, e.g., “ham” and “ham-water added.” The addition of small amounts of ground ham added as a binder to such products may be used without declaration. The amount of ground ham that may be used can represent no more than 15% of the weight of the ham ingredients at the time of formulation. Products containing more than 15% ground ham trimmings must be labeled to indicate the presence of the ground ham, e.g., “a portion of ground ham added.”

SUGAR CURED

TENDERLOIN, PORK

  • Coming from the Pork Loin Primal Cut, it is the center portion next to the spine, and is the most tender part of the pig.

WESTPHALIAN HAM or WESTPHALIAN-STYLE HAM

  • A German-style dry-cured ham that is similar to Prosciutto. Ham is cut with bone in, the hip bone cut out, cured in a combination of dry and pickle cure but not a pickle alone.  It is smoked in a medium warm smokehouse (no greater than 100 degrees F.) until a shining red brown or chestnut color is acquired.  Beechwood may be used and will impart the characteristic Westphalian flavor.  Other hard woods are also acceptable.  Juniper berries are permitted.

Resources:

Some definitions adapted from Food Standards and Labeling Policy Book, USDA.