Honey baked Hams, buy how long before serving?

Question

By "Honey Baked Hams", I'm talking brand name, the honeybaked Hams. How long can you store them before you plan to serve them?? They are pre-cooked and refridgerated after you get them home. I'm trying to figure out, how many days you can safely store them before you re-heat. I've checked online and there's no answer.

Answer 1

Well... that all depends... you need to buy it with at least as much time as you need to thaw it (if frozen) and cook it (if not pre-cooked). If you buy one that's precooked, you just need warm-up time. Or, if you wait til the last minute, you'll have to buy one that's cooked and still warm.

Answer 2

I think the preparation of ham at the factory is what makes it salty. I don't think the consumer can do much in terms of de-salting the ham. Perhaps you can find a low sodium ham at the store. An old trick used by cooks to correct an overly salted dish (for instance, chili) is to add a whole peeled potato to the pot while it boils. The potato will draw out the salt. Since you are already using potatoes in your soup, let them draw the salt off the ham and don't add the salt the recipe calls for. A third suggestion is to use one of the turkey products that is out these days that is meant to replace pork products and are lower in fat and sodium. My grocer has turkey bratwursts, turkey breakfast sausage...maybe you can find some turkey ham? At the health food section/store, I know you'll be able to find meatless ham replacement. That might work too. Though the fat in ham and pork is not an easy quality to replace. If it were me I would stick with using real ham and use less ADDED salt that the recipe calls for. Your mooma is lucky to have you cook so thoughtfully for her! Good luck!