October 2021…..Because dining out remains a highly restrictive option for Metro Manila families, the search is ramping up for holiday food that emphasizes the specialness of the occasion but can be safely and easily prepared at home.
Seda hotels’ honey-glazed holiday ham tops the list of these festive foods that command attention at any celebration with no added sweat from the host. Carved at the table, the ham generously glazed with pure Palawan honey has a crunchy sweet crust and juicy, meaty interior. Paired with creamy pasta or spinach, mashed or scalloped potatoes, and oven-roasted vegetables, Seda ham becomes a complete Christmas meal. But even when served only with Tsokolate Eh, it still commands presence at the holiday table.
Photo from Seda Hotels
Since Christmas 2014 when it was first served at the Seda BGC buffet, the ham has cultivated a loyal following. It is available only in the last quarter of the year to ensure freshness.
Seda Hotels Executive Chef Romualdo “Pepe” Castillo reveals that it is made from organic pigs seven months old or younger to ensure an optimum fat-and-lean-meat ratio or tender, juicy hams. This means that even at the first quarter of the year, Castillo is already priming his suppliers so that deliveries can begin in October and for the balance of the year. The ham is ordered as a corporate gift by companies for their clients, but guests also order it for their own consumption or as presents to friends and family.
The ham’s curing process further adds to its enigma. The pork is brined for a week in a special mixture then carefully massaged periodically to ensure the even absorption of flavors. It is then steamed and boiled with more secret ingredients before it is molded. Finally, it is glazed with the subtle flavors of freshly squeezed oranges, pure Palawan honey, and a sprinkling of sugar before being blow-torched to seal in all that goodness.
Throughout the entire curing and cooking period, Seda hotel safety standards dictate that processes follow the highest global industry standards. “People are willing to pay a premium not just for flavor, but also for the assurance of safety and consistency,” according to Seda Hotels’ senior group general manager Andrea Mastellone. The ham is available in Seda properties at BGC, Makati, Vertis North in Quezon City, Nuvali in Laguna, and Central Bloc Cebu.
In fact, the chefs and general managers of these Seda properties have put their heads together to share the various ways the Seda honey-glazed hams can best be enjoyed at home for the holidays. Seda Vertis North executive chef Kerpatrick Boiser recommends enjoying slices of the holiday ham with a grazing box of popular cheeses, crackers, nuts, and dried fruits.
A thin slice of ham balanced with creamy Brie cheese and a crisp cracker makes a memorable mouthful. The ham takes on new taste profiles when paired with the more intense Edam cheese or sharp cheddar cheese. These are best finished off with dried apricots and nuts—which are also part of the Seda Vertis North grazing box, available December 1, 2021, to January 5, 2022.
Seda Residences Makati Marc Cerqueda further notes that Seda’s holiday ham is also best savored with fine wines such as a dry pinot grigio or a rose. Consumed without its sauce, it goes well too with a pale Pilsen beer. And for other ways to enjoy ham, Seda Nuvali hotel manager Armand Angeles suggests Japanese croquettes, no-bake frittata, and Seda ham humba; while Seda Central Bloc Cebu hotel manager Ron Manalang says in Cebu, deep-fried cuapao is a perfect match to the Seda ham.
Served with an elegant dinner, a more casual grazing box, or reincarnated as other dishes, Seda’s holiday honey-glazed ham indeed conveys the spirit of Christmas in any setting or circumstance.
Orders for the ham (1.1 kg at Php1,500 in Metro Manila and Nuvali and Php1,100 in Cebu) are already accepted at:
Seda BGC, Taguig – (0917) 702 4762 | dining.bgc@sedahotels.com
https://foodtogo-bgc.sedahotels.com/
Seda Vertis North, Quezon City (0917) 833 9117 | dining.vertis@sedahotels.com
https://foodtogo-vertisnorth.sedahotels.com/
Seda Residences Makati (0917) 875 1871 dining.residencesmakati@sedahotels.com https://foodtogo-makati.sedahotels.com/
Seda Nuvali, Laguna (049) 2558888 | dining.nuvali@sedahotels.com
Seda Central Bloc Cebu, Cebu (0917) 8042568 | dining.cbcebu@sedahotels.com
Seda hotels also offer Christmas hampers, baskets and an assortment of sweet treats to add color, joy, and cheer to the holiday table.
