Glazed ham is one of those classic holiday dishes, commonly found on dinner tables around Easter. I consider it to be one of the easiest and most forgiving main dishes you can make, mainly due to the fact that the ham is already fully cooked. All you have to do is warm it up in an oven, lather on the glaze, and wait for it to form a tasty crust. Serve it with some form of potatoes, add some green veggies, and there you go, you got yourself a good meal for a crowd.
This particular recipe for glazed ham is one that my mother has held in her back pocket for many years. It’s nothing fancy, and to be honest the recipe most likely has in source in some newspaper clipping from the early 90’s. Despite its rather non-prodigious origins, it is a great glaze, and unbelievably easy to whip up as it only has four ingredients. So if you’re ready then let’s get to making a glazed ham.
Glazed Ham Recipe
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes to an hour
Servings: depends on the size of the ham, a typical rule of thumb is that you need a ½ pound of meat per person
Ingredients
Cooked ham
1 Cup of brown sugar
1 Tbsp dry ground mustard
1 Tbsp ground cloves
1 Tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Let the ham get to room temperature, and preheat the oven: Take the ham out of the fridge and let it sit on your kitchen counter for about an hour so that it can get close to room temperature. While this step isn’t necessary it will cut the time that the ham needs in the oven significantly. 40 minutes into this step you should preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit so that the oven and the ham a ready at the same time.
- Put the ham in the oven: Place the ham on a roasting rack, and cover with aluminum foil. The foil will help ensure that the ham remains moist, and make sure that the outside doesn’t get too browned. Place the ham and roasting rack in the oven and let it bake undisturbed for about 40 minutes.
- Make the glaze: After you have put the ham in the oven it is time to make the glaze. First, get out a medium-sized bowl, and add the brown sugar, ground mustard, ground cloves, and cinnamon to it. Then take the bowl over to the kitchen counter and slowly add a little splash of water to it, about a ¼ cup. It is important that you add just a little bit of water, as you can always add more but you can’t take any out. Mix the dry ingredients with the water and check the consistency, we are looking for something like a thick syrup. If it is still too thick then add another splash of water, mix, and repeat until it is just right.
- Check the temperature of the ham, and add glaze: After the ham has been in the oven for 40 minutes, take it out and check the temperature with a meat thermometer. You will know that the ham is ready when the internal temperature reads about 130 degrees. Most likely your ham will not be there yet, but reading the temperature now can give you an idea of how much longer the ham is going to need in the oven. Add the ham back into the oven, covered with aluminum foil, and check the temperature every 10 to 15 minutes until it is the desired temperature of 130. Once the ham is heated up enough take your glaze, give it a quick mix again, and spoon half of it over the outside of the ham. Place the ham back into the oven uncovered, and let it cook for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes take the ham out again and spoon the remaining half of glaze over the ham and return to the oven uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes. You will know that the ham is ready when the glaze bubbles and becomes crystallized.
- Take the ham out, carve, and serve
Glazed Ham Recipe
Ingredients
- Cooked ham
- 1 Cup of brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp dry ground mustard
- 1 Tbsp ground cloves
- 1 Tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Let the ham get to room temperature, and preheat the oven: Take the ham out of the fridge and let it sit on your kitchen counter for about an hour so that it can get close to room temperature. While this step isn’t necessary it will cut the time that the ham needs in the oven significantly. 40 minutes into this step you should preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit so that the oven and the ham a ready at the same time.
- Put the ham in the oven: Place the ham on a roasting rack, and cover with aluminum foil. The foil will help ensure that the ham remains moist, and make sure that the outside doesn’t get too browned. Place the ham and roasting rack in the oven and let it bake undisturbed for about 40 minutes.
- Make the glaze: After you have put the ham in the oven it is time to make the glaze. First, get out a medium-sized bowl, and add the brown sugar, ground mustard, ground cloves, and cinnamon to it. Then take the bowl over to the kitchen counter and slowly add a little splash of water to it, about a ¼ cup. It is important that you add just a little bit of water, as you can always add more but you can’t take any out. Mix the dry ingredients with the water and check the consistency, we are looking for something like a thick syrup. If it is still too thick then add another splash of water, mix, and repeat until it is just right.
- Check the temperature of the ham, and add glaze: After the ham has been in the oven for 40 minutes, take it out and check the temperature with a meat thermometer. You will know that the ham is ready when the internal temperature reads about 130 degrees. Most likely your ham will not be there yet, but reading the temperature now can give you an idea of how much longer the ham is going to need in the oven. Add the ham back into the oven, covered with aluminum foil, and check the temperature every 10 to 15 minutes until it is the desired temperature of 130. Once the ham is heated up enough take your glaze, give it a quick mix again, and spoon half of it over the outside of the ham. Place the ham back into the oven uncovered, and let it cook for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes take the ham out again and spoon the remaining half of glaze over the ham and return to the oven uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes. You will know that the ham is ready when the glaze bubbles and becomes crystallized.
- Take the ham out, carve, and serve
This pairs well with our recipe for old-fashioned scalloped potatoes
Inspiration from other blogs
From Carlsbad Craving
