Is there any ham/ similar that is not full of ickiness?

[amberj]

I am on a huge kick to eliminate anything artificial from our diets, but I am stuck with sandwiches. I have always bought lunch meat and made sangers for the week and frozen them, but it seems like most (all?) lunch meat if full of things I am not sure I want in my or my family's bodies.

Is there any "good" ham or other lunch meat? Is ham off the bone better?

Thanks!

[Netix]

I'm into poaching chicken fillets at the moment and then slicing them up for sandwiches.

[*Infinity*]

What about tuna? I love that in sandwiches but not sure how it would go frozen?

Or roast meat is great in sangas too. You could cook up a lamb or beef roast on the weekend and cut it up for cold sandwich meat. Roast meat sandwiches are the best!

[suse]

Or, if you can find (or be bothered finding) a butcher who cures their own ham, it's more likely that they'll do it in a more traditional way and less likely that they'll use some of the chemicals (sulphur dioxide being one, from memory) that commercial smallgoods manufacturers use to speed up from memory. Likewise a good deli is more likely to supply better quality hams than the supermarket delis.

Leg ham or ham off-the-bone is a much better choice than pressed meats (including pressed hams - if it's square, avoid it). Not only is it an unknown quantity which cuts of meat go into pressed meats, but they have higher fat content and lots of other things added as well.

[Inanna]

I buy organic ham & as Suse said if you choose a butcher who does his own you can make sure it has no nitrates.

Tuna (though I have an issue with the cruelty aspect) is yummy & low in mercury.

Have you thought of perhaps just slicing tomato and cheese, grating carrot, cucumber and putting them in a separate container to make their own with fresh bread?

My kids go to a vegetarian school so I do wraps with lettuce, cheese, carrot and mayo. They really love them.
I make muffins with spelt flour & no eggs - just some ideas.

[Trillian]

cold roast meats are fab for sandwiches, as is corned silverside that was done in the slow cooker. Or you could buy a BBQ chook too

[jackrose]

Or, if you can find (or be bothered finding) a butcher who cures their own ham

I notice you are in North West Melbourne? There is a butcher in the West, Andrew's Choice - he is in Yarraville. He does his own ham and other things and it is absolutely beautiful meat.

I am not 100% sure it is free of all the nasties, but you could ring and check.

[amberj]

Thanks all, these are awesome ideas. Would roast beef and silverside freeze ok?

I will definately check out the Yarraville butcher- sounds great!

[Trillian]

You mean freeze once they are cooked? I know you can freeze ham off the bone - we've done it if we have a really big ham, but I don't know how other meats would go freezing once cooked