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Learn how to transform a bone-in ham into the best Baked Ham you’ve ever tasted. With a glaze of brown sugar, orange juice, maple syrup, and cloves, it will steal the show at your next Sunday Supper or holiday table.
Meggan’s notes
The secret to the juiciest, most flavorful Baked Ham is to cook the ham in an oven bag for the first part of roasting. Then, open it up and brush it with a glaze until roasted and caramelized.
After decades of holiday hosting, I’ve learned that one of the tastiest main dishes is also one of the easiest. In my family, people go CRAZY for baked ham, especially when you serve it on a buffet next to a pile of soft, fluffy rolls.
Today, we’re going back to the basics and celebrating ham like I did at my Midwestern table as a kid: with a brown sugar, maple syrup, orange juice, and clove glaze. Sweet, tangy, and crowd-pleasing, this Baked Ham recipe is as easy to make as it is to love.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient and equipment notes
- Plastic oven bag: Look for “oven bags” by Reynolds and several other kitchen brands sold online and at many supermarkets. These are oven-safe and help keep the ham meat from drying out as it roasts. If you don’t have an oven bag, wrap the ham tightly in two layers of aluminum foil during the first stage of cooking.
- Bone-in ham: To max out the flavor of your ham recipe, look for a shank end (or shank portion) ham, which has fattier meat, more flavor, and one long bone for easier carving. A butt-end (or butt portion) ham is delicious, too. It just is a little leaner and is a little more work to carve. Seek out a spiral cut, which allows the glaze to reach a larger proportion of the ham (not just the exterior).
- Brown sugar: I like light brown sugar in this brown sugar glaze, but feel free to use dark brown sugar if that’s what you have on hand.
Step-by-step instructions
- Remove the ham from the packaging, including the plastic disk covering the bone. Place the ham in an oven bag, then twist and tie the bag shut. Trim excess oven bag. Place the ham cut-side down in a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish or roasting pan. Allow the ham to sit at room temperature for 90 minutes.
- Arrange an oven rack in the lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Bake the ham until the center registers 140 degrees, about 1 ½ to 2 ½ hours (approximately 10 to 18 minutes per pound). (Open slightly or lift bag to take temperature; do not puncture.)
- Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring the brown sugar, maple syrup, orange juice, and cloves to a simmer. Cook until the mixture is slightly thickened and syrupy, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Remove the ham from the oven and roll back the sides of the oven bag to expose the ham. Brush the ham with about half of the glaze.
- Return the ham to the oven and bake 10 minutes longer, until the glaze is sticky and the internal temperature of the ham reaches 145 degrees on a digital thermometer.
- Remove the ham from the oven and remove the oven bag. Return ham to baking dish. Brush ham with the remaining glaze and tent loosely with foil. Allow the ham to rest for 30 to 40 minutes.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: My Baked Ham recipe makes 20 entree-sized servings, ideal to feed a crowd, plus a couple rounds of leftovers.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: The glaze can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat it on the stove before using.
- Freezer: Slice and pack leftover ham into freezer-safe containers, then label, date, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Frequently Asked Questions
Bone-in spiral cut hams, usually 7 to 9 pounds, take between 10 and 18 minutes per pound at 325 degrees. Ensure your ham reaches 140 on a digital meat thermometer at the thickest part. For more information, including cooking times for other cuts of ham, refer to the USDA’s food safety guidelines.
You can’t go wrong with a starch, like Scalloped Potatoes, Soft Yeast Dinner Rolls, or Classic Bread Stuffing, plus a vegetable, such as Roasted Green Beans, Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts, or Glazed Carrots.
The vast majority of hams available at the supermarket are already cooked. Still, it’s best to fully heat a ham before you glaze it so the glaze doesn’t burn as the meat comes up to temp.
For a bone-in ham, plan on 5 to 8 ounces of ham per person. For a boneless ham, plan on 4 to 6 ounces of ham per person.
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Baked Ham
Equipment
- 1 Plastic oven bag (see note 1)
Ingredients
- 1 (7 to 9 pound) ham bone-in, spiral sliced (see note 2)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Remove the ham from the packaging, including the plastic disk covering the bone. Place the ham in an oven bag, then twist and tie the bag shut. Trim excess oven bag. Place the ham cut-side down in a 9-inch by 13-inch baking dish or roasting pan. Allow the ham to sit at room temperature for 90 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan, bring the brown sugar, maple syrup, orange juice, and cloves to a simmer. Cook until the mixture is slightly thickened and syrupy, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Remove the ham from the oven and roll back the sides of the oven bag to expose the ham. Brush the ham with about half of the glaze. Return the ham to the oven and bake 10 minutes longer, until the glaze is sticky and ham reaches 145 degrees on a digital thermometer.
- Remove the ham from the oven and remove the oven bag. Return ham to baking dish. Brush ham with the remaining glaze and tent loosely with foil. Allow the ham to rest for 30 to 40 minutes.
Notes
- Plastic oven bag: Look for “oven bags” by Reynolds and several other kitchen brands sold online and at many supermarkets. These are oven-safe and help keep the ham meat from drying out as it roasts.
- Bone-in ham: For the most flavor, look for a shank end (or shank portion) ham, which has fattier meat, more flavor, and one long bone for easier carving. A butt-end (or butt portion) ham is delicious, too. It just is a little leaner and is a little more work to carve.
- Yield: My Baked Ham recipe makes 20 entree-sized servings, ideal to feed a crowd plus a couple rounds of leftovers.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Are these directions for a fully cooked ham? I noticed one of your FAQ’s mentioned that most hams are precooked. However, mine is not precooked.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for taking the time to write! Yes, this recipe is for the cured, cooked, and spiral sliced ham. You can find the cooking guidelines for the specific type of ham you have on the USDA’s site: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/food-safety/safe-food-handling-and-preparation/meat-catfish/hams-and-food-safety. I hope this helps! – Meggan