Tender, juicy, succulent ham with a sweet and tangy pineapple honey glaze that will put you in the holiday spirit.
This is the perfect ham recipe for x mas and definitely a crowd pleaser that will have your family begging you to make it for years to come.
Hey PBJ’s im back with another Holiday recipe and this time, a main dish, Pineapple honey glazed ham. As I said in my last posted chitterlings recipe, Thanksgiving is over, but the holidays, sure enough, aren’t.
So, although I didn’t get all these delicious holiday recipes up to you before the big dinner, Thanksgiving, you can still use them for Christmas and New Year’s dinner, and of course, they’ll still be here for next Thanksgiving.
I’m ecstatic to share this particular recipe because Ham was probably my favorite thing [meat] to eat during Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. It’s the one thing I looked forward to eating the most.
A Family Holiday Tradition
Ham was a family holiday tradition for us. For Thanksgiving, it was always Turkey and Ham. Those were the two big chunks of meat I remember taking up half of my grandma’s dinner table for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. Lol!
Thanksgiving was the only time my grandma would make it so I definitely looked forward to it because I only had it once a year. I loved pulling off the pineapples and cherries and eating them once the ham was done.
Childhood Memories of Christmas Ham
I can remember helping my grand Val place the pineapples and cherries over the ham and pin them with toothpicks. That was also so cool to me. My grandma would pin them in a away where you couldn’t see the toothpicks.
So I remember as a kid, wondering how the pineapples and cherries were able to stay on top of the ham. Hahaha! I keep telling yall I had an imaginary mind and was always very curious about everything. Lol!
I have two childhood memories I want to share, 1 of which I’ll share later, and that’s of my Grandma adamantly saying, “Boy, don’t eat all that fat”! As we all know, ham can be very fatty, especially around the edges, where you’ll find thick layers of white fat.
I’d never pay that any mind because I was too busy devouring it to care. I do remember biting into a bit of chunk of ham fat and thinking, “This is so flavorful”. While I still look to suck on the fat which gives flavor, you’ll never find me eating it now.
I remember my other nana, Alice Mea, going to the grocery store around Thanksgiving and Christmas and seeing her flip several hams over 3 to 4 times to see which one she wanted to buy. I now see why, although I didn’t understand it back then.
But checking to make sure your meat is a thing I now do as an adult. I also check to see if my ham is meaty. Most fat on the ham can be seen on the sides. It’s not in the center, so it’s easy to tell how fatty a ham is.
While fat is important for flavor, some hams can be too fatty, and so when I flip the ham over, I find a ham that’s nearly 90% pink in color, which means it’s meaty. The pinkish color is the meat, and the whitish color is fat.
How to clean the ham
Ok, so I like to clean my meat because that’s how I was raised, and there’s always a debate about whether or not cleaning meat is necessary because some believe the bacteria, if any, that’s on it will die in the heat.
But when it comes to ham, cleaning is a must for me. I often see too much foreign debris on the ham every time I take one out of the package it’s in.
So here are some of the cleaning solutions you can use. I scrub the outside of the ham with one of these solutions, rinse it very well, and pat it dry with a towel.
No matter which one I decide to use I always stick with the same ratio: 1 Tablespoon per quart of water.
- Salt water: I usually clean my meats and vegetables using a combination of salt and water. This is probably the most common solution.
- Baking soda and water: Baking soda and water are a great cleaning solution and a very effective way to remove debris and germs as well.
- Vinegar and water: Vinegar and water is another common option; use white vinegar.
- Lemon/lime juice and water: Lemon or lime juice and water are great cleaning solutions, but they are more popular in the Caribbean than in the States.
Carving deep cuts vs injecting ham
Marinating food has been practiced in the culinary world for many years. People use dry rubs, liquids like marinades, and, most importantly, TIME to inject flavor into meat.
The goal is to not just season or add flavor to the top of your meat but below the layers of meat so you can taste the flavor inside every bite of meat, which makes for a better, more enjoyable dish.
Since ham is large, just like a Turkey, it will take forever to get the flavor to seep through to the center of the meat, so carving holes into the meat and injecting it with flavor is the more effective and convenient option.
- Pre-Sliced Spiral Ham: A spiral ham is your best alternative to all of this because with this ham, you dont have to worry about injecting it with flavor since it’s already sliced into several pieces leading to the center.
- Injector: This is best alternative because you can inject flavor directly into the meat. Be sure to do this slowly because the juices will squirt out of holes. Also, inject every part of the ham so that the flavor is thoroughly and evenly distributed throughout the ham.
- Carve holes into it: Carving deep crevices into the ham is also an effective way to inject flavor into the core of the meat. It’s similar to how cooks and chefs poke holes into their chicken, steak, or salmon before marinating or seasoning it.
How to make the pineapple honey glaze
Now, when it comes to glaze I keep it simple with a few ingredients. I use butter, brown sugar for sweetness honey to give it a nice consistency, and pineapple juice for tart. I also add a slurry to thicken the glaze, which consist of water and cornstarch.
- First Step: Place a pot over medium heat and add in the butter and brown sugar. Stir it in well until it’s dissolved and glistening.
- Second Step: Stir in the honey and pineapple juice until well blended.
- Third Step: Create the slurry by combining a little water and cornstarch until smooth then stirring it into the pot.
- Fourth Step: Simmer until it thickens, about 10 minutes. Make sure to stir periodically.
Ingredients:
- Ham: The main ingredient here.
- Mustard: It’s a gluing agent that helps the spices stick to the ham during the early cooking stage. It also adds flavor. Mustard does wonders for ham and balances out the sweetness with a hint of tart.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: Apple cider vinegar adds depth of flavor and adds a little tang to the ham and glaze.
- Spices: Brown Sugar provides a hint of sweetness and add a mild molasses flavor and the Ground Cloves, Ground Ginger, and black pepper makes the ham taste like Christmas.
- Pineapples and cherries: The pineapples and cherries are solely for decoration purposes.
Glaze ingredients
- Butter: Butter is for depth of flavor
- Brown Sugar and honey: The brown sugar and honey are both for sweetness and depth of flavor and the honey helps with the consistency of the glaze and gives it a glossy appearance.
- Pineapple juice and water: Pineapple juice is for the flavor and the water is for the slurry to smooth out the cornstarch.
- Cornstarch: Helps to thicken the glaze.
How to make Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham
- Carve horizontal and vertical lines/cuts into and all around the ham.
- Rub all sides of the ham down with a thin layer or mustard.
- Pat the brown sugar, black pepper, glove, and ginger all over the ham making sure each part of covered.
- Pour the vinegar into the casserole dish around the ham.
- Pin the pineapples and cherries.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Place a saucepan over medium heat and add in the butter and brown sugar then stir.
- Stir in the honey and pineapple juice (You can use some cherry juice if you choose for color)
- Combine the water and cornstarch, pour and stir it into the glaze, and let it simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pour the glaze onto the ham and inject some into the ham if you choose too.
- Baste the ham every 20 minutes with the juices.
- Bake for 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until an instant thermometer reads 145 when poked in the center.
Tips For Best Results:
- Stir liquid: Lumps can sometimes form as the slurry thinkers into a glaze, so make sure to stir the liquid periodically as the ham bakes and the juices simmer.
- Baste ham: Baste the ham.. this will prevent the top of the ham and the pineapples from drying out and burning. Basting also keeps the inside moist as the juice flow into the center through the slits and crevices. It also helps to brown and give the ham a nice color.
- Check for doneness: Use an instant thermometer to check for doneness, especially if you’re a new cook. This is an easy way to tell if your ham is done. Stick it in the middle and if it reads 145, your ham can be removed. Check after at least 2 hours.
Serving Suggestions
Since ham is a holiday main dish, I’m going to give you a few sides and vegetable side dishes we commonly make to go along with it, especially for a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. Some of these dishes you can find right here on my blog.
- SIDE DISH OPTIONS: World’s Best Southern Potato Salad, World’s BEST Moist Southern Cornbread
- VEGETABLE SIDE DISH OPTIONS: World’s Best Southern Collard Greens, The Best Soul Food Style Candied Sweet Potatoes
Have any leftover Ham?
Ok, so about that other childhood memory. I have memories of one of my aunts waking up in the middle of the night at grandma’s house making ham sandwiches. We always found something to do with leftovers.
Aunt Pam, yea the same one I mentioned in my Simple Juicy Roasted Whole Chicken Recipe , who makes a chicken salad using leftover meat from baked whole chicken, would do something similar with leftover Thanksgiving turkey meat.
- Ham Sandwich: You can take that ham, slice it into long, thin pieces, and fry it for a few minutes over medium heat with onions. Then, place the fried ham and caramelized onions on a bun with mustard and live your best life.
- Ham in Mac n Cheese: Ham in baked macaroni and cheese is very popular nowadays. You can chop the leftover ham up into small pieces and add it to your macaroni and cheese like you would the cheese and bake it as usual.
- Ham in Lima Beans: Leftover ham is perfect for this dish. Instead of boiling ham hocks for hours until tender, simmer your beans as usual, then chop up the leftover ham into small pieces and add it to the pot of beans.
- Ham for Pizza: Ham on pizza is also a good idea. I haven’t tried doing this myself yet but I know people who love it will enjoy it. Chop the leftover ham into thin small pieces add it to the top of your pizza and enjoy.
Storage and reheating
- How do you store ham? Cover it with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store it in the refrigerator.
- Can you freeze a ham? Absolutely! Ham freezer greatly. Just ensure it’s fully sealed in a Ziploc bag so it doesn’t get freezer burn.
- How to reheat in a microwave: You can slice the ham up and place it in a microwave proof dish and reheat it for 1 minute. Let it go for another 30 secs if needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Do you cover it with aluminum foil? No! Covering the ham with aluminum foil isn’t needed. But to ensure it’s very tender, you can cover it for the first hour and some change, then continue baking it uncovered if it helps you have a Merry Christmas.
- How long does it last? Ham can last up to a week and for months if properly stored in the freezer.
Other holiday recipes you might like:
- The BEST New Year’s Eve Pig’s Feet Recipe
- Simple Juicy Oven Roasted Whole Chicken Recipe
- Gwen’s Southern Chitterlings (Chitlins) Recipe
Equipment:
- Knife: You need a knife to carve holes into the Ham.
- Baster: Make sure you have a baster to drizzle the liquid over the ham. This browns the ham and gives it an amazing color.
- Food Injector: This is the best option for getting flavor throughout and deep into the center core of the ham and layers of meat.
- Instant Thermometer: To check for doneness.
- Toothpicks: Have some toothpicks on deck to pin the pineapples and cherries.
- Casserole Dish: A large casserole dish or baking pan is needed to cook the ham.
- Measuring Cup: Measuring cups are needed to accurately measure the pineapple juice, brown sugar, honey, etc.
- Measuring Spoons: You need measuring spoons to measure the spices and other ingredients.
That’s it folks, it’s time to goooo! Get your ingredients, get in the kitchen, and get to cooking up this beautiful ham that’s will make your Christmas Merry.
If you love this ham and I know you will, please give me a 5 star rating and leave a review below letting the readers know how good it was. Also subscribe to receive notifications via email everytime I post a new recipe.
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Enjoy, later!
PBJ~
Print
Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham For Christmas
- Prep Time: 30 Mins
- Cook Time: 3 hrs
- Total Time: 3 Hrs 30 Mins
- Yield: 10-12
- Category: Holiday Season
- Method: American
- Cuisine: Soul Food
Description
Tender, juicy, succulent ham with a sweet and tangy pineapple honey glaze that will put you in the holiday spirit.Â
Ingredients
- 11 Lb In-Bone Shank Portion Ham
- Maraschinos Cherries
- (2) 10z Canned Pineapples Slices In Juice
- 1/4 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1/4 Cup Mustard
- 1 Cup Brown Sugar
- 2 Tsps Cinnamon
- 1 Tsp Ground Ginger Powder
- 1 Tsp Ground Clove
- 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
Pineapple Honey Glaze
- 3 Tbs Butter
- 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
- 1/2 Cup Honey
- 1–1/2 Cup Pineapple Juice
- 1/4 Cup Water
- 4 Tbs Cornstarch
Instructions
-
- Carve horizontal and vertical lines/cuts into and all around the ham.
- Rub all sides of the ham down with a thin layer or mustard.
- Pat the brown sugar, black pepper, glove, and ginger all over the ham making sure each part of covered.
- Pour the vinegar into the casserole dish around the ham.Â
- Pin the pineapples and cherries.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Place a saucepan over medium heat and add in the butter and brown sugar then stir.
- Stir in the honey and pineapple juice (You can use some cherry juice if you choose for color)
- Combine the water and cornstarch, pour and stir it into the glaze, and let it simmer for 10 minutes.
- Pour the glaze onto the ham and inject some into the ham if you choose too.
- Baste the ham every 20 minutes with the juices.
- Bake for 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until an instant thermometer reads 145 when poked in the center.
