This honey baked ham recipe is a copycat of the super popular HoneyBaked Ham Store version. It’s a tender ham baked to perfection and coated in a crispy spiced sugar glaze. The ultimate holiday ham!
When I think of the holidays, I think of honey baked ham. My version costs a fraction of what you would pay if you went to the HoneyBaked Ham Store, but it tastes just as delicious and is actually quite easy to make. Serve your ham with side dish recipes such as crab mac and cheese, delicata squash, mandarin orange salad, cornbread casserole, loaded mashed potato casserole and glazed carrots for a complete meal.
It’s not a holiday without a honey baked ham. I used to frequent the HoneyBaked Ham Store to get one of their delicious and decadent hams for the major holidays. Then I discovered just how easy it is to make a honey baked ham at home. Now I skip the store and make my own and it gets rave reviews at a fraction of the cost!
Table of Contents
Honey Baked Ham Recipe Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need a spiral cut ham, honey, granulated sugar, onion powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, ground cloves and smoked paprika.
How Do You Make A Honey Baked Ham?
Preheat the oven and coat a baking dish or roasting pan with cooking spray. Place the ham with the cut side down in the pan, then drizzle the honey all over the ham. Cover the pan, then bake until ham is warmed through. Remove the ham from the oven, then set the heat to broil. Place the sugar and all the spices in a sauce pan, along with some of the drippings from the ham. Bring the sugar mixture to a boil. Pour half of the sugar mixture over the ham, then broil until the glaze on the ham starts to bubble. Brush on the rest of the glaze, and broil again. Separate the ham slices, then serve and enjoy.
Tips For The Perfect Ham
- It’s important to boil the sugar mixture to make the crunchy glaze for exactly one minute. If you boil it longer, it can harden.
- This ham is best when served immediately to take advantage of the crispy sugar coating on the exterior. Leftovers will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Use a meat thermometer to gauge when your ham is done. It will be ready for glaze when the internal temperature registers at least 140 degrees F.
- Be sure to separate the slices of the ham as soon as they come out of the broiler so that they don’t stick together. A fork works well for this task.
- If you have a lot of ham leftover after your meal, be sure to check out my list of leftover ham recipes for some creative ways to use it up!
- This recipe works best with a bone-in spiral cut ham.
Quick Tip
Keep a close eye on the ham when it’s broiling, as the sugar glaze can go from perfectly caramelized to burned very quickly!
Recipe FAQs
For a bone-in ham, you should plan on 1/2 pound feeding one person.
Hams come fully cooked, so all you need to do is heat them up to a safe temperature for eating. The simplest way to tell when a ham is ready is to use a thermometer. Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the ham, but be sure to avoid touching the bone. The ham is ready to eat when the temperature is at least 140 degrees F.
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Flavor Variations
While this recipe is fabulous as-is, you can make some flavor adjustments if you prefer. Just be aware that any ingredient changes will make the taste differ from what you’d get from the Honey Baked Ham company!
- Ham: If you can’t find a bone-in spiral ham, try using a standard bone-in ham and score the top so the glaze can soak in. You could also make this recipe with a boneless ham, although I feel that bone-in hams have more flavor and are less likely to dry out. If you choose a boneless ham, you will need to reduce the cooking time.
- Flavorings: Instead of pan drippings in the glaze, try using pineapple juice. You can also mix up the spices by adding garlic powder, allspice or even a little Cajun seasoning! You can also add a few tablespoons of butter for extra richness, or try using half brown sugar and half granulated sugar.
- Garnishes: Finish your ham with a sprinkle of chopped fresh herbs, such as rosemary, thyme or parsley.
You simply cannot go wrong with this ham. It’s full of with flavor, simple to make, and looks so impressive for the holidays.
Ham Side Dish Recipes
Glazed Carrots
20 mins
Slow Cooker Creamed Corn
3 hrs 10 mins
Bacon Green Bean Bundles
25 mins
Cranberry Jello Salad
6 hrs 10 mins
Honey Baked Ham Video
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Honey Baked Ham Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 lb spiral cut ham
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- cooking spray
- fresh herbs for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9″ x 13″ pan with cooking spray.
- Place the ham cut side down in the pan and pour the honey over the top. Cover the pan with foil.
- Bake for 2 hours or until a thermometer inserted into the ham registers 140 degrees F. Remove the ham from the oven and preheat the broiler.
- Place the sugar, onion powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves and smoked paprika in a medium sized pan along with 1/2 cup of drippings from the pan or water.
- Stir to combine the sugar and liquid then bring to a boil. Boil for exactly one minute.
- Pour half the glaze over the ham and place the ham under the broiler. Broil for 1-2 minutes or until glaze starts bubbling.
- Remove the ham from the oven and pour the remaining glaze over the ham. Broil for 1-2 minutes more.
- Remove the ham from the oven and separate the slices. Transfer the ham to a platter and serve, garnished with herbs if desired.
Notes
- It’s important to boil the sugar mixture to make the glaze for exactly one minute. If you boil it longer, it can harden.
- This ham is best when served immediatelyto take advantage of the crispy sugar coating on the exterior. Leftovers will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Use a meat thermometer to gauge when your ham is done.
This recipe had perfect flavor, was easy and delicious! Highly recommend.
I used a smoked spiral sliced ham and used brown sugar in place of white. Spice mixture for glaze was absolutely perfect…just make sure you use spanish smoked paprika (pimenton ajumeda) as specified and not a different kind. I turned to ham on its side and then the alternate side when broiling, to help carmelization. Next time I make this I will try to have a torch, as it would have made the glazing process easier and more uniform.
This recipe is a keeper!
This recipe sounds delicious. I’ll be making it for the first time tomorrow for Easter so I’ll leave an update after we try it. I have one question do you put some water in the pan before you cover the ham to bake it?
I do not add water!
This ham is Great
Lovely recipe that the whole family enjoyed! Very easy to make that made the whole family with full tummies at Christmas day!♡ “L♡VELY!”😋🤤🤤🤤
Should I still only cook for 2 hours for 10.5 lb ham?
I’d do 3 hours!
This came out excellent and your directions were spot on!
OH SO DELICIOUS! And my children who are Honey Baked Ham snobs, said it was as good if not better! Thanks for sharing!
The crusty sugared edges edges were amazing! Thanks for this great recipe!
I was scared and sceptical. It was EXCELLENT. Thx so much!!!
Silly question, but…..when the recipe says to buy a spiral cut ham, does that mean a fully-cooked spiral ham or an uncooked ham? I only need a small ham, so hope to buy a fully-cooked ham (and if the recipe means an uncooked ham, how long would you bake a fully-cooked ham with the honey before proceeding with the rest of the recipe).
Thanks for your recipe and help!
Fully cooked ham!
Randal, this was my question too. Penny S.
Can I bake the ham ahead of time and put the glaze on when I get to my destination and than broil it?
Yes that’s fine!
The last time I made this the ham was so so salty that it just ruined the taste. Any suggestions?
I would try a different brand of ham, because the salt level definitely varies from different manufacturers. You can also try rinsing your ham under cool water, then patting it dry to remove any excess salt.
Ive made this ham recipe a few times now and it always comes out amazing! Love this recipe!
HI Sara….
I SO want to try this recipe, but have a Major problem. I Don’t have a broiler, and can’t afford a blow torch. Would cranking the oven temp up to 500 work instead of broiling? I only have the lousy 2-4 inch ‘Drawer Broiler’ underneath the oven. (and I hate it)
Can you help me?
Thanks,
Christie
That should work fine, just keep a close eye on it so that it doesn’t burn!
Hi Sara…
Thank you so much for answering. Now I just hope I have the courage to try it. The Good news…It’ll only be me that I’ll be making it for, so there shouldn’t be too many bad reviews. lol
Happy Super Bowl!
The ham turned out delicious and will be making this one again. I have made extra spice mix to have on hand.
So glad you enjoyed it, thanks for reporting back!
I made this yesterday for Christmas dinner but ran out of regular sugar so I used one cup of regular sugar and one cup of brown sugar. Everything else was the same. it was delicious. My husband has been picking at the ham all day today that’s how I know it was a hit. Thanks for the recipe. I can’t wait to make it again.
SO happy to hear you enjoyed it,thanks for reporting back!