Honey Baked Ham (With Best Glaze)

The ultimate copycat recipe for Honey Baked Ham with the best homemade glaze. Learn how to cook ham at home for the holidays or for dinner.

Ham sliced into thin slices laid out on a white plate.

There are just some holidays that are not complete without ham for dinner. Instead of purchasing honey-baked ham, make your own ham at home for a fraction of the price with the same results!

HONEY BAKED HAM-

This recipe is so easy to make and is so good! With just 10-minutes of prep time, you can have the ham baking in the oven!

The homemade honey glaze is what completes this ham recipe adding so much flavor to it.

A whole honey baked ham on a white plate topped with homemade ham glaze.

FINDING THE PERFECT HAM-

There are so many different types of ham that you can get and use for this recipe. We used an 8 pound bone-in ham that was already precooked.

Here are some tips when purchasing ham:

WHOLE or SPIRAL CUT– Spiral cut ham is pre-sliced ham which is easier when serving, but we prefer a whole ham because it is juicier and holds in the flavor when baking.
COOKED or RAW– The most popular type of ham is getting the fully cooked ham at your local store. We like using pre-cooked ham because it is a lot easier to work with.
SMOKED or CURED– There is also an option between smoked and cured ham. If you like the smoked flavor you want to go with the smoked ham. If you don’t care for that smokey taste just stick to the classic cured ham. We used a traditional cured ham in this recipe.
BONE-IN or BONELESS– You can buy either ham that is boneless or ham with the bone in it. The bone-in ham brings so much more flavor and is a lot juicier but a little harder to slice. We normally purchase bone-in ham.

HOW MUCH HAM DO I NEED FOR MY FAMILY?

When deciding how much ham you need, you need to go off the general serving size which is about 2-3 servings per 1 pound of ham.

Step by step collage of how to make homemade honey baked ham glaze with honey, and brown sugar.

8-10 oz: Using an 8-10 pound ham will give you about 16 servings of serving the ham as a main course.

INGREDIENTS FOR HAM GLAZE-

This honey baked ham glaze is what brings ham to a whole new level. With simple and basic ingredients you can have this glaze ready in under 10 minutes. All you need is:

Butter
Honey
Brown sugar
Seasoning

How to make the Glaze: This glaze is SO easy to make! In a small saucepan, melt together all the ingredients. Bring the glaze to a soft boil and turn off the heat, stirring as needed.

Ham topped with honey glaze in a roasting pan with foil.

HOW TO COOK A HAM-

REMOVE PACKAGING– Remove the ham from the packaging. Allow it to sit at room temperature for about 1-2 hours before baking.
PREPARE– Completely pat the ham dry and add place into the roasting pan cut side down.
HAM GLAZE– Prepare the glaze.
GLAZE THE HAM– With a pastry brush, brush the ham with about ⅓ of the ham glaze. Cover with foil and bake at 325°F for 1 ½ hour.
COOK HAM- Increase the oven heat to 375°F and brush the ham with the rest of the glaze and cook for an adittional 20 minutes or until crispy and golden. TIP: If the glaze thickens, reheat it.
SERVE HAM: Allow ham to rest 10-15 minutes before slicing. Spoon the juices over the ham before serving.

Chef’s tip: We recommend adding a double layer of foil to your roasting pan, going up the sides of the pan. The honey glaze is hard to clean once baked and the foil helps with clean-up.

Sliced up homemade baked ham on a white plate.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS-

How long will my cooked ham last?

You can keep leftover ham in the refrigerator for 4-5 days, we then recommend freezing the meat.

When do I know that my ham is cooked?

You want the internal temperature of the ham to reach 135-140°F. We use a meat thermometer to check the temp.

Can I prepare my ham in advance?

There is not much prep work you need for this recipe, so we recommend making this recipe when ready to cook the ham.

How long in advance can I purchase the ham?

The ham may be purchased a few weeks in advance, be sure to check the date on the package. Keep the ham sealed until it’s ready to bake.