I paid a visit to Swillington Organic farm this weekend to pick up my next foodie project. The farm is well known locally for its rare breed organic pork – in this instance, Saddleback pigs.

I’ve been fancying having another try at air dried ham after my last experiment ended fairly disastrously (I blame Hugh but that’s another story). I ordered a full leg which weighs in at a sizeable 9 kilos and it was all ready for us when we arrived. My mate dave and I are doing one at the same time, so we can compare notes along the way.

This is going to be a long job as the ham can take up to 9 months to air dry properly. I’m curing it first in salt for a few days and then hanging somewhere dry and draughty for the agonising long wait. I will report in regular intervals on progress…