Ham Glaze Recipe
Making a glazed ham is so simple! All you need is this easy, 3-ingredient ham glaze recipe. It’s sticky-sweet & mouthwateringly delicious!
Easter is almost here! And in my family that’s always meant ham dinner.
It’s one of my favorite meals and one I really look forward to every year. Probably because so many of the dishes are on the sweeter side!
Today I’m sharing the easy ham glaze recipe that I’ve been using foreverrrr!
I got the idea for this back in my days as a pastry chef. I worked at a catering company and we’d often do a carving station at parties, with prime rib, roast turkey and ham. They’d always glaze the ham with something similar to this, although I’ve tweaked it a little over the years!
It’s only got 3 ingredients but I honestly don’t think it needs anything more! The flavor you get from those alone is just spectacular!
This will give you enough ham glaze to double-glaze a 5-pound ham, which I find is usually enough to feed a dozen people, especially if you have a lot of side dishes to go with! If you’re feeding a bigger crowd, it doubles easily.
But since I brought up sides, I should take the opportunity to recommend that you serve your glazed ham with my legendary pineapple stuffing, cheesy scalloped potatoes, and Jello salad!
Table of Contents
- What is ham glaze?
- Why this is the best ham glaze recipe
- What does it taste like?
- Ingredients
- Special equipment
- How to make this ham glaze recipe
- How to serve glazed ham
- Expert tips
- Frequently asked questions
- A few more of my best Easter recipes
What is ham glaze?
Here in the US, ham is usually made by curing and smoking the upper back leg of a pig. The cure has tons of flavorful seasonings, and the smoke adds to that even more! So you may wonder why you need to add anything else at all!
The reason is because a) there’s no such thing as too much flavor (at least in my book!), and b) because it keeps the ham wonderfully moist and seals in the juices!
Sugar is hydrophilic, in other words, it loves water. So it actually draws moisture into the meat!
It also reduces and caramelizes in the oven, so you get the most satisfyingly chewy, almost candy-like edge around each slice of ham. I absolutely adore it!
This version has plenty of warm brown sugar, along with tangy mustard and a kick of aromatic ground cloves, for a traditional flavor your family will go crazy for!
Why this is the best ham glaze recipe
- Tastes amazing: Brown sugar, mustard, and cloves are some of ham’s besties. They all get along so well!
- Few ingredients: I’m talking 3. That’s it!
- Easy to make: You’ll literally spend less than 5 minutes, and you don’t even have to cook it before putting it on the ham.
- Versatile: Use this as a base and get creative, adding other flavors you especially like!
What does it taste like?
This ham glaze recipe is nice and sweet, with the complex molasses taste of brown sugar. There’s also a sharpness from the Dijon mustard and an interesting warm, pungent flavor from the cloves.
Ingredients
You’ll only need 3 simple ingredients to make this easy recipe!
Brown sugar: I’ve sometimes used light brown sugar, and other times I’ve used dark brown sugar, and I think they’re equally good! So grab whatever you happen to have in your cupboard.
Mustard: I like a smooth Dijon mustard best for this. Dijon mustard is made by blending ground mustard seeds with white wine, so it has a really unique flavor. But other types of mustards will work too!
Cloves: Cloves and ham go great together. Back in the day, when we used to buy a ham with the skin still on, cooks would score through the skin and thick layer of fat in a diamond pattern. They’d then stick whole cloves in for added flavor. Nowadays, I don’t really see hams like that anymore. So I infuse the glaze with ground cloves instead.
Special equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons: Follow my guide on how to measure ingredients.
- Bowl: In which to stir all the ingredients together.
- Brush: I like a silicone pastry brush best because it’s so easy to clean! But a regular brush will work fine, or if you don’t have that you could just spoon the glaze on.
How to make this ham glaze recipe
This easy recipe comes together in just 3 simple steps.
Step 1: Mix up the glaze
Place the brown sugar, Dijon mustard, and ground cloves in a bowl.
Then just stir everything together until it’s all combined!
That’s pretty much it!
Step 2: Brush it on
I love to get a spiral-sliced ham because it’s so easy for my guests to serve themselves! It’s already mostly carved, so they can just pull off a couple of slices and get busy.
But you can use this glaze recipe on any kind of ham. Even on a ham steak!
Just brush it all over. I even like to get some in between all the layers!
Then pop your ham into the oven to cook.
Step 3: Bake
There are almost always directions on the package as to how long a ham should be baked. Most of the time, hams are sold already cooked so all you really need to do is heat it through.
But for easy reference, figure on about 15 minutes per pound, at 350 degrees F. That means a 5-pound ham will bake for about 75 minutes. You want it to reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
About 15 to 30 minutes before you expect it to be done, brush on a second layer of glaze to get it really sticky-sweet!
How to serve glazed ham
I usually serve my roast ham warm, but it’s really good cold or at room temperature too!
And we like to have our meal a little on the earlier side, like mid-afternoon? That way there’s time to digest, get a head start on the cleanup, and put the desserts out.
I mentioned a few of my best side dishes above, but I also love to put glazed carrots, green bean casserole, and ramen noodle salad on the buffet. And some pillow-soft homemade dinner rolls!
For dessert it’s gotta be coconut cream pie or chocolate cream pie! Or pineapple upside-down cake!
Expert tips
Get creative: This ham glaze recipe is pretty basic. Feel free to add other flavors that you especially love! I’m thinking a few teaspoons of pineapple juice or rum (or pineapple rum!), a dollop of orange marmalade, some candied ginger or freshly grated ginger… you could also swap out the brown sugar for honey, maple syrup, or apricot jam! And for a spicy ham glaze, just add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne.
Cover with foil: Keep an eye on your ham as it bakes. If your oven has any hot spots, the glaze could potentially burn in some areas. If you see this starting to happen, just tent the ham lightly with foil.
Rest the meat: When your ham hits that 145-degree mark, take it out of the oven, but don’t serve it just yet! Tent it with foil and allow it to rest for 5 to 10 minutes, so all the juices redistribute. When it’s fresh from the oven they’re all gathered at the surface, and if you cut into it they’ll leak out all over your carving board. Give it a little time, and they’ll reabsorb so your ham will be moist all the way through.
Frequently asked questions
When you’re hosting a holiday meal, there’s so much that needs to be done! Getting ahead on some of the prep can be a real life-saver.
Go ahead and mix up this glaze in advance. It will keep beautifully in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.
This glaze should keep for as long as brown sugar, mustard, and cloves do! Almost indefinitely!
But I’d say if it’s been hanging around for more than a few weeks, go ahead and toss it. Space in the fridge is always at a premium!
You can leave your glazed ham out at room temperature for a few hours, but any longer than that and it should probably go into the fridge.
Wrap it up tightly so it doesn’t dry out, and it should keep (chilled) for around 3 to 5 days.
Or freeze it! It should last for a month or two in the freezer, and can be thawed in the fridge and reheated (covered with foil) in a 170-degree F oven until warmed through.
This recipe makes enough to double-glaze a 5-pound ham.
When choosing your ham, figure on about 1/2-pound per person (for bone-in ham) or 1/3-pound per person if it’s boneless. If you’re serving a lot of side dishes you can go a little smaller, but leftovers are never a bad thing!
The nutritional info below is for a 1/3-pound portion, and it includes the glaze as well as the ham.
A few more of my best Easter recipes
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Ham Glaze Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (110 g) brown sugar, (light or dark) loosely packed
- 1/3 cup (83 g) Dijon mustard, (I prefer the smooth kind)
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.5 g) ground cloves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place the ham in a baking dish.
- Stir the brown sugar, Dijon, and cloves together in a small bowl, and brush about half the mixture all over the outside of the ham and in between the slices.
- Bake the ham at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes per pound.
- About 15 to 30 minutes before you expect it to be done, brush the remaining glaze all over the outside of the ham and in between the slices, and continue to bake until the ham reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.
Absolutely, a great glaze. I love mustard.
So happy you liked it! Thanks for the great feedback!