Easy Honey Ham

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!