Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham
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This Baked Ham is glazed with a bourbon, orange juice and brown sugar glaze and studded with cloves. It’s delicious and incredibly flavorful, the perfect sweet and savory holiday dinner!
Before You Start
- Let the Ham Come to Room Temperature: Take the ham out of the fridge at least 2 hours before baking. This ensures it heats evenly in the oven.
- Score the Fat Carefully: Use a sharp knife and make shallow cuts in a diamond pattern. This helps the glaze soak in and flavors the ham all the way through.
- Prep the Cloves: Have your cloves ready to go. You can place them in the center of each diamond or at the intersections of the score marks—whatever you prefer!
- Don’t Skip the Glaze Layers: Brush the glaze on in layers during baking to build up a rich, caramelized crust. Save a little glaze for the final basting and broiling for extra flavor and shine.
- Use a Meat Thermometer: To avoid overcooking, check the internal temperature. The ham is ready when it hits 145°F.
- Protect Your Oven: Line your roasting pan with foil to catch drips and save yourself from scrubbing sticky glaze later.
- Adding a little water to the roasting pan will help retain moisture in the meat.
- If you’re using a spiral cut ham, wrap the roasting pan tightly with aluminum foil before placing in the oven, to avoid the ham from drying out while cooking.
- If during cooking, the ham looks like it browns too much, cover it with foil to avoid it getting looking burnt.
How Long Does It Take To Bake A Ham?
A precooked ham should be cooked in the oven at 350°F(177°C) for 15-20 minutes per pound, or until the internal temperature reaches 145°F(63°C). If you’re reheating a ham that was repackaged or leftover, it needs to be cooked to 165°F.
Different Types Of Ham
Spiral cut hams with bone in are pre-cooked and can be found in almost every major grocery store or at your local butcher.
Butt-end hams tend to fit into your slow cooker more. I once bought a spiral-cut leg of pork that did not fit in my crockpot and my husband had to cut most of the bone out so we can fit it. So consider your slow cooker size when purchasing a ham.
There are 3 main types of ham that you’ll find:
Fresh Ham – This is uncured leg of pork and it is uncooked pork roast which must be cooked before serving. Note that it must have “fresh” as part of its name.
Cured Ham – This is a leg of pork which can be cured in one of two ways; brined or cured with a dry rub and hung to dry. These hams can be ready to eat or may require cooking. If they require cooking, they must be labeled with cooking instructions.
Cured and Smoked Ham – These hams are the same as cured hams except they have an extra step where they’re smoked.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Ham – Use a fully cooked ham or gammon, either bone-in or boneless. I used a gammon ham which is still from the hind leg of pork. Gammon is cured ham, either by dry-salting or brining.
- Cloves – Lots of whole cloves are used, it takes approximately 40, give or take a few, and will flavor the meat throughout.
- Sugar – Packed brown sugar really adds the sweetness and caramelization to this sweet glaze.
- Bourbon – This really elevates the flavor in the ham glaze. It’s a little sweet and smoky. Any kind of whiskey will work.
- Vinegar – Apple cider vinegar will balance out the sweetness in the bourbon glaze.
- Mustard – I like to use a good Dijon mustard in this glaze. You can also use dry mustard. Use 1 teaspoon dry mustard for 1 tablespoon prepared mustard, and add the same amount of vinegar, to make up for the missing liquid
- Orange – Zest the entire orange and then squeeze out the juice from the rest of the orange.
- Thyme – I used fresh thyme but if it’s not available, use dried instead.
- Worcestershire sauce – Worcestershire Sauce has a powerful umami flavor. It’s sour from tamarind and vinegar, sweet from molasses and sugar, and spicy. A must in this glaze.
- Garlic – A little bit of garlic powder for lots of extra great flavor.
Alright, let’s tackle this Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham together—trust me, it’s easier than it sounds, and the payoff is huge. First things first, let that ham chill out on the counter for at least two hours before you start. A cold ham straight from the fridge won’t heat evenly, and we don’t want warm edges and a cold center. Let it come to room temp while you gather everything else. Also, make sure to remove it from its packaging and pat it dry with paper towels.
Now, when you’re scoring the fat, don’t go all Edward Scissorhands on it. You want a sharp knife and light, confident cuts—about ¼ to ½ inch deep or as deep as the fat layer is. Go slow and make that diamond pattern. It’s not just for looks (though it’s gorgeous!); those little cuts will soak up the glaze and make the flavor go all the way through. And when you’re studding it with cloves, you can either place them in the center of each diamond or at the intersection points.
For the glaze, we’re going for low and slow on the stove. Combine everything—brown sugar, bourbon, orange zest and juice, Dijon, and the rest—and let it simmer until the sugar melts. Don’t rush it! Stir often and let it get glossy and smooth.
Using a pastry brush, brush the glaze generously over the ham and in between the scored lines, but only use about a third of it. Save the rest for basting during baking.
When it’s time to bake, put the ham fat-side up in a foil-lined roasting pan (trust me, you’ll thank me when cleanup is a breeze). Every 20 minutes, baste it with more glaze—it’s all about building up those layers of sticky, caramelized goodness. Keep an eye on the temperature. You’re aiming for 145°F in the thickest part of the ham, so don’t skip the meat thermometer. Overcooked ham is no one’s holiday dream. Rule of thumb is about 20 minutes per pound.
Once it’s done baking, here’s the real showstopper moment: hit it with the broiler for a couple of minutes. That’s how you get those perfectly browned, slightly crispy edges that make everyone fight for the end pieces. But don’t walk away—broilers work fast, and you don’t want all that hard work to burn.
Finally, let the ham rest for about 15 minutes before slicing. It gives the juices a chance to redistribute, so every bite is tender and juicy. Then slice it up, bask in the compliments, and enjoy the moment when someone asks, “What’s your secret?” (Feel free to say bourbon and love!).
How To Serve
Many sides go extremely well with ham. Some ideas include mashed potatoes. scalloped potatoes, candied yams, green beans, roasted asparagus, sweet potatoes, garlic and herb carrots, or dinner rolls are a few. Here are some more ideas:
Baked Mac And Cheese
Corn Casserole
World’s Best Cranberry Sauce
Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes
Leftovers
Cooked ham will last for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator.
To further extend the shelf life of cooked ham, freeze it for up to 4 months; freeze in covered airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags, or wrap tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil or freezer wrap.
How To Reheat Ham
The best way to reheat ham is to place it in a roasting pan and bake it at 350°F for 20 minutes or until heated through. If already cut into individual slices, you can also reheat it in the microwave oven.
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Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham
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Ingredients
- 6 pound ham (fully cooked)
- 40 cloves (give or take a few)
- 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
- ¼ cup bourbon (or other whiskey)
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 medium orange (zested and juiced)
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Prepare ham: Remove ham from packaging and pat it dry with paper towels and bring to room temperature at least 2 hours before baking.
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a roasting pan with foil. Arrange a rack in the lower third of the oven and remove the upper racks.
- Place and score ham: Using a sharp knife, score a diamond pattern in the fat , about ¼-½ inch deep or as deep as the fat is. Place the ham in the prepared roasting pan, fat side up.
- Place cloves in ham: Place the cloves in the center of the diamonds all around the ham. You can also place the cloves in the intersection points of the score, up to you.
- Make the glaze: In a small saucepan, add the brown sugar, bourbon, apple cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, orange zest and juice, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and garlic powder. Bring to a low simmer over low heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar has fully dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Glaze the ham: Using a pastry brush, brush the glaze generously over the ham and in between the scored lines, but only use about a third of it.
- Bake and glaze ham: Transfer the roasting pan in the oven. Bake for 2 hours or about 20 minutes per pound, brushing the ham with remaining glaze every 20 minutes. The ham is ready when the internal temperature of the ham registers at 145°F.
- Finish glazing: Take the ham out of the oven and baste it again with remaining glaze. Place the ham under the broiler for a few minutes to get some nice browning on top, if not browned enough.
- Finish and serve: Take the ham out of the oven again and baste it with remaining juices in the roasting pan. Cover it with aluminum foil and let the ham rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Adding a little water to the roasting pan will help retain moisture in the meat.
- If you’re using a spiral cut ham, wrap the roasting pan tightly with aluminum foil before placing in the oven, to avoid the ham from drying out while cooking.
- If during cooking, the ham looks like it browns too much, cover it with foil to avoid it getting looking burnt.
- A meat thermometer works the best to determine internal ham temperature.
- Cooked ham will last for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
