This will definitely need planning in advance — 9½ days, to be precise — but that’s about the only demanding aspect of the recipe. The rest is straightforward, and the results are absolutely worth it. And home-cured ham will earn you a lot of respect from foodie friends.

900g salt 6 litres water
1 head of garlic
Zest of one lemon
Zest of two oranges
3 sprigs of rosemary
2 cinnamon sticks
½ bunch of thyme
7 bay leaves
7g star anise
150g coriander seeds
2g cloves
4g allspice
1g juniper berries
2-3kg boned pork leg
String for tying the meat

Put the salt and water in a large pan. Blitz the garlic, lemon and orange zest in an electric grinder. Tie this carefully in a muslin bag with all the herbs and spices, and put into the salted water.

Take the leg of pork and untie it (if necessary) before adding it to the brine. Make sure it is completely submerged.

Cover it and leave in the fridge for 7 days.

Now, take the ham out of the brine and rinse it thoroughly. Discard the brine and refill the pan with cold water and leave the ham to stand in it for 24 hours, changing the water about three times a day (the more frequently you change it, the more salt will be removed).

Now it’s ready to cook. Preheat the oven to 60C/140F. Roll and tie the ham with the string and put it in an ovenproof pot. Add just enough water to cover it, bring slowly to the boil and then put in the oven for 32 hours.

Take the ham out of the oven and leave it to cool in the poaching liquid. When cool, remove the joint. Wipe away any jelly, and trim off the skin to leave the meat neat and ready for slicing.

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