Baked guinness ham

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Cut the skin of the ham around the thick end of the knuckle (it can be made into a scallop pattern) without cutting into the fat and flesh. Ease the skin from the fat by slipping your thumb under the skin, and firmly sliding it back and forth. Turn the ham over and ease away the rest of the skin, which should come off in one piece. Place the ham, fatside up, in a roasting pan with the stout, reserving 2–3 tablespoons of stout for the glaze. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 11⁄2 hours. Lift the foil and baste the ham with the drippings several times during the cooking.
2. Remove from the oven, take off the foil and pour off the liquid in the pan. Using a sharp knife, score fat with diagonal cuts at 4 cm intervals, first one way, then the opposite way, to form a diamond pattern.
3. For the glaze, mix the sugar, mustard and spices together with the reserved stout (enough to make a thick paste).
4. Spread half the glaze mixture over the ham and stud a clove in the corner of each diamond if you like. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C, and bake for another 30–40 minutes, basting every 10 minutes with remaining glaze. If serving hot, leave the ham in the turned-off oven for 30 minutes. If serving cold, cool and store in refrigerator overnight. Serve in thin slices. Place ham slices on a large serving platter and garnish with watercress or parsley.
5. Carving the ham
   
   Use a very sharp knife, preferably with a long, thin blade. The easiest way to carve a ham is to cut a wedge out first, about two thirds along the leg, and carve slices each side. This allows for a good distribution of lean and fat in each slice, as well as making manageable slices. Cold ham is cut in thin slices, but a hot ham may be cut into thicker slices. Before carving, wrap a sheet of foil around the knuckle. The carver can cover this with a clean napkin, and hold the ham without getting greasy.
6. Storing the ham
   
   Cover with a clean tea towel or light cheesecloth bag that has been dipped in a solution of about 2 cups of water with 1 tablespoon of vinegar, and then squeezed out. Replace the tea towel every three days with another one to keep the ham moist and fresh.