Ham & Cabbage

A wet and rainy day here, but I was prepared for it. I was ready for some ham and cabbage. Not your traditional, everyday meal, but a treat at my house. Let me tell you how I do it. I start off with my 2 1/2 gallon pot and usually boil a ham bone, but I did not have one saved from a Sunday dinner, so I fried 4 salt ham steaks. for those of you who do not know, most of the ham sold is sugar or honey cured. Salt ham is rubbed with salt, hung in a dark cool place, and left to rot for a little while. When you are ready, you cut off the mold, wash it, boil it, and then bake like a regular ham. I had some cooked ham steaks in the freezer, so I fried them crispy, sliced them, and then poured the ham, grease, and all into the pot. I then washed 5lbs of red potato's and added them whole to the pot, filled it half way with water, and set it to boil. I took 2 heads of cabbage, pulled the outside leaves off, cut the stem out and cut into quarters. when the water and potato's come to a boil, turn the heat down, add about 2 tablespoons of pepper, and then drop in the cabbage. Keep it on low and covered for about 30 minutes

Which is about the time it takes to bake a pan of cornbread. Yeah, I know, I should bake it in a cast iron skillet, but it was still dirty from frying the ham. A little trick with the cornbread if you are using the instant kind like Jiffy or Martha White, add a teaspoon of vegetable oil and 2 teaspoons of sugar to the mix. When it's all done and on a plate, don't forget to add some seasoning salt, ( we just call it red salt ) and some butter