Roast Ham with Spiced Honey Glaze

This delicious glazed baked ham is great for a crowd. The simple spice rub and honey glaze is all it takes to make a perfect roast ham recipe for holidays or a family dinner.

Classic roast ham

I'm here to say I love a big family dinner with a roast ham as the main dish. It's salty and juicy, goes with just about any side dish and makes for some of my favorite leftovers.

Also try Pomegranate and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

Roast ham is super economical and a 7 to 10 lb cooked ham can feed 12 to 18, with plenty of those tasty leftovers.

A honey-glazed ham is usually the most familiar and maybe what you had as a kid. The honey is sweet to the ham's salty flavor. Pure bliss.

I've added some spice, just pepper, mustard powder and some cinnamon and clove at the end, to give depth to the classic oven roasted ham.

My Brown Sugar Glazed Ham with Pomegranates is so delicious and has a little fruity tang. If you love brown sugar glazed ham you'll love that one.

Buying tips

Depending on your location and what your store stocks, you may find a variety of hams.

Look for ham to go on sale around the holidays. You can get an extra ham and keep it in the freezer as well. Here are some tips for buying ham:

• Fully cooked, partially cooked or uncooked/fresh.

This is not a fresh ham recipe. I like to use cooked ham. I find it easier and they are much more accessible.

Whether you're using a fresh ham recipe or this one, you'll get a great result with this spice rub and honey glaze.

The honey glaze and rub will work on any ham, just follow the package or butcher's directions if it is different than the recipe below.

• Bone-In, boneless, shank end or spiral cut.

Use a bone-in, shank end cooked ham for a beautiful and classic presentation.

A spiral-cut, bone in ham is also a great option. Some think an un-cut shank end ham stays more moist, but I find both the spiral cut and whole do well. You just forgo the criss cross scoring look on the outside edge if you go with a sliced ham.

Cooking tips

• How to cook a ham roast with a honey glaze.

With this ham roast recipe I use a fully cooked ham, so you are just heating the ham. You'll want to cook the ham to an internal temperature of 115ºF to 120ºF on an instant read thermometer.

Reheating a cooked ham will take about 1 to 1 1/2 hours in a 325ºF oven. It will need less time if you bring it to room temperature before cooking. Otherwise give it the full 1 1/2 hours.

I also add an extra 30 minutes to cook it uncovered so I get the glaze caramelized. So my total time for a 7 to 9 pound ham is about 2 hours in the oven.

I cook the ham covered with foil the first hour to hour and a half. Then uncover, glaze and cook another 30 minutes.

You will want to add broth or water to the bottom of the pan so any juices don't scorch as the ham cooks. I add at least 1 cup of water, and more can be added as the pan dries up.

Any leftover juices can be served with the ham, or even made into a gravy if you'd like.

Storing and Freezing

Like I mentioned, you can freeze ham if you buy extra on sale at the store. Simply thaw it in the fridge for several days before using.

I like to bring my ham almost to room temperature before roasting it so it only takes an hour or hour and a half to roast and heat through.

You can store leftover cooked and reheated ham in the fridge for up to a week.

Leftover roasted ham can be frozen for up to 4 months. I suggest slicing the ham before freezing it so it is easy to thaw and use.

Using leftovers

Love oven roasted ham? Here are some great ways to use the leftovers.

• Mini Ham Turnovers with Gruyere are great with soup
• Biscuit Breakfast Sandwich with Ham and Chutney
• Swap ham for turkey in my Best Grilled Cheese Sandwich recipe
• Swap ham for sausage in my Sausage and Greens Soup

What to serve alongside

Oh there are so many delicious things to serve on the side of honey glazed baked ham. Depending on the time of year, you can choose seasonal favorites from my list of side dishes.

• The fluffiest Mashed Potatoes
• Mashed Potatoes with Mix Ins
• Garlic and Herb Mashed Potatoes
• Artichokes with Lemon Mayo
• Roasted Vegetable Trio with Orange Dressing
• Baby Broccoli with Hazelnut Butter
• More side dish recipes from Tara Teaspoon

Classic Honey Glazed Ham Recipe

Tara Teaspoon

This delicious glazed baked ham is great for a crowd. The simple spice rub and honey glaze is all it takes to make this a perfect roast ham recipe for the holidays or family dinner.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 30 mins

Total Time 2 hrs 30 mins

Course buffet, Dinner

Cuisine American

Servings 12 to 16 people

Calories 501 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 8 lb bone-in, shank-end cooked ham
• 1 tbsp ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp dry mustard powder
• ½ cup honey
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground cloves
• Herbs and fruit for garnish If desired

Instructions

 

• Heat oven to 325ºF. Score fat rind on ham at 1-inch intervals with a knife. Place ham, scored-side up, in a roasting pan. Place 1 cup water in the bottom of the pan.
• Combine black pepper, garlic powder and mustard powder in a small bowl and then rub all over the surface of the ham. Tent ham with foil and roast for 1½ hours.
• Combine honey, cinnamon and ground cloves. Remove foil from ham and drizzle or brush honey over the ham. Continue roasting, uncovered for 30 minutes to caramelize the outside.
• Remove ham from oven and let rest 20 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board to carve or present on a platter, garnished with herbs and fresh fruit if desired.
• Serve any juices from pan, in a bowl on the side, if desired.

Notes

You can use a spiral-cut, bone-in ham for this recipe as well. Skip the step of scoring the outside and cook as directed in the recipe. 

 

Serve this ham with some great sides. Here's a list of over 60 side dishes for ham. 

 

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week. 

Make Ham and Biscuit Breakfast Sandwiches with the leftovers, or Ham and Gruyere Mini Turnovers. 

Nutrition

Calories: 501kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 57gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 221mgSodium: 3494mgPotassium: 876mgFiber: 1gSugar: 12gVitamin C: 71mgCalcium: 26mgIron: 3mg

Want to watch videos to show you how to cook?Check out our Youtube and try this recipe and more.

Find more main dish recipes for entertaining here:

• The best Roast Turkey and Gravy
• Spring Leg of Lamb Roast
• North Carolina Pulled Pork recipe
• Slow Cooker Short Ribs with Cheesy Polenta

Tools you'll need for this recipe:

Recipe by Tara Teaspoon

I’ve been in the food publishing business for over 20 years, creating recipes and food styling for magazines, books, television and advertising. Find out more about me!