Up your ham game with our Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham recipe. It's like regular ham, but with a PhD in flavor and ease.
Best Maple Bourbon Ham Glaze Recipe
Every time I make Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham, I get made at myself. Why do I wait for special occasions to make this spiral cut ham recipe?
Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas dinner are the time of year when I typically bust out the booze for this recipe. But seriously, why? This main course is one of my family's favorite.
Well, I'm not waiting for a holiday to eat this again. I'm going to be making a delicious spiral ham on a Thursday. I encourage you, next time you're at the grocery store, buy a nice meaty, bone-in, spiral-cut ham.
And, if bourbon isn't your thing, check out my 3-Ingredient Ham Glaze, which is also delicious.
Both of these delicious ham recipes pair well with Twice Baked Mashed Potatoes and my favorite Honey Sriracha Brussels Sprouts or one of our other Side Dishes.
Finish the meal with a sweet treat from our desserts page. Take your pick. I love them all.
Ingredients for Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham Recipe
Sweet, complex flavor with simple ingredients. An all-around delicious glaze for your ham.
- Spiral-Cut Ham - Slices make room for the glaze to sneak down into each slice and is easy to serve. A half ham serves my family with lots for the delicious leftovers.
- Brown Sugar - Adds sweetness and deep flavor to this delicious maple bourbon glaze.
- Dijon Mustard - Brings flavor and acidity. I prefer the muted flavors of dijon mustard over yellow mustard for this recipe.
- Real Maple Syrup - Natural maple syrup not pancake syrup brings sweetness to the salty party.
- Bourbon - For more than your favorite cocktails. Cheap or fancy bourbon works just fine.
- Allspice - My daddy's secret to a fantastic ham. Don't tell everyone.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham Recipe
A few steps to creating a flavor-packed ham that stays juicy. Whether you cook the ham in the roaster like me or in the oven, just make sure you cook it on low heat. With a total cook time of 2 hours and very little prep time, you can create your meal's perfect centerpiece with very little effort.
For the glaze: Combine bourbon, honey, brown sugar, dijon mustard, and allspice in a small bowl.
Use a pastry brush to paint the glaze on all sides of the ham. Seal the glazed ham tightly in aluminum foil and bake in a roaster oven at 250 degrees for about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Uncover the ham and brush the remaining glaze on the ham on top of the ham and between slices.
Place ham under the broiler in the oven. Broil on high, uncovered, for 2-4 minutes to caramelize the glaze. Watch carefully.
Ensure internal temperature reaches 145 ℉.
Slice ham off the bone and serve.
Hint: When finishing the ham under the boiler, I keep it in the roasting pan for ease and clean up.
Substitutions & Variations
Ham - If you can't find a spiral sliced ham or prefer an unsliced ham--use a sharp knife to score a shallow cross-hatch pattern into the skin all around the surface. This allows the glaze to cook into the ham.
Seasoning - Allspice is my favorite, as it has a complex flavor that I think is superior in this instance, but if you prefer ground cloves, they work well.
Storing Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham
Ham can be stored in a lidded container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
I like to cut all the slices off the bone and store what we are going to eat over the next few days in a covered bowl or zip top baggie.
Then I freeze the rest to be used later in soups, beans, and sandwiches. This way I don't get sick of my ham before it's gone!
Don't throw away that ham bone! Use it to flavor Instant Pot Ham and Beans!
Top tip
Hams are already fully cooked. So your only goal is to heat it up fully and enhance the flavor. Two hours is typically plenty of time to "cook" a ham.
FAQ
You can make this simple Ham Glaze 3 days or so in advance, though it mixes up very quickly.
Sure! If it fits, you can heat it over low until heated through. Be careful not to overcook it. I would still broil it for that final caramelization of the glaze.
Sure! Cooking the ham in advance can be helpful for your schedule. Wait to broil until serving time. Then reheat in the roaster oven or oven and broil the ham to get the final caramelization on it.
Yes, you can, but I love the bone for flavoring a pot of beans. That bone is worth as much as the ham to me. I would caution you against buying one of these perfectly shaped press hams for this recipe. I think you might be disappointed.
I plan on ⅓ to ½ pound of ham per person. So a 7-pound ham will feed approximately 14 people. Adjust for big eaters, children, and leftovers.
Related
I love a good ol' ham and cheese sandwiches, but for other great ways to use up leftover ham, try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with [this recipe]:
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Bourbon Maple Glazed Ham
Ingredients
- 7-9 pound Spiral Sliced Ham
- ½ cup Brown Sugar
- ¼ cup Dijon Mustard
- ¼ cup Maple Syrup
- ¼ cup Bourbon
- ½ teaspoon Allspice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven or roaster oven to 250 degrees.
- Place 2 pieces of aluminum foil in a "T" formation and place ham in the center, cut side down.
- Mix the glaze ingredients in a small bowl.
- Score the outside of the ham in a diamond pattern, just cutting through the skin.
- Use a pastry brush to paint the glaze on all sides of the ham. Seal the glazed ham tightly in aluminum foil and bake in a roaster oven at 250 degrees for about 1 hour and 45 minutes.
- Uncover the ham and brush the remaining glaze on the ham. Broil on high, uncovered, for 2-4 minutes to caramelize the glaze. Watch carefully. Ensure internal temperature reaches 145 ℉.
- Slice ham off the bone and serve.
Nutrition
Food safety
We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 145 °F
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
Chuckie
One of the best ham recipes I've ever tasted! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as our family does!
Terry T
Ham on thanksgiving is the best