Active Time:

30 mins

Total Time:

2 hrs 30 mins

Servings:

15

At the center of many holiday menus, whether it's Easter or Christmas, sits a glazed spiral ham. A large ham, glistening with a sticky-sweet glaze, can feed a big family—and feed them again as leftovers.

If your glazed ham recipe is feeling a little tired this year, opt for our new favorite options. Here, we show how to cook a spiral cut ham and have it turn out moist and tender. Plus, we share three glazes for ham you've likely never had before. Pick the one that fits your menu, then make room for a ham in your fridge. Your table won't be complete without this centerpiece dish.

Learn how to cook a spiral ham, and this will be on your menu again and again for holidays and celebrations of all sorts.

1 Spiral Ham, 3 Glazes

Pre-sliced spiral-cut ham is easy to carve, easy to serve, and even easy to cook. You really only have one decision to make when it comes to cooking a spiral ham: Which ham glaze will you choose?

The three options we have here—Fig-and-Thyme Glaze, Sage-and-Cider Glaze, and Ginger-Clove Glaze—are richly flavorful and vibrant with spices and herbs you don't always see in the cloyingly sweet glaze packets that come with most hams. (Yeah, just go ahead and toss that.)

Ingredients for a Spiral-Cut Ham

You have just one ingredient for this spiral cut ham recipe: the ham. Every other ingredient is for the glaze or garnish, so your final grocery list will depend on the glaze you pick.

A 7- to 10-pound bone-in spiral cut ham will feed about 15 people. If you have other main dishes, like a roasted turkey or a holiday casserole, you should get up to double that amount—which is great news if you love leftovers.

How To Glaze a Spiral Ham

Many glazed ham recipes will call for you to brush half the glaze on the ham before you put it in the oven. Then, you'll add the remainder a few minutes before you pull the ham from the oven.

Not this one. Instead, we're going to ask you to baste the ham with pan drippings while it cooks to keep it moist and tender. Then, about 15 minutes before the ham comes out of the oven, you'll brush on half the glaze, followed by the second half about 15 minutes later, right before the ham is finished cooking.

The last-minute glaze additions will make the outer portions of the meat crispy and flavor-rich without risking any sugars in the glaze burning and charring.

How Long To Cook a Spiral Ham

A pre-cooked ham has to be cooked until it reaches an internal temperature of 140°F.

For a pre-cooked, bone-in half ham like the one we call for in this recipe, you'll want to cook about 22 to 25 minutes per pound. For the ham size in this recipe, that means about 2 hours to 2 1/2 hours. Some will need to cook up to 3 hours to reach the proper temperature.

Keep in mind opening the oven door for the glazing steps lowers the temperature dramatically each time, and that extends the total cook time.

How To Store Leftover Spiral Ham

If your holiday crew can't finish off the spiral-cut ham in one pass, never fear. You won't soon run out of ideas for using up leftover ham. In fact, many people cook an extra-large ham at the holidays specifically because they want leftover ham for days.

Put leftover ham in the fridge within 2 hours of it coming out of the oven. If wrapped in plastic wrap or stored in an air-tight container or bag the ham will last 3 to 5 days after you first cooked it.

You can also freeze leftover ham in a freezer-safe bag up to 1 to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.

What To Serve With Spiral Ham

It's not just ham that you'll need on the plate for the holiday meal. Add these ham sides to your menu, too.

Glazed spiral-cut ham on white platter — Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Missie Neville Crawford

Ingredients

Ham:

1 (7- to 10-lb.) fully cooked bone-in spiral-cut half ham
Desired glaze (recipes below)
Garnishes: whole and halved fresh figs and fresh thyme sprigs, halved small apples and fresh sage sprigs, or orange wedges and fresh bay leaves (optional)

Fig-and-Thyme Glaze:

1 cup fig preserves
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup honey
1 Tbsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. black pepper

Sage-and-Cider Glaze:

3/4 cup cane syrup
1/2 cup spiced apple cider
1 Tbsp. cracked pepper
1 Tbsp. ground sage
3 fresh sage leaves

Ginger-Clove Glaze:

3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/3 cup nonalcoholic ginger beer
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
2 tsp. whole cloves
2 fresh bay leaves

Directions

Prepare oven and ham:

Preheat oven to 350°F with oven rack in lower third position. Let ham stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Place ham on rack:

Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil, and place a rack into prepared pan; pour 3 cups water into bottom of pan. Place ham on rack, cut side down.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Bake and baste ham:

Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, 30 minutes, basting with pan drippings every 30 minutes. Add more water to roasting pan as needed if it evaporates.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Make ham glaze:

While ham bakes, prepare desired glaze (recipes follow).

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Add glaze to ham:

Brush ham all over with half of desired glaze, and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Brush ham all over with remaining glaze, and bake until a thermometer inserted into thickest portion of ham registers 140°F, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven, and let stand 15 minutes.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster
Garnish and serve:

Transfer to a serving platter. If desired, garnish based on flavors in glaze. Serve warm.

Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster

Fig-and-Thyme Glaze

Place fig preserves, apple cider vinegar, honey, dried thyme, and black pepper in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer, whisking occasionally, over medium-high, and simmer until well combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until thickened and reduced by half, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Sage-and-Cider Glaze

Place cane syrup, spiced apple cider, cracked pepper, ground sage, and sage leaves in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer, whisking occasionally, over medium-high, and simmer until well combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until thickened and reduced by half, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Ginger-Clove Glaze

Place maple syrup, ginger beer, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, ginger, cloves, and bay leaves in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer, whisking occasionally, over medium-high, and simmer until well combined, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until thickened and reduced by half, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat.