Christmas Fare: Hamonado

Best Of The Best 

Still... nothing beats a home-cooked meal. - Anonymous

For us, growing up, Noche Buena meant Mum's Christmas-Day-especial only.

Although Mum was frugal for most of the year, she surprisingly splurged for Christmas so that we could have food items reserved only for this event. 

Clockwise from top right: tuna macaroni

salad, sweet garbanzo beans, queso de bola

The lowly pan de sal or queso puti (cottage cheese) from the corner sari-sari? 

No way. 

Daricreme?

Nope.

This was the time of the year when she bought a whole loaf of pan Amerikano, queso de bola, and real butter from Cherry's grocery store.

She'd also fill her basket with ingredients for her annual home-cooked tuna macaroni salad and sweet garbanzo beans.

And the crowning glory of it all?

Hamonado.

Filipino ham with a deliciously sticky pineapple-brown sugar glaze.

Sweet, moist, and flavorful, Mum's hamonado always took center stage on the dining table.

I remember watching her marinate the leg of ham in pineapple juice, days before. 

On Christmas Day, the ham was simmered in the sweet juice for hours, then pan-broiled to create that sweet golden glaze. 

Afterward, its fat side was scored in a classic diamond-shaped pattern by running a sharp knife through the fat, then rubbed generously with brown sugar and decorated with pineapple slices.

The table would be set. Food was ready.

We would gather around the table, eating with gusto, passing scraps under the table to the dogs.

A full belly and a happy heart.

Mum's Christmas-Day-especial meal was life’s greatest gift.

The perfect family Christmas fare ever.