For the perfect grilled whole ham you need the right smoking wood. But which wood gives you the right aromas and flavors for your piece of pork? Cook the whole perfect ham with our guide to the best woods for smoking ham.
Ham can have exceptional texture and flavor when you use the best type of wood for smoking. Mixing two or more types of wood can produce the best results when smoking a whole ham. However, experts can be very good at this; Otherwise the fans will spoil the whole smoking process. Smoking ham should not change its flavor or texture. The apple is the best wood that enriches the flavor of the ham, making it juicy and tender. Also, it fills the ham with flavor and improves the quality of the ham. However, you can still use the woods below to smoke ham as they can be just as good as applewood.
Apple
Apple is excellent when it comes to ham. It is smooth and gives your ham a sweet and fruity flavor. Ham must have a good balance between sweetness and fruitiness all year round. It may be slow, but this WILL NOT affect your ham in any way unless you are not controlling its temperature.
What makes applewood good for ham is the fact that it offers a mild, sweet, fruity flavor that enriches the ham for better quality and flavor. It is not only excellent for ham, but also for all pork products. That makes versatile. A mix of apple and barbecue sauce is great, unless you’re not a grill fanatic.
Since Applewood takes time to get to the ham, you must be patient enough to wait more hours than the standard time. Since making the ham with applewood takes more time whenever YOU be very careful with the temperature. It needs to be low so your ham doesn’t burn before it’s done. You can consciously make smoked ham from the apple and walnut. These two will give you a sweet and smoky flavor that will make your mouth water.
Pecan
What makes pecans a special type of wood is that they’re quickly as good as hickory. It is used when you want your ham to get the smoke slowly but surely. The flavors are given in such a way that your ham gets a very fine texture. Pecan gives you a strong and strong taste.
Pecan is as good as applewood when it comes to all pork products. The only difference is that it has a richer flavor and gives it a nutty flavor. This can be great for nut lovers. The flavor is not so strong that it can mask the original flavor of the ham. The flavors are not so well defined that they can be picked out easily.
Unlike walnut which is very strong; the walnut is a bit subtle. It’s great when it comes to combining. It works well when paired with cherry or apple( source ). This adds an extra layer of flavor to your wood that isn’t so pronounced that it overpowers the original flavors. If you have an issue with sweetness, you can use hickory wood to carry a fresh, earthy flavor to sweetened ham.
Cherry
If you’re feeling adventurous, cherry wood is for you. Not only does it have a smooth and sweet aroma, like the other fruitwoods on this list, but it also has a secret weapon that sets it apart from the crowd: its color.
Cherry wood gives a beautiful deep red color to the meat you are preparing. It’s this unusual quality that has led us to keep using it in our favorite double-smoked spiral ham .
Maple
It is an ideal type of wood suitable for pork products. The resulting smoke is not too strong, but mild and gives the ham a sweet taste. Maple can be just as good on poultry as it is on ham and it still works well. It is soft and gives you a sweet taste. Unlike the apple tree, which can be sweeter, the maple doesn’t leave the ham very sweet.
Maple is as sweet as apple. It is sweet and fruity, which makes the ham taste delicious. The sweet taste is not strong but mild, which is good for the ham. The resulting sweet smoke gives the ham a dark appearance, giving it a great smoky flavor. If you’re good enough, you can try mixing it with apple for great flavor.
I can say that naming maple as a fruitwood is at best accurate, as is grilling ham. It’s also closer to hickory, but the only difference is that it’s sweet and soft. It does not leave the ham deformed, because in a certain way it exhibits or keeps the great flavors.
Peach
The peach also has a fruity flavor but has some added citrus flavors. It has some additional floral notes that differentiate it from the rest of the woods and make it unique. It doesn’t contain many acids compared to orange or apple. The taste is a little light, which is suitable for ham.
As much as it packs a citrus flavor, it keeps you strong, real smoked ham. You won’t get bored of the smoke anytime soon as it gives off a pretty refreshing aroma as you grill your ham. Your ham will be well seasoned with sweet and citrus flavors. It is best described as sweet fruitwood.
Oak
Strong as the oak is, it will not mask the ham’s natural flavor. Oak is good when it comes to beginners. There is very little chance it will spoil your ham. You can easily control. Versatile exactly oak wood best. It is ideal to combine as it is not as strong as other woods such as walnut.
A medium smoke flavor is what you get from the oak wood. Oak comes in a variety of forms and you need to be very careful when choosing the type of oak that will work best. Red oak is the best compared to white oak. It’s quite strong while remaining subtle. They don’t take away the original flavor from your ham. It is best classified as a hardwood.
The Last Word
Considering all the woods as mentioned above, it’s pretty clear that ham pairs well with fruity and sweet flavors. Apple is exceptional in that it strikes a good balance between the sweet and traditional flavors of ham. The smoke leaves the ham with a finely tuned and defined texture. If is not your favorite, you will surely get a perfect one among other woods.
Writer & content creator. BBQ fanatic!
