Classic Baked Ham
on Nov 29, 2020, Updated Jun 23, 2023
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The classic, perfect baked ham — shiny with a tangy sweet glaze, crosshatched, ideal for Christmas, Easter, and any large gatherings that call for a ham.
There are a whole bunch of holidays where you can expect (or at least not be surprised) to see a ham on the table. Easter, Christmas, holiday parties, potlucks, brunches, baby or bridal showers. Large gatherings (because hams are generally large) that need a crowd-pleasing main course to anchor a table or (often) a buffet. And leftovers are amazing and can be used in so many different ways!
Serve baked ham with all of the holiday sides. I love it with Butternut Squash Casserole or Mashed Sweet Potatoes, and Grilled Pineapple would be unbelievable as a pairing.
Pre-Cooked Ham
Almost all hams are sold smoked or cured – already cooked, as it were. You can buy a uncooked ham and cook it from scratch yourself, but they are harder to find, and unless you get yourself a very good ham and a very good recipe, you may find yourself with a dry piece of meat.
Most baked hams we’ve all enjoyed were cooked to begin with and then reheated thoroughly in the oven. Often there is a glaze on the ham, frequently one with sweetness to it. Cloves are another very popular flavor, and the quintessential, iconic, traditional image many of us have when we think of ham is a ham that is shiny with a glaze, perhaps crosshatched, and sometimes studded with whole cloves. This is that perfect holiday ham. Cabn’t you just imagine it on your Easter table?
How to Make Glazed Ham
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Trim the ham, removing any excess fat. Score the ham, which means to make crosshatch cuts all over the surface, about ½ inch deep and 1/2 to 1-inch apart. Place the ham in a roasting pan. Bake the ham for 1 ½ hours.
Stir the sugar, mustard and maple syrup together in a bowl. Remove the ham from the oven, and raise the temperature to 375 degrees. Use a brush to coat the ham with the brown sugar glaze, using about half of the glaze. Carefully insert a clove into the center of each cross hatched diamond, if desired.
Return the ham to the oven and bake for another 60 to 90 minutes, brushing on some additional glaze every 30 minutes or so, if you have the time and are in the kitchen. The ham should have an internal temperature of 165 degrees; check with a meat thermometer. Transfer the ham to a cutting board and let sit for at least 20 minutes. You are welcome to let the ham cool for longer, or even come to room temperature as well. Slice the ham, thinly or thickly, and serve warm or at room temp.
Ham Sandwiches
Leftover home cooked ham makes sandwiches that are a notch above what you can buy sliced at a deli. I like my ham sliced very, very thin, as thin as I can manage, but you may feel differently. A bit of mustard, maybe some mayo, a slice of cheddar, possibly lettuce and tomato, some sturdy white country bread and boy, have you got yourself a sandwich.
The classic, perfect baked ham — shiny with a tangy sweet glaze, crosshatched, ideal for Christmas, Easter, and any large gatherings that call for a ham.
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What to Serve with Baked Ham:
- Roasted Chickpea, Apple and Feta Salad
- Perfect Mashed Potatoes
- Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
Other Holiday Main Dish Recipes:
- Easy Roasted Thanksgiving Turkey
- Jewish Brisket
- Lemon-Garlic Semi-Boneless Leg of Lamb
- Fall-Apart Roasted Pork Shoulder
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Classic Baked Ham
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 10-pound smoked or cured bone-in ham , approximately
- 1 cup light or dark brown sugar
- ½ cup Dijon mustard
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 5 teaspoons whole cloves (optional)
Instructions
- Position a rack in the lower third of the oven making sure there is room for the ham to fit. Preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Cut off the ham’s tough outer skin and any excess fat and toss. Score the ham, which means to make crosshatch cuts all over the surface (see photos), about ½ inch deep and 1/2 to 1-inch apart. Place the ham in a roasting pan.
- Bake the ham for 1 ½ hours.
- Stir the sugar, mustard and maple syrup together in a bowl. Remove the ham from the oven, and raise the temperature to 375°F. Use a brush to coat the ham with the brown sugar glaze, using about half of the glaze. Carefully (the ham is hot! Rubber cloves are helpful here) insert a clove into the center of each cross hatched diamond, if desired.
- Return the ham to the oven and bake for another 60 to 90 minutes, brushing on some additional glaze every 30 minutes or so, if you have the time and are in the kitchen. The ham should have an internal temperature of 165°F; check with a meat thermometer.
- Transfer the ham to a cutting board and let sit for at least 20 minutes. You are welcome to let the ham cool for longer, or even come to room temperature as well.
- Slice the ham, thinly or thickly, and serve warm or at room temp.
This is a delicious recipe and made my store-bought ham extra special. The dijon mustard adds just the right amount of tang to the glaze. My ham was only about five pounds so I cut the ingredient quantities in half, worked great. I’ll be making baked ham this way again!
This is such a delicious baked ham recipe, and I love the simple list of ingredients. This allows the ham flavour to shine, whilst adding a delicate sweetness. Superb and ideal for the Easter table.
We loved this ham recipe. The glaze was absolute perfection!
This baked ham was a nice, simple recipe – and the glaze was amazing!
This looks perfectly done with simple and few ingredients . Wonderful share!