This spiral ham is coated in a homemade brown sugar glaze, then baked in the oven to tender and juicy perfection. A simple way to prepare ham that’s both easy and elegant. You’ll be sure to get rave reviews from family and friends!

When I’m looking for a holiday meal that’s sure to impress, I turn to favorites such as Thanksgiving turkey, slow roasted prime rib, or this delicious and festive spiral ham.

A spiral ham coated in glaze, garnished with fruit and herbs.

Whenever the holidays roll around, I always keep a spiral ham in my fridge for a flavorful meal that’s perfect for feeding a crowd. The homemade glaze takes this ham over the top and turns a regular packaged ham into a gourmet dinner.

Spiral Ham ingredients

Ingredients including ham, brown sugar, pineapple juice and spices.

This recipe consists of a spiral cut ham, butter, brown sugar, pineapple juice, honey, cinnamon and nutmeg.

How do you make spiral ham?

Start by simmering butter, brown sugar, honey, spices and pineapple juice to make a thick and sweet glaze. Pour half the glaze over your ham, then cover it with foil. Bake the ham until it is warmed through. Uncover the pan, then pour the rest of the glaze over the top of the ham. Turn up the oven heat, then bake the ham for a few more minutes until it is browned and caramelized. Cut the ham slices off the bone, then serve and enjoy.

Step by step shots showing how to make ham glaze and cook spiral cut ham.

Tips for the perfect dish

  • This variety of ham is always pre-cooked, which means all you’re really doing is reheating the ham to a safe temperature. You’ll want to aim for an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. I insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the ham before it goes into the oven so that I can keep an eye on the temperature as it cooks.
  • You can change the flavor of the glaze by adding other spices such as ginger or allspice. Feel free to swap out the pineapple juice for apple cider or orange juice.
  • Leftover ham will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or can be frozen for 2 months. Reheat individual portions of ham in the microwave, or place a covered pan in the oven and reheat at 325 degrees F until ham slices are warmed through.
  • Prepare the glaze just before you plan to use it. The glaze will harden in the fridge if you make it in advance. If your glaze thickens too much, you can microwave it for 20-30 seconds to loosen it back up again.
A ham in a baking dish covered in glaze.

Recipe FAQs

What is the difference between a spiral ham and a regular ham?

The main difference between a spiral ham and a regular ham is the way they are cut. A spiral ham is sliced in one long, continuous cut which ends up being a spiral around the ham. The ham is still attached to the bone, but is separated into slices of equal thickness. A spiral ham is super easy to cut and serve, because all you have to do is cut the slices away from the bone. I use this type of ham for the holidays because it feeds a lot of people and is so effortless to prepare.

How long does it take for ham to cook?

A ham needs to cook for about 15 minutes per pound in the oven at 350 degrees F. This is for a standard bone-in spiral cut ham around 7-8 pounds in size. While this recipe calls for a 7 pound ham, you can adjust the recipe for a larger or smaller piece of meat by simply changing the cook time accordingly. If you’re using a much larger ham, you can double the glaze amount.

How much ham per person?

I recommend purchasing 3/4 pound of ham per person. This will ensure that everyone is well fed! If you’d like to make sure that you have plenty of leftovers, count on buying 1 pound of ham per person.

Sliced spiral ham on a serving plate.

I make this spiral ham all the time during the holiday season and for good reason – it’s absolutely delicious each and every time!

Side dishes to pair with ham

Spiral Ham Video

5 from 28 votes

Spiral Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze

AuthorSara Welch
A spiral ham coated in glaze, garnished with fruit and herbs.
This spiral ham is coated in a homemade brown sugar glaze, then baked in the oven to tender and juicy perfection. A simple way to prepare ham that's both easy and elegant. You'll be sure to get rave reviews from family and friends!
Time
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time2 hours 40 minutes
Course Main
Cuisine American
Serves 12

Ingredients 

  • 8 lb bone in spiral cut ham
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup pineapple juice
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
  • cooking spray
  • fresh herbs and fruit for garnish optional

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a large baking dish with cooking spray.
  • Add the butter, brown sugar, pineapple juice, honey, cinnamon and nutmeg to a medium sized pan. Place the pan over medium heat.
  • Bring the pan to a simmer and cook for 4-6 minutes or until glaze is syrupy.
  • Place the ham in the baking dish and pour half of the glaze over the top. Cover the ham tightly with foil. Reserve the other half of the glaze for later use.
  • Bake the ham for 2 hours, then uncover the ham.
  • Brush the remaining glaze over the ham. If the glaze has started to harden you can liquefy it by microwaving it for 30 seconds.
  • Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees F.
  • Place the ham, uncovered, in the oven. Bake for another 10-15 minutes or until glaze is caramelized and browned.
  • Transfer the ham to a serving platter, then garnish with fresh herbs and fruit as desired. Spoon the pan drippings over the ham. Slice the ham, then serve.

Notes

  1. This variety of ham is always pre-cooked, which means all you’re really doing is reheating the ham to a safe temperature. You’ll want to aim for an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. I insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the ham before it goes into the oven so that I can keep an eye on the temperature as it cooks.
  2. Leftover ham will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or can be frozen for 2 months. 
  3. Prepare the glaze just before you plan to use it. The glaze will harden in the fridge if you make it in advance. If your glaze thickens too much, you can microwave it for 20-30 seconds to loosen it back up again.

Nutrition

Calories: 408kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 755mg | Potassium: 373mg | Sugar: 36g | Vitamin A: 355IU | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 1.2mg

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Comments

  1. My ham is frozen, how many days do you think it will take to thaw out? This recipe calls for a thawed ham, correct?

  2. 5 stars
    Saving this for Thanksgiving. A few of my guests are not fans of Turkey so I am going to serve this as well. Recipe looks perfect

  3. 5 stars
    This glaze is absolutely out of this world!! This was a hit, and everyone in our house loved munching on leftover ham cold, straight from the fridge. It’s just THAT good.

  4. 5 stars
    Your recipe saved the day and my dinner!!! Thank you. Bought a ham with a glaze packet a local grocery store. Tasted the glaze packet before I poured it on the ham and it was horrible – all clove. Burned your mouth. Quickly went on Pinterest for a glaze recipe and all I could find were recipes with clove. After what I had just tasted, I wanted to avoid anything with clove. Then I found yours. Put your glaze recipe together (had to sub apple juice for the pineapple) but it was still delicious. Turned out great. Raves from everyone. Making your recipe again for Christmas Eve dinner. Definitely a keeper!

  5. 5 stars
    Thanks. This is so very creative . My family to relish this yummy Spiral Ham with this amazing glaze. Delicious..

  6. 5 stars
    This ham looks so gorgeous, especially with that sweet glaze!! Will definitely be adding this to our Thanksgiving menu this year!

  7. 5 stars
    You had me at 10 minutes of prep time! This spiral ham with brown sugar glaze was so flavourful, my whole family loved it. Thank you!

  8. 5 stars
    What a delicious glaze for the ham! Perfect year round as well as the holiday season. This recipe’s a keeper.

    1. 5 stars
      Ive only enjoyed ham once in my life until i made your glaze. The carmelization was so so delicious on the ham. No issues in timor cooking the glaze. Didn’t have any juice. Used Bragg’s apple cider vinegar. It’s the best. You’d think i bought it at Honey baked ham Thank you for posting this. Made me a believer 😉

  9. 5 stars
    This looks so perfect! Typically we do turkey on Thanksgiving but I think am gonna make this one (this year). So shiny and glossy, too! I definitely love the idea of brown sugar glaze!👍🏾

  10. 5 stars
    My go-to ham recipe here! This is so easy to make and comes out perfect… and the glaze is perfection! Thanks for the great recipe!

  11. 5 stars
    What a gorgeous ham. You make it look so incredibly easy. I hope Costco get the hams in soon. I would like to try this before the holidays.