Glazed ham is a traditional dish for holidays. It is rich, meaty, and a classic dish to feed a large crowd. Classic ham is slow-cooked to perfection and glazed and baked until you get a beautiful and tempting golden brown color. Keep reading if you want to learn how to cook a precooked ham with glaze. It is super easy and downright delicious.
Now cooking raw ham is very time-consuming. Because of its large size, it takes hours to cook. While some people have that level of patience, some prefer shortcuts. Thankfully, you can buy semi-cooked or fully-cooked ham from different grocery stores. Because these are pre-cooked, it reduces the cooking time, and you can prepare the ham according to your liking.
Cooking pre-cooked ham is convenient and easy. All you have to do is prepare your favorite classic glaze and bake it.
Ham Glaze ideas
There are so many different ways to glaze your ham. Here are a few yummy ideas for you to try:
- Classic pineapple glaze: This classic glaze uses pineapple juice, brown sugar, ginger, and Dijon mustard. It is a perfect blend of sweet and savory and is delicious.
- Citrus glaze: Orange juice, lemon juice, brown sugar, honey, and cinnamon give the ham a tangy and delicious flavor.
- Maple glaze: The rich caramel-like flavor of maple syrup, when combined with Dijon mustard, all-spice, and cinnamon, is simply yummy. Add this sticky glaze to the ham, and I bet you won’t regret it.
- Beer glaze: Add beer, wine, or bourbon to your glaze. The rich flavor will make you want more.
- Jerk glaze: Try the Jamaican way of preparing glazed ham! With jerk seasoning, vinegar, and caster sugar, this glaze is sweet and spicy, and delicious.
- Asian glaze: Give your glazed ham a unique Asian twist by adding a mixture of soy sauce, maple syrup, Chinese BBQ sauce, cloves, and a five-spice mix.
Honey Mustard and Brown Sugar Glaze Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup honey
- ½ cup Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
Instructions
Place all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer, stirring often to break up any lumps while the ham is warming in the oven. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced by a third, darkened, and thickened.
Don’t feel like making your own ham glaze. Try this delicious premade glaze available on Amazon.
How to store glazed ham?
Here is a rule about glazed ham. Once it is cooked, don’t keep it at room temperature for more than 2 hours. So, once it is done, you have 2 hours before you have to store the leftover glazed ham.
You can slice the ham and place it in an air-tight container. Refrigerate for up to 4 days. You can also wrap the whole leftover ham in saran wrap and refrigerate it for up to 4 days.
You can also freeze the leftover ham. Wrap it in saran wrap, put it in a freezer-safe container, and freeze it for up to 3 months.
How to use leftover glazed ham?
If you don’t want to freeze the leftover glazed ham, then use the leftover slices to make something else. Here are a few ideas:
- Sandwiches: The easiest way to use leftover glazed ham is by making sandwiches. Yum!
- Casseroles: Dice the leftover ham and incorporate it into a casserole. Combine it with vegetables and enjoy.
- Salad: Add ham to a creamy salad with peas, potatoes, and apples.
- Pot pies: Rich, creamy filling with crispy and flaky pastry makes delicious pot pies. Add ham and enjoy the flavors.
- Pasta: Add glazed ham slices to your pasta dish instead of chicken, and you will love the flavors.
How to cook a pre-cooked ham with glaze
- Preparation time: 10 minutes
- Cooking time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Total time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Servings: 8 to 10
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. bone-in ham, fully cooked
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup butter, unsalted
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- a pinch of ground cloves
- pinch of ground cinnamon
- a pinch salt
Instructions
- Start by unpacking the ham. Trim the rind and discard. If the ham is frozen, let it sit until it reaches room temperature. Score the ham using a sharp knife in a crisscross manner to get the diamond pattern.
- Prepare the baking tray by lining it with several parchment papers or aluminum foils.
- Pour water at the base of the baking tray and place the ham on the aluminum foil. Wrap the ham with two aluminum foil sheets.
- Place it in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes at 300 degrees F.
- Meanwhile, prepare the glaze by adding butter to the saucepan. Place the saucepan at medium heat.
- Once the butter melts, cook it until it is golden brown. Add honey, brown sugar, cinnamon, mustard, and clove powder. Mix well until the sugar dissolves.
- Reduce the heat and add minced garlic. Let it cook until the garlic becomes fragrant. Once the mixture begins to simmer, remove the saucepan from the heat and set it aside until it is lukewarm.
- Once the time is up, take the baking tray out of the oven. Increase the temperature of the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Unwrap the ham, and discard the aluminum foils. Pour about one-third of the prepared glaze and brush so that it spreads evenly.
- Place the ham back into the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Take it out of the oven after 15 minutes, pour half of the remaining glaze, and brush to coat evenly.
- Return it to the oven and bake again for 15 minutes. Repeat this step one more time until the ham gets a golden-brown color. You can also use drippings and mix them with the glaze.
- Lastly, set the oven to broil and let the ham broil for about 2 minutes before serving.
- Take the ham out of the oven, and let it sit for about 15 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!
How to cook a pre-cooked ham with glaze
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. bone-in ham fully cooked
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup butter unsalted
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- a pinch of ground cloves
- pinch of ground cinnamon
- a pinch of salt
Instructions
- Start by unpacking the ham. Trim the rind and discard. If the ham is frozen, let it sit until it reaches room temperature. Score the ham using a sharp knife in a crisscross manner to get the diamond pattern.
- Prepare the baking tray by lining it with several parchment papers or aluminum foils.
- Pour water at the base of the baking tray and place the ham on the aluminum foil. Wrap the ham with two aluminum foil sheets.
- Place it in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes at 300-degree F.
- Meanwhile, prepare the glaze by adding butter to the saucepan. Place the saucepan at medium heat.
- Once the butter melts, cook it until it is golden brown. Add honey, brown sugar, cinnamon, mustard, and clove powder. Mix well until the sugar dissolves.
- Reduce the heat and add minced garlic. Let it cook until the garlic becomes fragrant. Once the mixture begins to simmer, remove the saucepan from heat and set it aside until it is lukewarm.
- Once the time is up, take the baking tray out of the oven. Increase the temperature of the oven to 425-degree F.
- Unwrap the ham, and discard the aluminum foils. Pour about one-third of the prepared glaze and brush so that it spreads evenly.
- Place the ham back into the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Take it out of the oven after 15 minutes, pour half of the remaining glaze, and brush to coat evenly.
- Return it to the oven and bake again for 15 minutes. Repeat this step one more time until the ham gets a golden-brown color. You can also use drippings and mix them with the glaze.
- Lastly, set the oven to broil and let the ham broil for about 2 minutes before serving.
- Take the ham out of the oven, let it sit for about 15 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!
How To Heat A Honey-Baked Ham or Any Other Pre-Cooked Ham
Skillet Method
If you’re only going to eat a small piece of ham, slice off the necessary quantity and cook the piece it in a warm skillet.
Oven Method
- To avoid drying it out, store the honey-baked ham in its own foil wrapping or get rid of the wrapper and cover it with aluminum foil.
- Maintain a 275-300°F oven temperature.
- For every pound of ham, reheat for 12 minutes. This is the rule of thumb.
- Simply cut off as much as you need, cover with foil, or place inside an ovenproof dish and wrap in foil if you want to heat by the slice.
- Heat the slices at the same temperature for about 15 minutes.
Microwave Method
It’s not a good idea to microwave the whole ham because it can cause the glazing to burn or dry out. Slices of ham, however, can be heated in the microwave.
- Half an hour before serving, take the ham out of the refrigerator.
- Allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Heat up the slices on a microwave-safe plate for about 1 minute on low. Serve right away!
How To Keep A Ham From Drying Out While Reheating It
Set the ham on a tray in a roasting pan for the best results. Fill the bottom of the pan with water and cover it securely with foil. Preheat the oven to 325°F and bake for 16-20 minutes per pound, or until a meat thermometer reads 135°F.
Warming Tips
There are a few pointers to remember in order to ensure that your ham is properly heated.
- Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature of the meat. Because the ham is fully cooked, it only needs to reach a temperature of about 140°F in the center to be ready to eat.
- Repeated heating should be avoided. The ham will dry out as a result of this.
- When warming the ham, place a little bowl of water on the rack just below the ham to add moisture.
FAQs
How to make ham glaze with brown sugar and coke.
Whisk brown sugar with enough coke to form a thick glaze.
When do you glaze a ham?
Glaze your ham during the last hour or 30 minutes of baking in order to avoid burning the sugars. Remove the ham from the oven, brush it with glaze, and then put the uncovered ham back in the oven to finish cooking.