# Ham Twins (Double Smoked)



## Bearcarver (Apr 22, 2011)

I've been paying a small fortune for Double Smoked Hams for the last 20 years, so I finally decided to save a few bucks, and see how it goes. I think last year's was about 17 pounds for about $55 !!!
Giant had Fully cooked & smoked Shank End Hams for 79¢ per pound, so I got two of them, about 11 pounds each.
I cut the little bit of skin off the top, and some of the fat (should have cut more fat off).
I set my MES 40 to 200˚, and put both of the Hams in it's own foil pan, supported on their own little wire drying rack.
Then I filled my AMNS with Hickory dust, and we're off to the slow motion races.
Meanwhile I mixed up two different glazes for a test:

*Glaze #1*
1/2 C of Brown Sugar
1/3 C of Maple Syrup
1/2 tsp of ground mustard
1/8 tsp of ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp of ground ginger
1/8 tsp of ground cloves
Dash of ground nutmeg
*
Glaze #2*
1/2 C of Honey
1/4 C of Balsamic Vinegar
1 tsp of cider vinegar
1 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1/4 tsp of ground ginger
1/4 tsp of allspice

After 7 hours, the internal temps were identical at 122˚.
I poured half of Glaze #1 on Ham # 1, and half of Glaze #2 on Ham #2 at 4:30 PM, and changed my heat from 200˚ to 270˚.
At 5 PM I did the same thing with the other half of the Glaze.
At 5:20 PM I pulled the Hams at 135˚ internal temp (label said you could eat it cold, or heat to 130˚).
Let Ham rest and take pictures.

BTW: Everyone agrees---Glaze #1 is the best of the two.

Bear


Twin Hams, smoked & fully cooked:







Nearly 22 pounds of Ham for $17:






Bear's Eye View through my MES 40 Door:






View with door open:






35 MPH winds being blocked:






Eat your heart out Dolly!






Just a bit of each sliced for Me & the Mrs:






My plate-----Made two trips, so I had room for veggies on my plate:






Closer Look:






Thanks for looking!


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## fpnmf (Apr 22, 2011)

Looks fabulous!!!

You need to get some of them nets for hanging them next time.

Craig


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## Bearcarver (Apr 22, 2011)

fpnmf said:


> Looks fabulous!!!
> 
> You need to get some of them nets for hanging them next time.
> 
> Craig


Thanks Craig!

Didn't want to hang them. They were very fatty, and I didn't want a lot of fat dripping on my AMNS & everything else near my heating area.

On the wire drying racks, in the pans, they stayed out of the drippings, got plenty of smoke, and all the fat stayed in the pans. 

Bear


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## chef willie (Apr 22, 2011)

Some mighty fine looking hammies there Bear....nice matched set. Safeway selling them here for 99 a pound but I didn't want to fight the dozen old gals diggin' in the bins for one....like a pack of feeding sharks pushin and shovin. Price may drop some Sunday...I'm busy with a pork roast anyway. Sweet color on that glaze and slices of ham...actually glistening in the pic. Liked that cardboard & yellow tape mod....


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## saugeyejoe (Apr 22, 2011)

Looking good.


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## rdknb (Apr 22, 2011)

That looks good Bear, Safeway has them on sale @ .99 a lbs thinking of picking one or two up


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## Bearcarver (Apr 22, 2011)

Chef Willie said:


> Some mighty fine looking hammies there Bear....nice matched set. Safeway selling them here for 99 a pound but I didn't want to fight the dozen old gals diggin' in the bins for one....like a pack of feeding sharks pushin and shovin. Price may drop some Sunday...I'm busy with a pork roast anyway. Sweet color on that glaze and slices of ham...actually glistening in the pic. Liked that cardboard & yellow tape mod....


Thanks Willie---I was the only one at the Ham bin!

Hmmm, next time don't take a shower before you go!

Bear




SaugeyeJoe said:


> Looking good.


Thanks Joe
 




RdKnB said:


> That looks good Bear, Safeway has them on sale @ .99 a lbs thinking of picking one or two up


Thanks RdKnB,

They had the Butt end Hams for 99¢, and the Shank ends for 79¢.

Bear


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## fife (Apr 22, 2011)

Bear that sure does look good.


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## gotarace (Apr 22, 2011)

Another great looking smoke Bear...is there a real taste difference by double smoking a ham? Like you i'm a smoke hound..did you light both ends of the Amazen? The finished plate looks Fantastic Bear!!!


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## Bearcarver (Apr 22, 2011)

gotarace said:


> Another great looking smoke Bear...is there a real taste difference by double smoking a ham? Like you i'm a smoke hound..did you light both ends of the Amazen? The finished plate looks Fantastic Bear!!!


Thank You!
 

Absolutely a big difference with a double smoked Ham!

If it wasn't I would have been an idiot for paying extra for the last 20 or so years.

My Mama didn't raise no idiot!

I used a couple of experimental AMNS, but to get the amount of smoke I used, with a 6" X 6" or a 6" X 8", you would light both ends.

Bear


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## uncle_lar (Apr 22, 2011)

good looking hams

I bet they taste even better than they look


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## meateater (Apr 22, 2011)

Great looking hams Bear, I think I'm just gonna have to get me one or three at the store tomorrow.


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## Bearcarver (Apr 22, 2011)

Thank You Fife & Uncle Lar!

Bear


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## beer-b-q (Apr 22, 2011)

Awesome Bear, 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





   

I'll take one of them off your hands....


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## les3176 (Apr 22, 2011)

MAN that looks sooooo good! I can't wait till easter when i will finally get to eat a little ham....and a do mean a little so i don't feel like i cheated too much!!!

I did save the recipes though for another day so....thanks!!!


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## smokinstevo27 (Apr 22, 2011)

Looks great Bear, if thats not a comfort food plate, I don't know what is! But where are your lil taters?


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## boykjo (Apr 23, 2011)

Thanks for the recipe bear.... Nice looking hams,,,,,,,,,,,


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## SmokinAl (Apr 23, 2011)

Looks great Bear! I think this is ham weekend. I got one going in the smoker today too.


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## Bearcarver (Apr 23, 2011)

Thanks Meat, Paul, Les, Steve, and Boykjo!

They really are good Hams for such a low price!

Steve---I was wondering who would say that. Mrs Bear asked if I wanted my usual taters. I smiled and told her to make mashed taters instead. And like I said, I took two trips for Ham, so I could get my green beans on the plate for the picture, so Al doesn't yell at me for not eating my veggies! 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Bear


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## porked (Apr 23, 2011)

A great post as usual for the Bearmeister. Excellent job my friend, looks like Giant came through for you again.


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## miamirick (Apr 23, 2011)

Good job Bear,  gotta love the price on those especially around easter!  they look mighty tasty   im sure there wasnt many leftovers


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## markk (Apr 23, 2011)

Bear,

Nice looking hams. I have a couple of questions, in the picture you posted with the door to the MES open what is in the water pan next to AMNS? I have been putting my AMNS on the wire supports below the water pan with water in the pan. How does not using water in the pan work for you?

Mark


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## Bearcarver (Apr 23, 2011)

MarkK said:


> Bear,
> 
> Nice looking hams. I have a couple of questions, in the picture you posted with the door to the MES open what is in the water pan next to AMNS? I have been putting my AMNS on the wire supports below the water pan with water in the pan. How does not using water in the pan work for you?
> 
> Mark


Thanks Mark,
I very seldom use water in my pan. I use it for ribs, because I don't want to open the door for spritzing (especially in Winter), but anything that I don't worry about drying out doesn't get water in my pan. Some things I want to dry out quite a bit too, like Dried Beef.

When I do put water in my pan, I put the AMNS at the same place as you do.

In this picture, I have a firebrick covered with foil, sitting in the pan, and I set my AMNS on that.

With the 1200 watt element in my MES 40, I don't need water in the pan for heat sink.

Bear


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## tyotrain (Apr 23, 2011)

Man that looks great.. nice job bet it was tasty


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## Bearcarver (Apr 25, 2011)

SmokinAl said:


> Looks great Bear! I think this is ham weekend. I got one going in the smoker today too.


Thanks Al,

Can't beat the flavor of this stuff for only 79¢ per pound!

Bear




Porked said:


> A great post as usual for the Bearmeister. Excellent job my friend, looks like Giant came through for you again.


Thank You,

I think we'll keep shopping there!

Bear




miamirick said:


> Good job Bear,  gotta love the price on those especially around easter!  they look mighty tasty   im sure there wasnt many leftovers


Thanks Rick!

Actually I did freeze a couple "two day meals" for me & the Mrs, and only kept out enough for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and a couple small sample containers for our Son.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (May 27, 2011)

MarkK said:


> Bear,
> 
> Nice looking hams. I have a couple of questions, in the picture you posted with the door to the MES open what is in the water pan next to AMNS? I have been putting my AMNS on the wire supports below the water pan with water in the pan. How does not using water in the pan work for you?
> 
> Mark




Sorry Mark,

I just noticed I answered one question, but missed the one I changed to red.

That thing to the right is just an old foil pan folded up. My heat was getting higher on the right than the left, so I threw that in there to block some heat from going up that right side, just to finish this smoke.

I hope you get to see this again to get your answer!

Bear


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## smokin vegas (Oct 6, 2011)

Hey Bear first first I want to say thanks for being so helpful.   I was looking at picture showing the inside of your smoker and noticed that it appears that you prefer to use the hickory dust in a seperate container from the drawer on the smoker for wood chips and chunks.  I have no clue where to buy the hickory dust or how to use it.  I have not seen it in Vegas.  But I will do a search for a site that sells it.   When do you use the dust rather than chips?  Thank you Ivie


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## Bearcarver (Oct 6, 2011)

Smokin Vegas said:


> Hey Bear first first I want to say thanks for being so helpful.   I was looking at picture showing the inside of your smoker and noticed that it appears that you prefer to use the hickory dust in a seperate container from the drawer on the smoker for wood chips and chunks.  I have no clue where to buy the hickory dust or how to use it.  I have not seen it in Vegas.  But I will do a search for a site that sells it.   When do you use the dust rather than chips?  Thank you Ivie


Thank You Ivie !

I am using a very special little gadget that everyone loves.

They come in various styles.

There is one ( AMNS )that only uses dust, and is made for cold & warm smoking.

If you use it above 200˚, you could have a problem with improper burn.

The other is the "AMNPS", which can burn pellets or dust, and can be used at any smoker temp.

With pellets you can go as high as your smoker will go, without a problem.

And when you use this, you can fill it, and get it burning real good, and put it in your smoker.

Then you can sit back and relax for up to 12 hours without even touching it, the whole time getting PERFECT smoke.
 

Here is where you can see them, and buy one, if you'd like.

The guy who invented & sells these things is a very respected member of this forum---"Todd Johnson".

Link:

http://www.amazenproducts.com/


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## bluebombersfan (Oct 6, 2011)

Smokin Vegas said:


> Hey Bear first first I want to say thanks for being so helpful.   I was looking at picture showing the inside of your smoker and noticed that it appears that you prefer to use the hickory dust in a seperate container from the drawer on the smoker for wood chips and chunks.  I have no clue where to buy the hickory dust or how to use it.  I have not seen it in Vegas.  But I will do a search for a site that sells it.   When do you use the dust rather than chips?  Thank you Ivie


What he has is an A-MAZE-N-SMOKER.  It is a box used for burning dust or there is a pellet version of it out now too.  It is a simple addition to any smoker.  It makes using the MES a breeze!  You should be able to track down pellets a little easier then dust!  Or just order it all from Todd he is the guy that builds the smokers 

http://www.amazenproducts.com/

oops looks like I posted this one right after Bear!!


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## Bearcarver (Oct 6, 2011)

LOL---It happens to me a lot, because I type so slowly. 

Bear


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## chef jimmyj (Oct 6, 2011)

Now I KNOW that is way TOO MUCH Ham for You and the BearLady...I realize those Two are gone, but the NEXT time...I'm headin' EAST!...JJ


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## billyj571 (Oct 6, 2011)

Nice wind deflector..lol    good looking ham great job


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## alelover (Oct 6, 2011)

I think I dated them in High School. 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Just kidding. They really weren't named Ham.

BTW. your hams look awesome bear. Great deal on them too.


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## Bearcarver (Oct 6, 2011)

Chef JimmyJ said:


> Now I KNOW that is way TOO MUCH Ham for You and the BearLady...I realize those Two are gone, but the NEXT time...I'm headin' EAST!...JJ


LOL---Thanks Jimmy!!

Bear
 




billyj571 said:


> Nice wind deflector..lol    good looking ham great job


Thanks Billy!!

LOL---Yeah, it was kinda an emergency wind break.

I keep forgetting---I want to make an aluminum one, with slotted screw holes & such.

Maybe even Velcro.

Bear




alelover said:


> I think I dated them in High School.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks Scott!!!

The ones I knew weren't named "Ham" either.  
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Bear


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## woodcutter (Mar 28, 2013)

I'm going to this to a whole smoked/cooked, bone in ham from Sam's for Easter. Going to give it some cherry smoke. I am planning on putting it in the smoker around 10PM and smoking smoking at 130. I'll get up early and check things and put it in a cooler when it reaches 130. Going to serve it at 1:00. Does this sound reasonable for a 20 pounder?


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## Bearcarver (Mar 28, 2013)

Woodcutter said:


> I'm going to this to a whole smoked/cooked, bone in ham from Sam's for Easter. Going to give it some cherry smoke. I am planning on putting it in the smoker around 10PM and smoking smoking at 130. I'll get up early and check things and put it in a cooler when it reaches 130. Going to serve it at 1:00. Does this sound reasonable for a 20 pounder?


I don't think it will get to 130 IT if you're smoker temp is only at 130, even though that's 15 hours. You might have to jack it up a bit.

Bear


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## woodcutter (Mar 28, 2013)

Bearcarver said:


> Woodcutter said:
> 
> 
> > I'm going to this to a whole smoked/cooked, bone in ham from Sam's for Easter. Going to give it some cherry smoke. I am planning on putting it in the smoker around 10PM and smoking smoking at 130. I'll get up early and check things and put it in a cooler when it reaches 130. Going to serve it at 1:00. Does this sound reasonable for a 20 pounder?
> ...


Maybe a little higher....140. I will put the spurs to the smoker early in the morning. Thanks!


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## famous ticketz (Mar 31, 2013)

wow man, great set up, im at 5am now on easter ready to shove mine in the smoker.....Awesome dude, one of your glazes gonna get used, TY


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## jarjarchef (Dec 25, 2013)

Bear I used Glaze #1 today and it was a huge hit. Thank you for sharing your recipe.

Jeramy


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## Bearcarver (Dec 26, 2013)

Famous Ticketz said:


> wow man, great set up, im at 5am now on easter ready to shove mine in the smoker.....Awesome dude, one of your glazes gonna get used, TY


Just noticed this.

Hope All was well !!!


jarjarchef said:


> Bear I used Glaze #1 today and it was a huge hit. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
> 
> Jeramy


That's Great !!!

Real Glad you like it !!

Bear


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## lathrop (Jan 3, 2014)

I have an 8# ham. not fully cooked.  does 7 Hr. at 200* + 1 hr at 270* seem likely to work out. I. will pull it at 135* internal. But would like a ball park on time and temps.

 see double smoked ham..

George


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## Bearcarver (Jan 4, 2014)

Not sure what you mean by "Not Fully Cooked".

Is it smoked, yet not cooked?

You can't do a fresh "Raw" Ham this way.

And most of them have to go higher than 135* IT, unless it says so on the package.

Have to know:

Already Cured?

Smoked?

Cooked?

Or none of the above.

Bear


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## lathrop (Jan 4, 2014)

It is not a grocery store ham. It was custom cured from a pig I had custom slaughtered. The pig was split 4 ways which I was not happy about. this year we will get 1/2 a pig.  I don't know how much smoke if any was involved in the curing. I have eaten the bacon and smoked fish from the shop that did the cutting and curing and their products are quite good.  Reading your post that you smoked to 135* where min recommended temp for a " precooked ham is 130* . I realized I would need to modify that. So I checked with the "old farm journal cook book"  their recommendation was  cook to a minimum of 130* for fully cooked hams. and 160* for cured but not fully cooked hams. So I have been smoking it since 9AM  West coast time. Starting at 200* then boosted to 210/220 after 4 hours. Then afte 6 hours I boosted the temp again. at that point the Internal temp was 152*.. I have been basting every 1/2 hour  since 2PM. it is now 3:30.. And it is time to check the temps.. I think I will aim for 165* internal Then rest. There is a lot of liquid in the glass pie plate tat the ham sits in. should I skim at at this pont or wait till I take it out of the smoker.?

Thanks for the reply.

George


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## lathrop (Jan 4, 2014)

I pulled it at 5:30 at 165* internal.  External was 275* which was full tilt boogie for my variac. [~125% of line voltage}  My fancy digital temp controller doesn't turn off. so it is relegated to a temp sensor.  It could be OE or DOA. .

 The ham is very pretty. the flavor and texture is yet to be determined. The flavor of the juices in the pan is excellent..

I will report on the eating later.

George

.


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## Bearcarver (Jan 5, 2014)

lathrop said:


> I pulled it at 5:30 at 165* internal.  External was 275* which was full tilt boogie for my variac. [~125% of line voltage}  My fancy digital temp controller doesn't turn off. so it is relegated to a temp sensor.  It could be OE or DOA. .
> 
> The ham is very pretty. the flavor and texture is yet to be determined. The flavor of the juices in the pan is excellent..
> 
> ...


Sorry I wasn't here until now.

Sounds like you did good. I probably would have pulled it at 160*, like they said, but as long as it didn't dry out, you should be good.

I'm betting it's awesome!!

Bear


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## lathrop (Jan 5, 2014)

I let it rest in a prewarmed oven while we went out to dinner and a movie. I had a piece for a midnight snack and the flavor is good. texture on the surface under the bark is a bit dry but moist to the chew if that makes sense. Overall I wont know till we slice it.  Probably 160* would have been better.  If my wife likes it i will do a brisket next using the Montreal smoked meat cure. 

Thanks for the encouragement.

George


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## fla-q (Dec 30, 2014)

Gotta say, the hams looked good. A little disappointed though seeing the gravy. If you take the ham drippings and boil them while adding a water/cornstarch mix, you get the best damn redeye gravy there is. It's so good you won't even care about eatin the ham. Well, that might be a stretch but not by much. I know this is an old post but I couldn't resist. Got my new smoker and I'm going to challenge myself to see if I can bring off a brisket flat,2 chickens, 2 racks of ribs, and 1 ham at the same time, without screwing anything up. Happy new year men. I'll try and post some pics.


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## Bearcarver (Dec 31, 2014)

Fla-q said:


> Gotta say, the hams looked good. A little disappointed though seeing the gravy. If you take the ham drippings and boil them while adding a water/cornstarch mix, you get the best damn redeye gravy there is. It's so good you won't even care about eatin the ham. Well, that might be a stretch but not by much. I know this is an old post but I couldn't resist. Got my new smoker and I'm going to challenge myself to see if I can bring off a brisket flat,2 chickens, 2 racks of ribs, and 1 ham at the same time, without screwing anything up. Happy new year men. I'll try and post some pics.


Thank You!!

Actually that's how we usually make our Gravy, but for some reason Mrs Bear made Brown Gravy on this one.

Here's a Better Step by Step of my Double Smoked Hams, and we had "Ham Gravy" on this one. I didn't mention it, but you can see it in the pics:

*Double Smoked Hams Times 4*      

Bear


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## fla-q (Dec 31, 2014)

Nice!
;)


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## lathrop (Dec 31, 2014)

Sorry I don't like corn starch. Potato starch would be fine. flour is better if you can tolerated it.  arrow root or tapioca flour. etc. just not corn starch.


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## fla-q (Dec 31, 2014)

Ha ha. I'm sure willing/able to try any/all of the others.


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