Go All Natural With A Christmas Ham From Sunrise Farms.
This year we recommend a traditional ham to celebrate Christmas in Virginia. Ham preserved the old-fashioned way with salt, pepper, and sugar tastes better and is a healthier alternative to supermarket hams cured with synthetic nitrates. The use of nitrates and nitrites in preserving meats started in 1925 to minimize the growth of bacteria. It is relatively inexpensive and gives ham that pink color you see behind deli counters and on supermarket shelves. Most supermarket brands use synthetic nitrates to preserve their meat. We provide nitrate-free options and those cured with the naturally occuring nitrates in celery powder.
Why We Believe Our Ham Is Better.
Scientific studies show a strong correlation between the consumption of processed meats that are cured with nitrates and nitrites and poor health in humans. We offer our customers nitrate-free options as well as those cured with celery powder as a natural alternative to synthetic nitrates and nitrites. Here are the top two reasons we think an all-natural ham is the way to go:
- Healthier: Eating meats preserved with nitrates and nitrites is believed to be a contributing factor in heart disease and cancer. Studies are ongoing, but the correlation is strong. In addition, pastured pork fed non-GMO grain offers better nutritional value with a lower ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 polyunsaturated fats.
- Great Taste: We believe ham cured with only salt, sugar, and pepper gives a robust taste that will keep you coming back for more. It’s less salty, once soaked, and retains the juicy flavor that pork is known for. If you are looking for a delicious smoked flavor and a meat that retains its pink color and has a less salty taste, choose the uncured smoked ham with celery powder cure.
Understanding The Differences In Preparation.
At Sunrise Farms, we use two basic methods for preparing our ham:
- Old-fashioned Salt and Sugar Cure: cooking pork that is cured with only salt, pepper, and sugar requires slightly different preparation methods. The salt used to preserve the meat can make nitrate-free ham taste salty. To avoid that saltiness, we recommend you soak your bacon or country ham overnight or for a few hours prior to cooking. Change the water several times to rinse the salt before cooking.
- All-natural Celery Powder Cure: in addition to our traditional country ham with our old-fashioned cure, we provide uncured smoked ham and bacon cured with salt, celery powder, brown sugar, cherry powder, sugar, black pepper, and cinnamon. No nitrates or nitrites are added except for those naturally occurring in celery powder. This ham can be cooked with your favorite glazes without any prior preparation.
Choose From Our Wide Range Of Pork Products.
We raise our hogs ethically and sustainably on our small family farm in Stuarts Draft, Virginia. All our animals are fed Non-GMO feed, and we preserve our meats with salt, sugar, and pepper, or celery powder with no MSG.
Visit our storefront to get started and contact a member of our team to learn more about ordering ham for Christmas.
