I cook - Gammon Stew

Gammon refers to the cured hind legs of a pig. It is raw meat. Once it is cooked, it becomes ham. It is a very common ingredient found in every pub or restaurant which serves traditional British meals. One way I like to cook it is to boil it with lots of vegetables. This is a great one-pot dish and winter-day warmer.

This is the recipe which I use for Gammon stew. The ingredients going into the pot are really flexible. As I always prefer shallots over yellow onions, I prepare the stew with shallots. A couple of ribs of celery are nice too to flavor the broth. Since pork and apple are a natural match, I use apple juice in place of the called for vegetable/chicken stock (I just realized, while typing this, that by using apple juice, it's become the Nigel Slater's way).

And the mustard sauce is a must. Creamy with a little pungency is all you need to lift the flavor to another dimension. I used grainy mustard in the picture but any form of mustard will do. We mostly have the dish with steamed rice. Of course, boiled potatoes would be great too.

For any leftover, lift the cooked gammon out of the broth, unsliced and covered with cling film. I find the flavor of gammon slices going away very quickly if sitting in the broth for more than 30 minutes.