Benton's Smoky Mountain Country Hams is a producer of cured meats in Madisonville, Tennessee, United States. The business was started in 1947 by the late Albert H. Hicks.[1]
Allan Benton[2][3][4][5][6][7] and his father, B.D. Benton, took over the business in 1973 and it was subsequently renamed and moved to its current location in Madisonville.[8]
Overview
The company uses a slow curing process using salt, brown sugar, and sodium nitrite.[9][10][11] The mixture is rubbed onto fresh hams in a maple box; the hams are then aged an average of 9 to 10 months, but often up to 18 months. Many of the hams are also smoked in a small, wood-fired smokehouse that sits behind the shop. Benton's also produces prosciutto, cured bacon, and fresh pork sausage.[12]