This sweet and savory Glazed Spiral Ham will be the star of your holiday table. Ditch the packet and make your own delicious glaze in less than five minutes using simple ingredients. Impress your guests with the most delicious, moist and tender ham!
Ham is the classic main course for Easter and Christmas… it’s a holiday MUST-MAKE! Serve it with mashed potatoes, green beans, maple glazed carrots and pineapple casserole for the ultimate holiday feast.
The great thing about cooking a spiral ham in the oven is that you’re not really “cooking” it; it’s already cooked so you’re basically just reheating it. But if you over-heat the ham, it can dry out. So I’m going to share a few tips to keep that from happening.
How to Prevent a Ham from Drying Out
I’ve found that by placing your ham on a rack and adding a little water in the bottom of the pan helps to infuse moisture into the ham while it is baking. You’ll bake it covered with aluminum foil up until the last 15 minutes (when you brush on the glaze).
No roasting pan or rack? No problem! I used a large baking dish for this ham and used a toaster oven rack in the bottom that fit perfectly. Here is an article on how to make a DIY roasting rack with items that you probably already have in your kitchen.
Bake low and slow. The time it takes for your ham to heat depends upon the size of your ham. You’ll want the ham to be 140 degrees F using an instant read thermometer in the thickest part (without touching the bone).
Glaze Ingredients for Spiral Ham
- Orange juice – pineapple juice can also be used.
- Brown sugar – I like to use dark brown sugar but light brown can also be used.
- Dijon mustard
- Ground cloves
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground nutmeg
- Cornstarch
How Much Ham Per Person?
Plan on ½ pound per person when baking a bone-in ham. The ham in my photos is seven pounds, so it would feed 14 people.
If you have any leftover ham, use it in instant pot ham and white bean soup or slow cooker ham bone soup… so comforting and delicious.
Enjoy!
Glazed Spiral Ham
Ingredients
- 1 (7 to 8 pound) bone-in fully cooked smoked spiral ham
- ¾ cup water
- ¾ cup orange juice or pineapple juice
- ¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
Instructions
- Remove ham from refrigerator 1 hour before baking to allow to come to room temperature.
- Remove top rack from oven and place bottom rack on the lower ⅓ of oven.
- Preheat your oven to 300 degrees F.
- Line a roasting pan or large baking dish with aluminum foil for easy cleanup, if desired. Place rack over foil.
- Remove ham from packaging (pour any juices from the packaging in the bottom of the roasting pan). If there is a plastic disk that covers the bone, remove and discard. Discard the glaze packet.
- Place ham (cut side down) on the rack. Pour water in the bottom of the pan.
- Cover securely with heavy duty aluminum foil and bake for 9 to 12 minutes per pound, or until an instant read thermometer reads 140 degrees F measured in the thickest part of the ham (without touching the bone).
- While the ham is baking, prepare the glaze by whisking together juice, brown sugar, mustard, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat as necessary to maintain a simmer (medium low to low). Simmer for approximately 1 to 2 minutes (stirring often), or until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside (glaze will continue to thicken as it cools).
- During the last 15 minutes of baking time, remove ham from oven and carefully remove aluminum foil. Increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
- Brush ham with ½ of the glaze. Return to oven (uncovered) and bake the last 15 minutes, watching closely to prevent burning.
- Brush with the remaining ½ of the glaze when removed from oven.
Notes
- Cook time is based on a 7 pound ham.
Nutrition
If provided, nutritional info is a courtesy, is not guaranteed and should only be considered as a guideline.
Originally published November 2015. Updated with new photos, new text and recipe revised April 2022.
Judy says
This glazed spiral ham is total perfection! Moist, tender and just delicious.
John says
This smells as good baking as it tastes!!! Pineapple juice is also a great remedy for cough.