Honey Glazed Ham Recipe

Food Republic April 21, 2011

Learn how to master this honey glazed ham recipe and you’ll have one of the most versatile hunks of meat you could ever want. It could be the centerpiece of an Easter brunch or dinner. It can be transformed into a filling for omelets, or stacked high on fresh rye bread with grainy mustard in a sandwich, or chopped up and used in pasta dishes, or sliced thin for topping pizza. You’ll be surprised how easy this is, and once you’ve mastered it, your leftovers options are endless.

We’ve skipped the tacky pineapple rings with cherries, and instead are topping with a traditional honey-based glaze that’s got a hint of heat to keep things interesting.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 to 1 1/2 hours
Level of Difficulty: Easy
Serving Size: 12 servings

Ingredients

1 (14 pound) Virginia ham, fully cooked, bone- in, trimmed, room temperature *
1 cup honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons ginger, ground
1 teaspoon cloves, optional

Directions

* It is important that you let your ham come to room temperature, or the exterior will dry out during heating well before the meat closest to the bone even gets warm. If you buy a pre-sliced ham, this will be easy for serving but it will dry out your meat very quickly. An electric knife can easily slice your ham, thin. So we recommend not buying it pre-sliced.

Preheat oven to 325°F.
Pat dry the ham and place into a heavy duty foil–lined roasting pan.
In a small pot, combine the honey, brown sugar, cayenne, and ginger (and cloves if you choose). Heat just until the sugar is melted. Stir to evenly combine all of the ingredients.
For a fancy diamond pattern, you can use a sharp paring knife and score the fat about 1/2-inch deep in one direction at about a 45-degree angle, about 2 inches apart. Then go back across in the opposite direction to create the diamond pattern. You cannot do this if you bought it pre-sliced or spiral cut.
Using a basting brush, cover the ham with the glaze.
Place in the pre-heated oven and baste with the glaze about every 20 minutes until the internal temperature reads about 140 degrees. The ham is fully cooked already, so you just need to heat it through. This will take 1 to 1 1/2 hours.