Shop Smarter for Easter Ham, Plus 3 Recipes!
By Rhoda Boone
Ham it up with our guide to buying and baking the best piece of pork ever.
Nothing says the holidays like a gorgeous, lacquered ham at the center of your Easter table. And nothing could be easier. Since hams are sold fully cooked, all you have to do is dress one up with a simple glaze or rub, warm it in the oven, and serve. You’ll instantly be a holiday hero—especially the next day, when everybody digs in again to make leftover ham sandwiches.
But it’s not without any effort. There are a few things to keep in mind when prepping a Easter ham.
FIRST, SCORE A GREAT HAM
We recommend buying a cured and smoked bone-in ham. Honest-to-goodness “ham” hams will have a pure, porky flavor and no fillers to pump up their weight. Plus, it comes with a big bonus: a meaty bone to use in a killer split pea soup! They can be more expensive than your average ham and are not always available in grocery stores, so order a good one from a reputable online seller, like D’Artagnan or Harrington’s of Vermont. Whatever you do, skip spiral-cut hams: They can dry out when heated in the oven. Just carve your own ham after letting it rest at least 10 minutes, or let your guests carve their own portions.
…OR SOAK A NOT-SO-GREAT ONE
Be sure to seek out a product labelled “ham” or at least “Ham in Natural Juices.” Sounds obvious, right? Well, actually, there are lesser grades of the stuff, like “Ham, Water Added,” “Ham and Water Product,” and even “Water and Ham Product.” If you’ve bought one of the lesser hams listed above, it could be too salty for your taste. Our test kitchen found that soaking the ham in cold water in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours helps to draw out some of that brininess. Just pat the ham dry after soaking and before applying your glaze or rub.
PREP YOUR HAM RIGHT
If your ham comes with a layer of fat, consider yourself lucky. Use a sharp paring knife to score it in a diamond cross-hatch pattern, about 1 inch wide and 1/2 inch deep. This will help the fat to render and get crispy, and the juices will baste your ham as it bakes.
NEXT, MAKE IT TASTY
A little sweetness balances the smoky savoriness of ham. But think beyond gloppy, sugary-sweet glazes and get a little more adventurous. The suggestions below use peach preserves, hot pepper jelly, or maple syrup as a base that adds sweetness and flavor at the same time. We add tasty things like aromatics, herbs, and spices to switch up a traditional ham and make it memorable. So go ahead: choose your own ham adventure.
Tangy Peach Mustard Peach preserves combine with country Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, fresh thyme, and shallots in this Southern-inflected glaze.
Sweet and Spicy Jerk Our Jamaican Jerk-inspired glaze incorporates fragrant allspice, fresh ginger and garlic, and a pinch of cayenne with orange juice and sweet and spicy hot pepper jelly.
Related: 3 Ways to Upgrade Your Deviled Eggs for Easter
Smoky BBQ Maple This rub brings familiar BBQ flavors to your holiday ham. The maple syrup is a workhorse in this recipe: not only does it lend a malty sweetness, it also helps the rub to adhere, keeps it from burning, and gives the ham a lovely shine.
Follow our recipe for Holiday Ham, Three Ways for cooking instructions. And don’t forget to serve with biscuits or rolls, pickles, and Spicy Honey Mustard. Pro-tip: mix a tablespoon or two of your glaze or rub with mustard for serving so your guests can enjoy those flavors on the outside and inside of the ham.
RECIPE: HOLIDAY HAM, THREE WAYS
INGREDIENTS
For the ham:
One 12-14-pound cured and smoked bone-in ham, preferably with a layer of fat
choose Tangy Peach Mustard:
1 1/2 cups peach preserves
1 cup Dijon mustard (preferably country Dijon)
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
4 medium shallots, finely chopped (about 1 1/3 cups)
OR choose Sweet and Spicy Jerk:
1 1/2 cups hot pepper jelly
3/4 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons finely grated garlic
3 tablespoons finely grated ginger
3 tablespoons whole allspice, crushed
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
OR choose Smoky BBQ Maple:
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup smoked paprika
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
For serving:
Biscuits or soft dinner rolls
Spicy Honey Mustard
Pickles
Special Equipment:
roasting pan with rack
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350°F, with the rack in the lower third of oven. If your ham has a layer of fat, use a sharp paring knife to score the fat in a diamond crosshatch pattern, about 1 inch wide and 1/2 inch deep.
For Tangy Peach Mustard Ham OR Sweet and Spicy Jerk Ham:
In a medium bowl, mix together the glaze ingredients of your choice. Brush all over ham (reserving some glaze for basting while cooking).
For Smoky BBQ Ham:
Brush the ham with maple syrup (reserving some syrup for basting while cooking). Combine the rest of the ingredients in a medium bowl, then rub all over ham, pressing into syrup to adhere.
Position roasting rack in roasting pan; pour 2 cups water into pan and place prepared ham on rack. Cover pan with foil and bake 1 hour. Remove pan from oven, remove foil, and brush ham with reserved glaze or maple syrup. Increase the oven temperature to 400°F.
Return ham to oven uncovered. Bake until glaze has caramelized and the ham’s internal temp reads 135°F when an instant-read thermometer is inserted in the middle of the ham (avoiding bone), brushing with more glaze or syrup if desired, 40 minutes to 1 hour more.
Let rest 10 minutes before carving. Serve with biscuits or rolls, mustard, and pickles.
More from Epicurious:
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This Recipe Has 908 Comments, and They’re All Hilarious
PHOTO BY CHELSEA KYLE, PROP STYLING BY BRIAN HEISER, FOOD STYLING BY RHODA BOONE
