Category: In the News

Kentucky Legend to Debut Bourbon Barrel Smoked Ham and Bacon

Media Contact: Mollie Dreibrodt, 830-456-5886, m.dreibrodt@midan.com

Flavor-forward innovation aims to bring new life to processed meats category and reach new consumers, beginning Fall 2024

OWENSBORO, KENTUCKY, August 14, 2024 – Kentucky Legend^® is launching new bourbon barrel smoked ham and bourbon barrel smoked bacon products to retail and foodservice customers this fall. The product innovation builds on the brand’s heritage and craftsmanship of premium flavor and smoking technique, coupled with its proximity to the world’s bourbon capital to deliver a flavor-forward offering and re-inspire the processed meats category.

“Craftmanship has always been the differentiator for Kentucky Legend. That is why it is the country’s leading boneless ham brand, we’re excited to announce the addition of bourbon barrel smoked hams and bacon to our portfolio,” said Eric Sheiss, Executive Vice President.“We worked with partners to upcycle spent and broken bourbon barrels to develop a set of products with smoked characteristics that are different from anything you find on the shelf today.”

The results are carefully crafted and indulgent premium hams and bacon. These products carry the unique combination of the oak from which the barrels are made, the char on the inside of the barrel, and the subtle complexity of the spicy flavors from the bourbon that has soaked into the wood – sometimes over years.

“Eighty-one percent of consumers surveyed during concept testing agreed the bourbon barrels would give the products unique and delicious flavor,” said Bruce Johnson, Vice President of Marketing & Innovation. “An overwhelming majority [91% for ham, 95% for bacon] indicated they will purchase the products multiple times per year. We’re excited to fill their appetite for a new and unique flavor profile that isn’t just for special occasions.”

The new Kentucky Legend Bourbon Barrel Smoked products will be available in:

• Ham: Quarter sliced, half, and whole hams for both retail and foodservice
• Bacon: 16 oz. for retail, and various foodservice configurations

The Kentucky Legend bourbon barrel smoked ham and bacon products will be available starting September 15, 2024. To order, visit www.kentuckylegend.com or contact your Indiana Packers/Specialty Foods Group representative.

About Kentucky Legend: The Kentucky Legend brand was created as a premium meat brand more than 25 years ago and has since become the bestselling smoked boneless ham and turkey brand in America. Kentucky Legend is owned and operated by Specialty Foods Group, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Indiana Packers Corporation. Kentucky Legend’s full line of products includes hams, turkeys, lunch meat, hot dogs, pork chops and other premium pork offerings, and can be found in grocery retailers and for restaurants nationwide. For more information, visit www.KentuckyLegend.com.

About Indiana Packers Corporation: Indiana Packers Corporation (IPC) is a fully integrated pork processor headquartered in Delphi, Indiana. Sourcing from nearby farms, IPC manufactures and distributes a variety of products such as fresh pork, bacon and premium processed hams, under their INDIANA KITCHEN^® brand and private-label brands. These products are sold to a broad customer base in the retail and foodservice sectors, and distributors across the country. IPC distributes its fresh pork and INDIANA KITCHEN^® premium products to more than 25 countries worldwide. For more information, visitwww.IndianaPackersCorp.com or  www.IndianaKitchen.com

Kentucky Legend Hosts Spring Clothing Drive

Hey, Owensboro! If you’re cleaning out your closets as part of your annual spring cleaning, why not consider pitching in to our seasonal clothing drive?

During the month of April, drop off any items you’re no longer in the habit of wearing to the Owensboro Convention Center. (There will be donation boxes set up near the front desk in the lobby.)

If you donate 5 or more items, you’ll even receive a voucher for 50% off a Lunch Combo at the Kentucky Legend Café!

All donations received will go on to benefit the Oasis Women’s Shelter and the Help Office of Owensboro.

Thanks for your generosity in advance!

More information and related articles:

https://www.owensborocenter.com/2022-kentucky-legend-spring-cleaning-clothing-drive/?fbclid=IwAR2DTonrdB-pyroKJJBM7HfQhG2DjtqgLrO_pxcqn68Gkwrq8NEYnyujRLA

https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/kentucky-legend-spearheading-clothing-drive/article_d2fa598e-14f0-5879-90b8-6d088c0be60a.html

4 Great Holiday Brunch Ideas

Critically acclaimed Chef Ralph Pagano is back at it again on Lifetime’s “The Balancing Act,” showcasing the delicious versatility of Kentucky Legend ham for your holiday brunchfests.

The great thing about Kentucky Legend ham, Chef Pagano points out, is its heat-and-eat readiness, which is a welcome way to take some of the hecticness out of your holiday mealtimes.

Since you’re probably dying to know, Chef Pagano’s four brunch ideas for Kentucky Legend ham are . . .

1. Ham & Waffles with Sour Cherry Glaze
2. Rolled-up Ham & Cheese Biscuits with Gravy
3. Ham, Tomato & Cheese Tart
4. Avocado Toast with Mojo-Basted Ham

If you missed it live and want more details on how to make these great recipes, you can catch the full segment here:

How Sweet (and Savory) It Is!

For a sweet and salty flavor combination that’s out of this world, you need to try Chef Jamie Gwen’s recipe for a Dulce de Leche and Cider glaze on your next Kentucky Legend ham.

Chef Jamie’s been a guest judge on “Master Chef” and a contestant on “Beat Bobby Flay” among many other food show appearances, so she knows an impressive recipe when she sees one—and this Dulce de Leche and Cider Glaze is one of those just-got-to-share kind of recipes.

Dulce de leche is that delicious confection, popular across Latin America and Southeast Asia, that‘s created by boiling milk until it turns into a sweet, caramel dessert sauce. Added to apple cider, apples, onions, some mustard and other spices, it creates a sweet-savory-tangy glaze that’s surprisingly irresistible on Kentucky Legend hams.

Chef Jamie’s recipe makes a glaze for one of our whole hams (~8lbs), though you could easily cut recipe in half to make the right amount for one of our smaller hams.

Watch Chef Jamie’s previous Facebook Live video showing how to make this glaze. Scroll below for full text of recipe.

Dulce de Leche & Apple Cider Glazed Ham

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Dulce de Leche
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cups apple cider
• One 8-pound Kentucky Legend Whole Ham
• 2 Honeycrisp apples, cored and thinly sliced
• 1 large sweet yellow onion, thinly sliced

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the Dulce de Leche with the two mustards, the garlic and the cayenne. Whisk in 1/4 cup of the apple cider.
3. Score the exterior of the ham, about 1/4-inch deep, in a diamond pattern. Spread the apple and onion slices onto the bottom of a roasting pan.
4. Set the ham on top and add 1 cup of the apple cider to the pan. Cover the roasting pan with foil and roast the ham for 1 hour.
5. Remove the foil and brush the ham with the Dulce de Leche glaze. Roast the ham for 45 minutes longer, adding additional glaze, or until nicely glazed all over. Transfer the ham to a cutting board and let the ham rest for 15 minutes.
6. Pour the pan drippings into a small saucepan and skim off as much of the fat as possible. Set the roasting pan on top of the stove over medium heat, preferably over two burners.
7. Add the remaining apple cider and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Pour the deglazed liquid into the saucepan with the pan drippings.
8. Whisk in the remaining 1/4 cup of Dulce de Leche glaze and bring the mixture to a simmer. Serve the ham with the glaze.

A graduate of both the Culinary Institute of America and Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Jamie Gwen is a celebrity chef, syndicated radio host and cookbook author based in southern California. Chef Jamie’s been featured as a guest judge on “Master Chef” and competed on the Food Network show “Beat Bobby Flay.” Her other TV appearances include “The Martha Stewart Show,” “Emeril Live,” The Talk,” HGTV, HSN, Bravo TV, DIY Network and more.

Her favorite ham is Kentucky Legend’s Brown Sugar Ham.

Chef Jamie Gwen Talks 4th of July Meal Ideas

Chef Jamie Gwen’s Recipe for More Fun, Less Food Prep This Summer

Summer’s always been about taking it easy, and Chef Jamie Gwen will show you how to do so without sacrificing legendary flavor at mealtime.

Let’s be honest. Who really wants to stand beside a roaring grill in the season’s heat (okay, a few of us out there!) or roast anything in the oven and risk making the whole house uncomfortably sweaty?

Tune in to your local morning news Wednesday morning, June 30, 2021, for a chance to see celebrity chef, cookbook author and radio host Jamie Gwen reveal one of her favorite recipes for big summer flavor with minimal effort.

Spoiler alert: Chef Jamie Gwen’s magic formula involves combining the deliciousness of Kentucky Legend turkey with the convenience of your slow cooker or crockpot to make BBQ pulled turkey.

Double-smoked just like our bestselling hams, Kentucky Legend Quarter-Sliced Turkey comes with legendary built-in flavor. Cooking them low and slow in your crockpot gets them tantalizingly tender while bringing in the wonderful flavor of your favorite barbecue sauce and, most importantly, freeing you up for more summer fun.

For building meals, Chef Jamie’s BBQ pulled turkey is incredibly versatile. Fold some in a tortilla with coleslaw and pickles for a zesty, creamy wrap. Drop some on a potato bun or pretzel roll for a pulled turkey sandwich. Scoop some onto nachos, tater tots or mac ‘n’ cheese for some ultimate comfort food. Any leftover pulled turkey can be stored in Ziploc bags and frozen for easy, delicious dinners down the road.

When all’s said and done, the only remaining issue is, what are you going to do with all the free time suddenly on your hands? We hope something fun!

Oink for Owensboro 2020

One Last Oink

It’s official: the “Oink for Owensboro” pigs are going out to pasture.

See the Oink for Owensboro Pigs before they’re gone.

Started in 2017, the giant, hand-painted pig statues are part of a philanthropic art project that has raised $100,000 for local non-profits while adding a little local flavor to the city.

“The sculptures are really incredible works of art to have on display downtown,” says Tim Ross, Director of Public Events for the City of Owensboro. “They remind us of the great partnership with Kentucky Legend and the sponsors helping raise so much for local charities.”

After seeing the success of similar projects, like the painted horses of Lexington’s Horse Mania project, Kentucky Legend Brand Manager Brooklyn Maple had the “pig idea” for Owensboro to do its own version as a way to encourage donations for local charities.

To date, 20 larger-than-life fiberglass pigs have been scattered throughout downtown Owensboro and surrounding areas, bringing color to the cityscape and reminding passers-by of Owensboro’s long, rich history of agriculture, meat production and barbecue.

While traditionally hogs have a reputation for being selfish or greedy, the Oink for Owensboro pigs are a symbol of the city’s generosity. Each statue represents a $5,000 contribution from an Owensboro organization to an area non-profit of their choosing.

Upon receiving their unpainted fiberglass statue, each donor had to put more than just lipstick on their pig. Donors were responsible for personifying their pig with a name and artwork before having it placed in a prominent location around town.

Alas, the Oink for Owensboro Project will officially come to a close in October of this year.

“Getting this project up and running was so much fun,” says Brooklyn Maple, Brand Manager for Kentucky Legend. “And we’re super thankful to all the groups that joined in and helped us hit our goal of raising $100,000.”

“While this project is obviously near and dear to our hearts, we’ve decided to move on in order to free ourselves up to consider new ways that Kentucky Legend can support our Owensboro community going forward,” says Maple. “At Kentucky Legend, we’re always brainstorming about that.”

Even though Oink for Owensboro is coming to a close, a number of donors intend to keep their statues on display indefinitely. Even so, the best time to view the pigs on a walking tour is before the end of October, just in case some donors decide to relocate their pigs.

If you’re not a fan of long walks, don’t worry: all 20 “porks of art” will be corralled into one large “Pig Pen” in front of the Owensboro Convention Center from July 2, 2020, to July 7, 2020, for easy viewing.

From July 8, 2020, until the end of October, you can find the pigs at their locations listed below.

Chef Jamie Gwen’s Ham & Melon Summer Skewers

Summer’s here, the weather’s glorious and that means there are tons of opportunities for eating outdoors.

Especially with travel being somewhat iffy this year, small get-togethers with family and friends will become so much more important as many large-scale events get canceled this season.

Whether it’s a backyard barbecue, picnic at the park or some other fun type of al fresco mealtime, Chef Jamie Gwen has an absolutely delicious starter to add to your shindig’s menu.

Chef Jamie’s Ham & Melon Summer Skewers are a riff on a classic prosciutto and melon salad. Threaded on skewers for fun, hands-on eating and better presentation, this recipe features cubes of cantaloupe or honeydew melon, slices of Kentucky Legend ham, leaves of fresh mint and a mustard vinaigrette.

The sweet brightness of melon contrasts wonderfully with the rich, savory flavor of Kentucky Legend ham and fresh herbaceous mint, which is growing like crazy in so many folks’ gardens by this time in summer.

The best part is this appetizer is quick, easy and can be thrown together in advance. Just store the Ham & Melon skewers in the fridge until serving time. They make a great bite to tide everyone over while the hot dogs and hamburgers are still on the grill.

Check out the video below or our Ham & Melon Summer Skewers recipe post for more details on how to make this fabulous seasonal appetizer.

A graduate of both the Culinary Institute of America and Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, Jamie Gwen is a celebrity chef, syndicated radio host and cookbook author based in southern California. Chef Jamie’s been featured as a guest judge on “Master Chef” and competed on the Food Network show “Beat Bobby Flay.” Her other TV appearances include “The Martha Stewart Show,” “Emeril Live,” The Talk,” HGTV, HSN, Bravo TV, DIY Network and more.

Her favorite ham is Kentucky Legend’s Brown Sugar Ham.

Helping Out However We Can

Grocery stores aren’t the only ones getting hit hard right now.

As measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 have essentially placed numerous industries on pause, the economic ripple-effect has been felt in communities across the country. As a consequence, social services are seeing their resources stretched thin.

That’s why, last week, we put a call out to various social services and religious organizations in our home-region of Owensboro, KY, asking how we could help.

By Friday, April 17, we had coordinated with nine different groups to donate more than 23,000 pounds of our products to the food pantries and homeless shelters they run.

It’s just one small way we can give back, but—for a home community that’s been so supportive of us—we feel fortunate to be able to help out in this way.

“We recognize the stress this crisis has placed upon many families and organizations in our community, and likewise the need for us to pull together and help each other through this time” says Eric Sheiss, the President of Specialty Foods Group, our parent company. “Product donations are just one piece of the puzzle of responding to this national emergency, and we feel fortunate to be able to contribute to our local community in this way.”

The donations, which were largely hams and different types of lunchmeat, were distributed to the Salvation Army of Owensboro, the Help Office of Owensboro, Boulware Mission, St. Benedict’s Homeless Shelter, the Daniel Pitino Shelter, God’s House of Hope, King’s Table Food Pantry, the Christian Food Bank of Hopkins County, and the Senior Community Center of Owensboro-Daviess County.

Jerry Moore, employee at the Daniel Pitino Shelter, which offers housing and meals for those experiencing homelessness, says they’re definitely seeing a spike in visitors: “Our kitchen usually serves between 85 and 100 lunches per day, but lately I’d say we’re averaging about 150, so these food donations are a huge help.”

Easter Dinner Inspiration

“Orange” you glad we got an Easter glaze recipe for you?

Kidding aside, Easter may look a little different this year, but that doesn’t mean it can’t have the same great tastes you’ve always associated with the holiday, including the rich flavor of Kentucky Legend’s double-smoked ham.

In the video below, you’ll see celebrity chef Ralph Pagano, who’s previously appeared on Hell’s Kitchen and gone head to head versus Bobby Flay on Iron Chef, showcase Kentucky Legend in three very different yet equally delicious ways: 1) as a stunning Easter centerpiece with a delightful orange honey glaze, 2) as a tasty addition to any side dish such as in his Brussels sprouts recipe, and 3) as creatively repurposed ham and cheese biscuits so that no leftovers go to waste.

If you’re worried about too many leftovers this year, don’t be! Kentucky Legend hams come in a variety of sizes, including wholes, petite wholes, halves and quarters, so you can find the right size for your household.

But, then again, that leftover ham sure tastes good anywhere you put it, from charcuterie plates to pizza! Visit our “Recipes” page for more ways to make delicious use of any leftover Easter ham.

Easter Dinner + Leftovers

Given the circumstances, Easter 2020 may likely be a scaled-back affair compared to years before. Maybe you’re wondering if that whole ham is really necessary this year, since you’ll probably only be cooking for your immediate household.

There are two possible game plans here.

On the one hand, a whole ham can provide great mealtime mileage—as long you plan ahead for how to use the leftovers. Precooked, with rich, double-smoked flavor that only needs warming up, Kentucky Legend ham is the perfect quick-meal building block that easily adapts to a wide variety of recipes, from sandwiches to skillet stir-fries to breakfast burritos to you-name-it. Good for up to a week in the fridge or two months in the freezer, it also has a relatively long shelf-life.

On the other hand, you can “right-size” your ham for the number of folks you’ll be serving. Kentucky Legend hams are available in multiple sizes, including Petite Wholes, Halves and Quarter Sliced. Plan one pound per person and you’ll have enough for each person to have a second serving if they’re feeling extra hungry—or just really loving that ham.

For some help simplifying mealtime, we’ve asked celebrity chef George Duran, former Food Network cooking show host, for some advice. Check out the video below, as Chef Duran graciously Skyped in from his apartment kitchen in New York City.