Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham

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!

The Absolute BEST Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham

Okay, so when I say this is the best glazed ham, I’m not joking! This glaze is unbelievably good and I make sure to baste the scored meat often and throughout the entire cooking process. Hams are so versatile, any leftovers can be used for a variety of meals. I’ve made everything from sandwiches to my favorite split pea soup.

If using bone-in, remember that simmering the bone will impart a lot of great tasting broth. For some ideas what to do with leftover ham, try my Leftover Ham and Bean Soup, Leftover Ham and Cheese Breakfast Muffins, or Leftover Ham and Cheese Penne.

For this recipe, I’ve studded this ham with a lot of cloves which is a phenomenal way to spread the flavor throughout the ham. Another flavor winner is the incorporation of the bourbon glaze. It packs a fantastic balance of both a sweet and savory flavor. 

Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham Highlights

DELICIOUS. Like I said, this recipe is fantastic, with this incredible bourbon, orange juice and brown sugar glaze that has lots of sweet, savoury, and pungent warm spice of cloves with an intense flavor and aroma. 

FAMILY FAVORITE. Any ham is a family favorite, and especially during this time of year, there is a great deal of this meat being cooked up. The secret here is getting your hands on the best recipe! It makes a great Christmas dinner with a lot of potential for leftovers.

VERSATILE. The versatility of this meal is that leftovers will always be eaten. You can make so many things with leftover ham and that’s what I love about cooking this any time of the year.

What 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.

How To Make Bourbon Glazed Baked Ham

Prepare The Ham

Before you begin, 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.

Next, you’ll want to remove the ham from its packaging and pat it dry with paper towels. Make sure to bring it to room temperature at least 2 hours before baking.

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 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. Place the ham in the prepared roasting pan, fat side up.

Glaze And Bake

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.

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.

Transfer the roasting pan to 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 140°F.

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.

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.

How Long Does It Take To Bake A Ham?

A precooked ham should be cooked in the oven at 350°F for 15-20 minutes per pound, or until the internal temperature reaches 145°F. 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.

What Side Dishes Go With Ham?

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.

Expert Tips And Tricks

1. Adding a little water to the roasting pan will help retain moisture in the meat.
2. 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.
3. If during cooking, the ham looks like it browns too much, cover it with foil to avoid it getting looking burnt.
4. A meat thermometer works the best to determine internal ham temperature.

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.

Try Some More Great Recipes

• Lobster Rolls
• Karydopita (Greek Walnut Cake)
• Italian Sub Sandwich
• No Bake Nutella Cheesecake
• Oatcakes
• Instant Pot Ham