Glazed Spiral-Sliced Ham

From Season 9: Holiday Ham and Biscuits

Why this recipe works: Nothing could be easier than heating up a cured ham, right? Well, we’ve made enough of them to know that as easy as it may be, the results are often leathery meat with an overly sweet glaze. We wanted to revisit the way to cook this roast to get moist meat accompanied by a glaze that didn’t overwhelm it.


We have found that bone-in hams, labeled “with natural juices,” have the best flavor, and spiral-sliced ones make carving a cinch. We knew that the longer the ham spent in the oven, the greater the chances we’d end up with dried-out meat, so we focused on reducing the cooking time. First we soaked the ham in hot water so that it wouldn’t be ice-cold when it went into the oven; this step saved a full hour. Roasting the ham in an oven bag further reduced the cooking time, and using the bag had the added advantage of holding in moisture. For the glaze, we threw out the packet that came with our ham and made a fruit-based glaze with just a touch of sweetness to complement the moist, tender meat. This foolproof method will make the perfect holiday ham every time.

Serves 12 to 14, with leftovers

You can bypass the 90-minute soaking time, but the heating time will increase to 18 to 20 minutes per pound for a cold ham. If there is a tear or hole in the ham's inner covering, wrap it in several layers of plastic wrap before soaking it in hot water. Instead of using the plastic oven bag, the ham may be placed cut-side down in the roasting pan and covered tightly with foil, but you will need to add 3 to 4 minutes per pound to the heating time. If using an oven bag, be sure to cut slits in the bag so it does not burst. We've included two optional glazes.

Ingredients

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