30 Ways to Prepare Christmas Ham From Honey Baked to Glazed

Planning your holiday dinner menu? Be sure to include one of these 30 best Christmas ham recipes.

The holiday season is stressful. Why not take a little stress off the menu side of things by preparing a Christmas ham? Ham is easy to prepare and fairly quicker (and much less finicky) than roasting a turkey or making a rib roast.

Whether it's your first time cooking a ham for Christmas or you're just looking to find a tasty new holiday ham, we've got you covered with these 30 best Christmas ham recipes that range from glazed to honey baked.

Related: 50 Best Leftover Ham Recipes

Which Type of Ham Should I Buy for Christmas?

Before we get into the various recipes and methods to cook a ham, we should talk a little about which ham is best for your needs. Here are the three most common holiday ham options:

Bone-In Ham, Unsliced

This is a ham, as the name suggests, that has the bone intact. A bone-in ham is less likely to dry out with cooking. A bone-in ham that has not been pre-sliced makes a beautiful presentation but have a good carving knife at the ready, because you'll have the added task of slicing the ham yourself. Don't forget to save that ham bone for use in Split Pea Soup.

Spiral-Sliced Ham

A spiral-sliced ham takes away the difficult task of carving. Typically, this sliced ham comes "ready to eat", although reheating is recommended. Most often, these hams come with a glaze or spice packet, but feel free to toss that packet out, as it is so easy to make your own glaze. The spiral-cut ham is the most recognizable around the holidays.

Boneless Ham

This ham has had the bone removed and the meat has been formed back into shape. This is typically the most convenient type of ham, and usually the most economical choice as well.

Honey Baked Ham

We all hear the commercials for the "world-famous" Honey Baked Ham as soon as November rolls around. Sure, you could order one of those and warm it in the oven but you are going to pay a big premium for that shortcut. Save money and make your own Honey Baked Ham. It can be as easy as slathering a ham with a butter-honey mixture before baking and then adding a sugary-spiced glaze to finish. Don't worry, we've got recipes for these Honey Baked Hams below.

Related: The 12 All-Time Best Baked Ham Recipes

How to Cook Christmas Ham

Now that you have your ham picked out, it is time to figure out how you want to prepare it. Take a look through all the recipes below and you might find yourself surprised at some of the cooking methods. Options include classic glazed hams, spiced hams, oven-heated hams, as well as Instant Pot and air fryer hams.

What to Serve with Christmas Ham

The showpiece of Christmas dinner may be the ham but what is a showpiece without the best side dishes? Here are a few of our favorite, most-delicious side dishes that go well with Christmas ham.

• Cheesy Potatoes

• Stuffed Mushrooms

• Sweet Potatoes

• Mashed Potatoes

• Asparagus

• Green Beans

30 Best Christmas Ham Recipes

Next: 20 Smart Ways to Repurpose Leftover Ham, Turkey and Chicken