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# Talmadge Country-Cured Ham
- URL: https://www.redgalluses.com/talmadge-ham/
- Published: 2026-10-05T20:54:41.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-05T22:24:06.000Z
- Description: The ham at the center of Betty’s hunt-breakfast menu.
- Author: The Editor
- Tags: Southern Life, #Import 2026-10-05 16:55

[AT THE TABLE · BETTY’S COOKBOOK](https://www.redgalluses.com/south/#table)

# Talmadge Country-Cured Ham

The ham at the center of Betty’s hunt-breakfast menu.

![Betty and Herman Talmadge standing among hanging hams in the Talmadge Hams smokehouse](https://www.redgalluses.com/content/files/images/red-galluses/ham/betty-herman-smokehouse.jpg)

Betty and Herman Talmadge in the Talmadge Hams smokehouse.  
Photograph courtesy of The Editor.

In *How to Cook a Pig & Other Back-to-the-Farm Recipes*, Betty Talmadge follows the Lucille Ball hunt-breakfast story with a menu and its recipes. Country ham takes its place alongside cheese grits, biscuits and Sally Lunn bread. The recipe bears the family name.

FROM THE COOKBOOK · PAGES 26–27

## Talmadge Country-Cured Ham

Wash ham thoroughly. Place it in a large container or sink filled with lukewarm water and soak overnight.

Drain ham and place in roaster. Pour 2 pints of Coke or fruit juice and an equal amount of water over ham. Cover with lid or foil and bake at 350° F. approximately 20 minutes per pound. I usually bake a 15- or 16-pound ham at least 5 hours.

Remove outer skin from the ham and cut off excess fat. Score remaining fat in diamond shapes and insert whole cloves.

Combine 2 cups of brown sugar with 2 cups of pineapple juice and bring to a boil. Use this to baste the ham as it bakes for about 20 minutes more in a hot (450° F.) oven. Or use one of the more elegant glazes (see index).

Serve thinly sliced—slices should be no thicker than ¼ inch—on a platter garnished with fruits. Before serving I sometimes decorate the ham with whole canned red crab apples, white grapes, preserved kumquats, pickled peaches or whatever fruit I happen to have. Or shave the ham into thin slices to put between biscuits.

Source: Betty Talmadge, with Jean Robitscher and Carolyn Carter, [*How to Cook a Pig & Other Back-to-the-Farm Recipes*](https://archive.org/details/howtocookpigothe0000talm) (1977), pp. 26–27\. Transcribed from the cookbook; original wording retained.

THE OCCASION

[Lucille Ball came to breakfast →](https://www.redgalluses.com/lucille-ball/)

[Bourbon strawberries, lace cookies and mint juleps →](https://www.redgalluses.com/lucille-ball/#recipes)