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Easy Honey Ham

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Updated Aug 20, 2024
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Did you know just how easy it is to make your own honey-glazed ham? Don’t rush to the store and fight the crowds, make your own easy honey ham with just a few simple ingredients. With our fool-proof recipe, and just 10 minutes of prep, you can have the most delicious, juicy ham for a spectacular Sunday dinner or showstopper on your holiday! Enjoy all the oohs and aahhs you’ll get from the enticing aroma it creates in your kitchen while baking as well as the incredible flavor when you sit down to this delectable ham. It’s the tastiest main dish for any holiday spread…and can we talk about the delicious leftovers? You can use them to make even more meals like soups, casseroles, appetizers, and ham sandwiches from the irresistible leftover ham. It’s a cook once, eat twice kind of recipe! Even the bone won’t go to waste.

We’ll show you how to glaze like a pro, infusing the ham with that delicious glaze and even step-by-step how to slice a bone-in ham, so you don’t miss a morsel.

Bone in Ham vs Boneless Ham: What is the Best Ham to Buy for Honey Glazed Ham?

For the best honey-glazed ham, we call for a fully cooked smoked bone-in ham! We think it is the best ham to buy for a slow-roasted ham that is based with a delicious glaze, so it won’t dry out and has the best flavor. It offers the best flavor and moistness over a boneless ham. And might we also add, it is the most impressive-looking ham for a special meal! A bone-in ham is a little trickier to carve (but have no fear, we’ll show you step-by-step how to carve a ham), but its less processed than a boneless ham, with denser meat, so you can count on getting beautiful, photo-worthy carved slices over slices made with a boneless ham. Once you have removed the bone, don’t throw it away! It too can be used to add flavor and seasoning to other recipes, so that nothing gets wasted, making this cut even more economical to buy. Try our Slow-Cooker Ham Bone Soup for an inexpensive and effortless way to put the ham bone to use.

Will a Spiral Ham work for this Recipe? Spiral hams are easier to cut than traditional bone-in hams, however, because they have so many cut surfaces, they tend to dry out faster than traditional bone-in hams and can cause the glaze to melt and run off the ham, losing all that wonderful glaze flavor. If you love the flavor of a glazed ham, you will love our easy recipe…and you do not need to be intimidated with carving it. Cutting a bone-in ham is not difficult when you follow our how-to pictures and step-by-step instructions with the recipe.

However, if you want to prepare a spiral ham instead of a bone-in ham, we suggest you follow the ham package directions for heating and serve a sauce on the side with the ham, rather than making it glazed. Try the sauce from Baked Ham with Cherry Sauce or prepare the sauce from our Baked Ham with Zesty Cranberry Sauce to serve with the spiral ham.

How Long to Cook a Honey Ham

Our honey-glazed ham recipe calls for a ham that is 6 to 8 pounds, to serve 12 people. If you want more ham for more guests or a lot of heavenly ham leftovers, you can buy a larger one (and make more glaze and roast it longer). You can buy hams as large as 14 to 16 pounds. (We have been known to buy a larger ham than needed, to be sure to have plenty of tasty leftovers!)

325°F is the best oven temperature to roast any size ham, for the best flavor and moistness. The ham is partially cooked before adding the best ham glaze, so that the glaze cannot burn. With the glaze spread over the ham, it continues to roast, while being infused with the remarkable glaze flavor.

Regardless of the size you choose, it will take approximately 18 to 25 minutes per pound, total cooking time. For a 6-pound ham, that would be about 1 hour 50 minutes to 2 1/2 hours, or a 16-pound ham, about 4 hours 50 minutes to 6 hours 40 minutes.

Roasting is considered a dry method of heat, so use a shallow roasting pan that allows the heat to surround the ham without causing it to steam. Do not own a roasting pan? You can cook the ham on an oven-safe cooling rack in a cake pan or on a sheet pan, instead.

Use an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the ham (without touching the bone) to check for doneness. Roast the ham until it reaches 135°F. As it rests under a tent of foil, the temperature will continue to rise. It is ready to serve when it is 145°F.

The Best Ham Glazes

Our honey brown sugar ham glaze takes only 3 pantry ingredients Slightly sweet from honey and brown sugar, and slightly spicy from the Dijon mustard, it’s so delicious on the ham while being neutral enough to pair with any side dishes you want on the table with it! But there are many other choices for ham glazes that use balsamic vinegar, fruity preserves, marmalade, fruit juice, or even bourbon! A variety of mustards are also used, from dry mustard powder to the plain yellow variety or even a mustard-mayonnaise spread. For the best flavor, use a recipe to get the perfect proportions of sweet and savory ingredients and baking instructions. Peek at these ham glaze recipes for several delicious options.

The Best Spices and Seasonings for Ham

Cured ham, is brined pork. That means it is naturally salty and there is no reason to add any more. A smoked ham adds a smoky flavor to the meat, for even more flavor! Adding a glaze helps is like slathering the ham with a delicious condiment, so no sauce or other condiments need to be served on the side. Glazes also help to hold in the moisture of the ham during roasting. Our recipe shows you how to cut the ham surface before the glaze is added, so that it can get down into the meat to add flavor. This ensures that delightful glaze flavor with every slice!

Common spices for ham are the same ones used for fall baking: ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Try adding one or a combination of them to the glaze, for a spiced honey flavor. Or, for a vintage look and added flavor, insert cloves in ham by using whole cloves pressed into the diamond cuts before brushing with the glaze. Or place pineapple on ham before brushing with glaze, using drained canned sliced pineapple rings or tidbits.

What to serve with Honey Ham

Our easy honey ham recipe goes with about any side dish, from potatoes to rice or broccoli to salad. Whether you make this flavorsome ham recipe for a Sunday night dinner or your big holiday meal, you can serve it with any tasty dishes and have it seem like you carefully curated the menu! Just pick your favorites or try something new! For the best spread, select recipes that offer a variety in terms of colors, textures, and temperatures they are served at. That way, everything on the plate is pleasing to the eyes as well as the stomach!

We love ham with potatoes. Try these Easy Slow-Cooker Mashed Potatoes or Cheesy Potato Casserole. Sweet potato fan? These irresistible Instant Pot® Candied Sweet Potatoes are sure to please. Cumin-Citrus Roasted Carrots are a delightful way to eat your carrots (and bunny-approved for Easter!) Or try Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Bacon for an unexpected side.

More About This Recipe

  • With Easy Honey Ham on your holiday table, you are starting a tradition that might just be passed down to the next generation--the delicious flavor is undeniable! If you are looking for ways to put on a fabulous Easter meal, we’ve got you covered with these amazing recipes! Do not forget to get a big enough ham to make sure you have leftovers for our tasty meals made with ham leftovers.
    Or skip the turkey and make this ham recipe for Thanksgiving, just so you can enjoy it another time this year! When all those turkey leftovers are taking up space in your fridge, put them to use with these easy weeknight dinner recipes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much ham do you need per person?

Since ham is typically served with tasty side dishes, like Green Bean Casserole and Roasted Potatoes, you can estimate needing 1/3- to 1/2-pound per person from a bone-in ham. That means that for this easy ham recipe, you will need a 4-to-6-pound ham. Of course, that means it will all get eaten if you have 12 people at the table! If you want to plan for leftovers, to enjoy ham sandwiches, tasty ham soups or casseroles, buy a bigger ham than you need. Just be sure to double the glaze part of the recipe (or more, depending on the size ham you buy) and allow for the extra cooking time it will take to get the ham on the table.

Looking to put on a memorable Easter spread? Check out these scrumptious recipes. Want ham as the star of your Thanksgiving table? Look here for easy and tasty recipes to round out the meal.

How to store your ham?

Leftover ham is a good in sandwiches, soups, or casseroles as it is when served fresh on your holiday table! Be sure to get it into the fridge within 2 hours of sitting at room temperature, to prevent any bacteria from forming that could cause food borne illness. To make it super-easy to use for another meal or recipe, slice it up, using great how to carve a ham tips in the recipe. Make sure it has had a chance to cool before storing. Store the ham bone separately from the slices.

Refrigerator Storage: Place the sliced ham in tightly covered food storage containers or resealable food storage bags. Refrigerate for up to 3 or 4 days. Wrap the ham bone in plastic wrap or foil. Use within 3 to 4 days or follow the freezing instructions to save it longer.

Freezer Storage: Place the wrapped sliced ham in freezer food-storage bags and store in the freezer for up to 1 or 2 months. Place the wrapped ham bone in freezer storage bag and store in the freezer for up to 1 or two months.

Thawing Frozen Ham or Ham Bone: Move the frozen slices to the refrigerator to thaw overnight. The ham bone can be thawed in the same manner or added frozen to any broth or soup recipe. It will take a few extra minutes to cook the broth or soup.

What to do with the leftover ham bone?

Do not let that ham bone go to waste! Adding it when making a savory broth or soup can add a ton of flavor and depth to your favorite soup or chili. Simply let it simmer in the water or broth used for the recipe, and let it do its magic! The savory, saltiness will work its way into whatever dish you are making and will loosen the remaining ham that is on the bone, making it easy to cut off and throw in the pot.

We love that even the ham bone can have purpose! Do not worry, you don’t have to commit to using it the day you make the ham. Simply follow our ham storage guidelines above, so that it will be fresh and flavorful when you are ready to use it.

If you are adding when making a broth or soup and it wasn’t specifically called for in the recipe, hold off on adding any more salt until you taste the dish. It is amazing how much salty goodness can come off the bone…your dish may not need any added salt added! It is a natural in Ham and Split Pea Soup.

Should you cook ham with the rind on?

A ham rind is a tough layer of fat and skin that covers the surface of the ham. Bone-in hams may be sold with or without a rind. Different butchers may choose to leave it on or trim it off before they put it into the meat case to buy. Or if your ham comes wrapped in a foil-like wrapping, you will not be able to tell if it has a rind or not until you get it home and unwrap it.

If your ham has a rind, leave it on when roasting to protect the interior from drying out. But when making the diamond-shaped cuts for the glaze, be sure to not only score through the rind, but deep enough to reach the ham meat, so the flavorful glaze will flavor the meat and not just the fat.

You can either trim the fat yourself as you carve the ham, or you can leave it on and let your guest trim it off themselves.

Ham basting 101: How to baste a ham

Basting meat is done to keep meat from drying out by adding moister while imparting flavor at the same time. Unlike a basting a turkey (with either thin broth or melted butter that slides right off, so it needs to be done many times to keep the turkey moist and add flavor,) basting a ham is different.

Glazes for hams tend to be thick and sticky, which means they will stick to the surface of the ham. All you have to do is brush it on once and it will remain in place…helping to keep the ham moist while adding flavor! It also means you are opening the oven door less (which reduces the oven temperature), so your ham can get done faster than if you keep opening the door to baste it often.

Since ham glazes tend to have sugar in the form of fruit preserves, honey, and the like, they can tend to burn much easier than basting with broth for a turkey. Be sure to use a well-tested recipe that brushes the ham with the glaze--early enough to add flavor and begins to caramelize on the surface of the ham--but so early that it burns, is the key to the best glazed ham.

Easy Honey Ham

  • Prep Time 10 min
  • Total 2 hr 50 min
  • Ingredients 4
  • Servings 12
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Ingredients

  • 6 to 8 lb fully cooked smoked bone-in ham
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Instructions

  • Step 
    1
    Heat oven to 325°F. Place ham on rack in shallow roasting pan. Roast 12 to 16 minutes per pound or until instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part of ham reads 120°F.
  • Step 
    2
    Remove ham from oven. Pour drippings from pan. Cut fat surface of ham lightly in uniform diamond shapes.
  • Step 
    3
    In small bowl, mix honey, brown sugar and Dijon mustard; brush on ham. Roast uncovered about 20 minutes longer or until thermometer reads 135°F. Cover ham with tent of foil; let stand about 10 minutes or until thermometer reads 140°F.
  • Step 
    4
    Place ham on carving board or platter face down. Using a sharp carving knife, cut in half next to bone.
  • Step 
    5
    Place boneless side of ham fat side up; cut slices. Cut remaining slices from bone-in portion, cutting away from bone.

Nutrition

220 Calories
7g Total Fat
26g Protein
12g Total Carbohydrate
12g Sugars

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 Serving
Calories
220
Calories from Fat
60
Total Fat
7g
11%
Saturated Fat
2 1/2g
11%
Trans Fat
0g
Cholesterol
65mg
22%
Sodium
1520mg
63%
Potassium
370mg
11%
Total Carbohydrate
12g
4%
Dietary Fiber
0g
0%
Sugars
12g
Protein
26g
% Daily Value*:
Vitamin A
0%
0%
Vitamin C
0%
0%
Calcium
0%
0%
Iron
10%
10%
Exchanges:
0 Starch; 0 Fruit; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Skim Milk; 0 Low-Fat Milk; 0 Milk; 0 Vegetable; 3 1/2 Very Lean Meat; 0 Lean Meat; 0 High-Fat Meat; 1 Fat;
Carbohydrate Choice
1
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

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