Honey Ham
A blast from the past, Honey Ham makes a delightful holiday centerpiece for Easter, Christmas or any other holiday. This sticky, salty-sweet baked ham recipe is a perfect for celebrations, looks beautiful and tastes great.
Looking for more holiday dishes to serve? Check out Baked Ham with Bourbon Orange Glaze, Mediterranean Herb Crusted Beef Tenderloin and Whole Roasted Chicken!
Ham is a holiday food in my family. We’ll have it once or twice a year tops, usually for Easter and Christmas. (And then we’ll use the leftovers to make fried ham and all sorts of other delectable dishes once the holiday has passed.)
So today, I’m bringing y’all a family favorite meal with a homemade honey mustard glaze.
Why I love this recipe:
Homemade Honey Baked Ham isn’t challenging to make.
Sure, it takes some time, but it’s absolutely delicious! (You can’t make it in a slow cooker, so if you are in the market for a ham like that, check out this Crock Pot Spiral Ham.)
It’s also cheaper than purchasing a honey roasted ham from a specialty store.
You also don’t have to place your order for a Homemade Honey Ham weeks in advance OR stand in a crazy long line to pick it up!
And it goes without saying that you know what’s going into your holiday centerpiece, which is pretty great, too, if you’re into that kind of thing.
Other Easter and holiday recipes we adore: Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potato Casserole / Roasted Green Beans / Easter Fruit Buns / Bourbon Butter Sweet Potatoes / Carrot Cake Dip with Cinnamon-Sugar Wontons / Avocado Deviled Eggs
Looking for Easter recipe inspiration? Head on over to my Easter Recipe Index.
What do I need to make Honey Baked Ham?
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- Roasting pan or a baking sheet
- Aluminum foil—the thicker, heavy duty kind, if you can find it
- Saucepan
- Silicone basting and pastry brush
- Meat thermometer
- Porcelain Rectangular Platter in White for serving
Let’s talk ingredients!
In addition to the tools above, you’re going to need some ingredients to make this recipe, too! Chances are, you might already have some of them in your fridge or pantry. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full measurements and instructions.
Here’s what you need to make this Easter ham recipe:
- Bone-in smoked ham
- Honey
- Whole grain mustard
- Dark brown sugar—I like dark brown for the more molasses depth of flavor, but light brown sugar works if that’s all that you’ve got
- Unsalted butter
A note on the size of this recipe: I rewrote it a few years ago to include an 8.5 lb. smoked ham because I couldn’t find anything smaller. You can (and should!) adjust the measurements of the honey ham glaze based of the size of your ham if it’s not the same size as the one I’ve listed here.
How to make Baked Ham with a Mustard Honey Glaze
Bake the Ham
Preheat the oven, and line a large sheet pan or roasting pan with THREE layers of aluminum foil. This will wrap around the ham.
Place the ham face down on the prepared sheet pan or roasting pan. Cover with the foil, and bake for 2 hours.
(Please note that if your ham is a different size than mine, your baking time will change.)
Make the Glaze
In a saucepan, combine the mustard, sugar and butter.
Heat over medium-low heat until combined, then stir in the honey.
Turn off the heat, and let sit for 10 minutes. It will thicken up, so don’t fret. This is a good thing.
Glaze the Ham
When the ham finishes its first bake, take it out of the oven and unwrap, and then turn up the heat in the oven.
Brush the glaze over the ham, and place in the oven to bake for an additional hour.
Every 15 minutes, open the oven and liberally coat the ham in glaze as it bakes.
After the ham has been glazed FOUR times, remove the ham from the oven. Check to confirm the internal temperature is 120°F, then cover to cool.
Let cool for 15 minutes, then carve and serve warm!
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re purchasing bone-in ham, like this recipe suggests, plan for ½ to ¾ lb. per person. You’re estimating for the bone’s weight, and not just how much everyone will eat. For me, I estimate ¾ lb. per person when I serve a bone-in ham because I’d rather have too much than not enough.
If you’re making a boneless ham, plan for ¼ and ½ lb. of meat per person.
Obviously, your group will determine how big the ham needs to be, but you can use these parameters as a guideline.
When in doubt, I always purchase a larger ham because it stores well, can be used in leftovers like Ham Goo Sandwiches and even freezes well.
The heating instructions that were included with my spiral smoked ham said to bake the ham for 7-10 minutes per pound.
You’ve glazed it four times, as stated in the recipe, and the ham’s internal temperature reaches 120°F. Use an instant read meat thermometer* (affiliate link) to confirm this.
No. You do not need to boil this ham before it bakes. Please note, though, that this calls for a smoked ham already and that we are baking it to add the sticky honey glaze.
This homemade Honey Ham cooks at a low temperature and is wrapped in foil to keep all that juicy goodness in!
Depending on the size of your ham, the bake time will change, so you’ll have to do some math. (Remember: 7-10 minutes per pound is your bake time.)
What side dishes should I serve with this Honey Ham?
- Toasted Pine Nut Green Beans
- Smoked Salmon Avocado Cream Cheese Pastries
- Mediterranean Scalloped Potatoes
- Strawberry Mimosas
- Creamed Cornbread Casserole
- Orange Juice Fresh Fruit Salad
- Vegetarian Twice Baked Potatoes
- Honey Roasted Whole Carrots
- Sweet and Spicy Cucumber Salad
- Ramen Noodle and Clementine Salad
Scroll on down to learn how you can make your own Easter, Christmas or any other holiday ham…
Honey Ham
Ingredients
- 8.5 lb. bone-in smoked ham
- 1 cup honey
- ¼ cup whole grain mustard
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Line a roasting pan or a large rimmed sheet pan with three layers of aluminum foil. This will be used to wrap the ham and hopefully prevent leaks.
- Place the ham face down on the prepared pan. Cover completely with the foil. You may do this loosely, but you need to ensure the bottom and sides are sealed well so it does not leak because the sauce is very sticky.
- Bake the wrapped ham for 120 minutes (or 2 hours).
- Make the glaze in a saucepan. Combine the mustard, sugar and butter. Heat over medium-low heat until combined, then stir in the honey. Turn off the heat, and let sit for 10 minutes.
- When the ham has finished its first bake, take it out of the oven and unwrap the top half of it.
- Turn up the heat of the oven to 425°F.
- Brush the glaze over the uncovered ham, and place in the oven to bake for an additional hour (to 1.25 hours). Every 15 minutes, open the oven and liberally coat the ham in glaze as it bakes.
- After you’ve glazed the ham 4 times and baked a final time, remove the ham from the oven.
- Let cool for 15 minutes, then carve and serve warm!
Notes
Nutrition
What traditional recipes does your family make for Easter?
The photos and recipe for this Easter Ham were originally published on April 3, 2015. The photographs, along with the text of this blog post, were updated on March 9, 2018.
About the Author:
Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her…
This dish looks brilliant, thanks for sharing it with us, Erin! 🙂
Thanks so much, Lily! This ham is pretty darn good!
Make me drool why don’t you!
I’m sorry / You’re welcome…
How long would you cook an eight pound ham
Hey Jim! That’s a good question, and one that I’m not 100% sure of the answer to. The ham is already smoked (and cooked through), so really, the reason we’re heating it is for the glaze and for the ham to be warm. So I’d say at least the same amount of time as the four pounder (listed above) and probably a bit more since it’s heavier. Sorry I can’t give you an exact estimate! I’d look and see if the ham has any instructions on it for cooking. That might give you a better idea!
When u put the ham back in for the second time do u cover it with the aluminum foil again?
Hey Natasha! Apologies on the slow response this weekend. Don’t cover it when it goes back into the oven for the second time so it’s easier to baste. I hope that helps!
Hi, Erin, would an oven bag i.e., Reynolds work as well?
Preparing to make this for Easter. Found the recipe via YUMMLY which lists a 1lb ham. Please edit the ingredients accordingly. Thanks.
Hi Lisa. So happy you’re preparing to make this for Easter!
I have no idea why Yummly lists a 1 lb. ham as an ingredient, as I have never used a ham that small for this recipe. That said, if you’ve got a 1 lb. ham, you can certainly still make this recipe! Per my notes above, “The ham should bake 15 minutes per pound in the original bake. The glaze step will take the same amount of time.” Then I’d make 1/4 or 1/8 of the glaze instead of the whole batch for a 1 lb. ham.
I hope that helps and that you and yours have a very happy Easter.
This dish looks brilliant, thanks for sharing it with us, Erin! 🙂
I love this recipe! Simple and delicious. Worth the effort of basting I promise you – we’ve used this recipe for many years, anytime we need a fancy ham. Thank you so much Erin!
J, your comment has brightened my afternoon! I am tickled pink that you love this recipe and have been making it for years and whenever you need a fancy ham! I hope yours turns out beautifully this year and appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. Thank YOU!