Ingredients

Method

• 4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
• 4 medium leeks, sliced
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 T whole peppercorns
• 1.5 kg Woolworths medium ready-to-cook gammon
• 1.5 litres water
• 2 T maple syrup
• 100 g butter
• 3 T olive oil
• 200 g baby leeks, thinly sliced
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 500 g frozen peas
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method

Ingredients

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Arrange the carrots, leeks, bay leaves and peppercorns in the bottom of a large, deep roasting pan or ovenproof saucepan. Place the gammon on top and add enough water to come 3⁄4 up the sides of the tin. Cover with 2–3 layers of tightly fitting tinfoil and bake for 11⁄2 hours.
2. Remove the gammon from the cooking liquid and set aside. Reserve the cooking liquid and vegetables, but discard the bay leaves and peppercorns.
3. To glaze the gammon, remove the skin and enough fat so that 1⁄2 cm of fat remains. Score the fat using a sharp knife. Brush the gammon with the maple syrup and dot with butter. Place in the oven at 180°C until crisp and sticky, about 20 minutes.
4. Remove the gammon from the oven and rest for 30 minutes, then shred half for the soup. Keep the remaining half to make sandwiches.
5. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and soften the leeks and garlic for 5 minutes. Add the gammon cooking liquid and bring to a simmer.
6. Remove from the heat and add the frozen peas, then set aside to cool.
7. Decant the soup into a food processor. Blend until smooth, adding more water if necessary. Return to a clean saucepan and warm through. Add the shredded gammon to serve and season to taste.

Find more ideas using gammon here.

Photograph: Sadiqah Assur-Ismail

Food assistant: Kate Ferreira