Save yourself some serious money during the holidays by making your own Honey Baked Ham recipe at home! Tender ham is cooked with butter and honey, then slathered with a sticky sweet and smoky glaze that’s broiled until it gets a great sugary crust!
This Copycat Honey Baked Ham is one of those recipes we have love to have for holidays like Thanksgiving and Easter. A couple of our other favorite Easter recipes are my Honey Butter Roasted Carrots and Broccoli Salad. This is one of my Easter recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
HONEY BAKED HAM
In our family, we always got a big Honey Baked Ham for the holidays… a ham for Easter and either a ham or turkey breast for Thanksgiving. One of my relatives used to work for Honey Baked, so we could score them at a pretty good discount… but even with that reduction in price, they were still pretty expensive!
An 8 lb bone-in half ham (like you can find in most grocery stores), from Honey Baked will run you over $75. Seventy Five!!! That’s a 300% markup from what I can buy at my grocery store.
So why not save some serious cash this holiday, and make your own version at home!
HOW TO MAKE HONEY BAKED HAM
I prefer my ham to be warm, so that’s what I’ll be detailing here.
- If warming in the slow cooker, trim ham to fit (if needed). Depending on your ham and your slow cooker, you may need to shave off a little bit to make the ham fit. If you’ll be warming your ham in the oven – omit this step.
- Combine butter and honey then massage into ham. I like to get some of the honey butter mixture in between the slices.
- Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours. Again, this is for warming the ham in the slow cooker – omit if warming in the oven.
- Combine dry glaze ingredients.
- Pat half of the sugar mixture on the warmed ham, then broil. Just for a few minutes, until bubbly and a little caramelized. Then remove from the oven.
- Add remaining sugar mixture to saucepan with water or ham juices. Heat this mixture to a boil, and boil for about a minute, then remove from heat and brush or pour the glaze over the ham.
- Broil ham again. Just for a minute or two, being careful not to let it burn!
- Let ham rest at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. This allows the glaze to fully harden and get that classically crackly crust.
ADDITIONAL COOKING TIPS
- DRY THE HAM – The hams from the grocery stores come in those sealed bags, which contain water. Give the ham a little pat dry with some paper towels to make sure the butter and honey don’t just slide right off.
DO YOU HAVE TO COOK A HAM
It depends. Most hams you buy at a grocery store are pre-cooked and/or smoked, which means you don’t have to cook them. You certainly can if you want to, but it comes down to whether you want cold or warm ham to serve. Just double check the package when you’re buying… if it doesn’t say pre-cooked or smoked, head over to the meat counter and ask the butcher to be sure.
VARIATIONS OF THIS RECIPE
- BOURBON – Not traditional to a Honey Baked Ham, but oh so delicious! Instead of using water or ham juices to make the glaze, try using some of your favorite bourbon.
- OVEN – Bake ham, covered loosely in foil, at 275 F degrees on a foil lined roasting pan or super heavy duty rimmed baking sheet. Bake for approximately 12-15 minutes per pound. Then glaze as directed in the recipe and broil.
- ROOM TEMPERATURE – if your ham is smoked or pre-cooked, you don’t have to warm it at all. Take the ham out of the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Massage the ham with the butter and honey mixture, then glaze as directed in recipe and broil.
MAKING COPYCAT HONEY BAKED HAM AHEAD OF TIME
I’ve not made this entire ham ahead of time, so I can’t guarantee the flavor and freshness if you make it that way.
However, you can combine all your dry glaze ingredients (sugar, seasoned salt, onion powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, paprika and allspice), and store in an airtight container.
STORAGE
Leftovers should be refrigerated in an airtight container and consumed within 4 days. Leftovers can also be frozen.
You’ll probably have quite a bit of ham leftover, so here are my personal favorites to use up those leftovers (aside from a classic ham sandwich!).
With Easter coming up, it’s the perfect time to watch your grocery store for the prices of bone-in half hams to go down. When you see them on sale, grab one! They can be frozen if need be. This way you can save even MORE on your main dish for the holiday get together!
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT FOR THIS RECIPE
- Slow Cooker – this 7 qt slow cooker is big enough to hold most 8 lb spiral hams without too much trimming. Plus, it’s programmable!
BE SURE TO SCROLL DOWN TO CHECK OUT OTHER READERS’ COMMENTS FOR TIPS AND REVIEWS.
AND DON’T FORGET, IF YOU’VE MADE THIS RECIPE, LEAVE A COMMENT AND PLEASE GIVE IT A STAR RATING LETTING ME KNOW HOW YOU ENJOYED IT!
Recipe originally published in Feb. 2018 and has been updated in Mar. 2020 with additional information.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 8 lb bone-in spiral sliced half ham
- 2 Tbsp butter, melted
- 3 Tbsp honey
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- pinch of allspice
Instructions
- Trim ham if needed, then place in slow cooker. Combine melted butter and honey, then massage over ham, getting in between the slices a little. Cover and cook on LOW 4-5 hours.
- At the end of the cooking time, preheat broiler to HIGH, and line a roasting pan with heavy duty aluminum foil.
- Combine sugar, seasoned salt, onion powder, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground ginger, ground cloves, paprika and allspice in a small bowl. Pat half of the sugar mixture over the top of the ham.
- Broil for several minutes, until bubbly and caramelized, then remove from oven.
- To a small saucepan, add remaining sugar mixture. Add 3 Tbsp of either water or ham juices from bottom of the slow cooker. A combination of water/ham juice and bourbon is a nice alternative! Stir, and heat to a boil. Boil for about a minute, then remove from heat.
- Brush or pour glaze over the ham, then broil again for a minute or two (careful... don't let it burn!). Remove from oven and let ham rest for 5-10 minutes.
- Serve warm or cold and enjoy!
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Chef Tips
- Preheat oven to 275 F degrees. Adjust oven rack to the lower third position. Line a roasting pan or large dutch oven with a long strip of foil (heavy duty works best).
- Position ham flat side down in center of pan.
- Brush with honey/butter mixture, if possible, getting some in between the slices.
- Bring sides of the foil up over the ham and cover loosely. If needed, add a sheet of foil over the top.
- Bake approximately 12-15 minutes per pound. An 8 lb ham will take approximately 1 hour 30-40 minutes.
- Continue with steps 2-7 as directed.
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Kierra VanEaton says
what if the ham comes with a pack of dry glaze ? can the sugar portion be omitted,’or should i just add to it ?
The Chunky Chef says
I prefer to not use those packets and use this sugar glaze instead.
Denise Salazar says
My grand children loves it.
Sur Rose says
So good. Great job Chunky Chef, recipe was so easy and no more buying expensive hams.
Christopher P Pergram says
You said you try to get it between the slices? Do you cut the ham first?
The Chunky Chef says
This recipe is made using a spiral sliced ham, so it comes pre-sliced. If your ham isn’t sliced, you can either slice it ahead of time, or just slather the honey and butter over the top and slice it afterwards.
Tripp Long says
Made it and it was delicious
Kelly says
Can you use the same measurements if you have an almost 10lb ham?
The Chunky Chef says
You’ll want to alter them a little. If you hover over the servings number, a toggle bar will appear. You can slide it either way, but in your case you’d want to slide it until the ham size changes to 10lbs. Then the recipe card will automatically calculate the new ingredient amounts 🙂
Anonymous says
I used to work at a honey baked ham and I enjoy seeing all the copy cat recipes. But they all get it wrong.
The secret to making a true honey baked ham is having it pre-spiraled and the glaze. And guess what? The thing is, it has no butter or brown sugar, and is applied in a dry form.
Yes. Dry. The way the hams are glazed is by sifting layers (8 to be exact) of plain white sugar on to the top of the ham and using a blow torch to melt it just like you would a crème brûlée. You only add the dry spices after the 8 layers of white sugar and use the same technique, a blow torch. The spices come in a “secret ingredient bag” but contain ground cloves, ginger, all spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg, all mixed together into a powder of spices. Then they are sifted onto the top of the sugar in 3 layers and blow torched. The spices will crackle and spark as you flame them, so don’t freak out. Now this is key, never glaze the ham when hot. Do it at room temperature and let it sit in fridge over night. Yes I said you cook it the day before and let it rest over night after you glaze it. Why? Because the caramelized sugar will melt in the fridge slightly allowing all the juices to run into the cut slices. Pull the ham out of the fridge and let it sit covered at room temperature 3-5 hours before eating depending on the size. And that is the key to an authentic honey baked ham.
The Chunky Chef says
Interesting! I never claim to have the exact recipe, just a version that tastes pretty darn close 🙂 You should start a website and share these recipes!
Shines says
How much liquid do you put into the slow cooker with the ham to cook?
The Chunky Chef says
No liquid is necessary, the ham steams in it’s own juices.
Cathy says
Is it possible to make the ham low sodium (https://www.saltylifemom.com/low-sodium-easter-ham/) before making this recipe?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if that would work, but I’m guessing it would be just fine. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Jmiguel says
Do you know what the process would be with a turkey breast? Cooking time?
The Chunky Chef says
Is your turkey breast boneless? Bone-in? Single breast or double? Those factors will all effect the cooking time.
Nicole says
Made this last year and can’t wait to make it again! I’ve shared this recipe with everyone I know that’s said they will be making a ham
Peggy says
We love Honey Baked Ham too. Can we fix this recipe in electric smoker and if so what wood chips to use?
The Chunky Chef says
I wouldn’t do that unless your ham is uncooked. Most hams you buy from the store are already smoked (cooked), so I wouldn’t smoke it again.
Laura Tilley says
I have a whole spiral cut ham. Would it benefit me to have a butcher cut it in half?
The Chunky Chef says
How many pounds is it? I guess it depends on how you plan to heat the ham up (oven versus slow cooker), and how many people you want to feed. You can easily double the recipe (minus the ham, since you already have it), but I doubt a whole ham would fit in a slow cooker. If you do want to cut it in half, then yes, I would see if a butcher could do it for you 🙂
Lisa Dobbs says
Very tasty!
Jenna McCarthy says
Easy to make an absolutely delicious- I used only like a 4-4lb ham …
June Westlin says
Excellent every bit as Good as the one I one I purchased at the Honey Baked Store.
Tanya says
Turns out EXACTLY like a Honey Baked Ham – I mean EXACTLY! I’m so thankful for this recipe- think of all the money I’ll save!!!! Thanks Amanda!
I used the slow cooker method! The spices are spot on!
Lee B. says
Best ham I’ve ever made! The ham was moist and had great flavor. This is my go to recipe from now on!
Mary says
Family loved it. Used the oven warming method, put a cup of water in the pan and covered it. Very moist. I will definitely use this recipe again.
Yvonne says
Tired this for Easter. Best ham ever. Everyone else concurred. Will always make mine line this from now on. I baked mine in the oven. i was out of Allspice so since it was just a pinch I left it out. Thank you for sharing this recipe.