Peter Aitken wrote:

> I thought Smithfield hams *are* dry-cured country hams from a specific part
> of the state. Is there something special/different about them? In any case,
> I would not recommend that anyone do a country ham for the first time for
> guests. Even when it's a good quality ham correctly prepared it is an
> acquired taste. Much better IMO to get a high quality city ham.

You're correct. They are dry cured.
Alton Brown did a nice show on country/city hams
last year which I see will be repeated on FoodTV.
I did the city ham and we enjoyed it very much.
Here is the link:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show..._17457,00.html

Goomba