This bourbon brown sugar glazed ham is the perfect centrepiece for your Christmas table. With a sweet, lightly spiced and super sticky glaze, this simple baked leg ham will be the hit of your festive feast! With brown sugar and bourbon combined with orange juice, Dijon mustard, ground ginger and cloves this is the only glazed ham recipe you’ll need from now on!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ tried this last year and it was a hit with everyone! getting ready to do it again this year. definitely recommend, you won’t be disappointed! – kate
Ok let me be dramatic here because I have been eating glazed ham for Christmas basically every single year my entire life and this is unquestionably the best glazed ham I’ve ever eaten. And it’s not just me. I served this up to some family and it got very surprised and delighted reactions because even a good glazed ham usually doesn’t taste this good.
Even when I used the leftover ham in other recipes, they tasted better because the flavour of this ham is so ridiculous. I know everyone has their go-to baked ham recipes but you really need to consider making this. I certainly will be making it again for Christmas day!
Now the funny thing is that this ham glaze recipe started because I had some leftover bourbon in the pantry from my gingerbread whiskey sour cocktails. So I basically took the combination of bourbon, sugar, spices and orange juice from that drink and made it into a sticky glaze for the ham. And oh wow it was so much better than I expected.
Everything just works so well together. It’s perfectly sweet with a little spice. It gives the ham a strong flavour but not one that overpowers it, but rather it just brings out all the natural, delicious flavour of a smoked ham. And have I convinced you to make it yet??
Key Ingredients
This bourbon brown sugar glazed ham uses a few key ingredients to make a delicious sweet and sticky glazed for your ham.
You’ll notice that I am not recommending any substitutions for any ingredients as this combination is what I know to work to create what I think is the best tasting glazed ham ever. Of course, feel free to experiment and change it up based on what you like and have on hand, however I cannot guarantee you’ll get the same end result.
Note all ingredients and their quantities are laid out in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Ham – for this recipe, you’re looking for a bone-in, half-leg ham. I like to use the shank end as it looks better for presentation and you can hold the end while carving. I just used a single smoked ham here but you can use a double smoked ham as well.
- Brown sugar – just regular light brown sugar is going to give the glaze that caramelised, sticky finish and add so much flavour. Dark brown sugar may be too overpowering.
- Bourbon – you can use any you like. This will add a lot of flavour and depth to the glaze.
- Orange juice – I prefer freshly squeezed orange juice for the best flavour but you can use bottled, just make sure it’s one without any additives and extra sugars added.
- Dijon mustard – adds a delicious mild, tangy flavour that is a perfect match to the ham.
- Apple cider vinegar – works to help balance the sweetness from the brown sugar and orange juice.
- Spices – I like a combination of ground ginger and cloves. They are not too overpowering but add a subtle spiced flavour that works perfectly to balance the sweetness and give this ham an incredible flavour.
Step-By-Step Instructions
The first thing you want to do is prepare the ham. Get it out of the fridge about 30-60 minutes before you’re ready to cook as allowing it to come to room temperature before baking will help it cook more evenly and prevent the edges from drying out.
Next you’ll need to remove the skin, keeping the fat in place. It’s important that we don’t remove that layer of fat as that is going to be what keeps the ham moist while baking. To remove the skin, first cut around the shank end (where the bone is), about 10 cm up. Next, take your knife and cut around the skin on the cut end of the ham.
Slide your fingers between the skin and the layer of fat and use them to work the skin off. Use the knife to cut through any stubborn bits until the skin is completely removed.
Next, using your small, sharp knife, score the ham fat in a diamond pattern by making shallow cuts about 2 cm apart in both directions. This is going to help the glaze penetrate the ham but also helps with the presentation.
Set the ham in the rack while you preheat the oven and make the glaze. In a small or medium saucepan, add all of the glaze ingredients and stir until the brown sugar dissolves, then simmer for 5-7 minutes until slightly thickened.
Using a pastry brush, brush the brown sugar bourbon glaze over the outside of the ham. Place the ham in a preheated oven for a total of 1 ½ hours. I like to have a second timer on hand to go off every 15 minutes to baste the ham with more of the glaze.
By the end, you should have a golden coloured baked ham with a sticky brown exterior. Take the ham out of the oven and allow it to rest for 15-30 minutes before carving.
Serving Suggestion: You can serve the ham on a large plate or platter with sliced oranges and rosemary to keep it looking super festive. I also had a little ribbon on hand which always adds that extra touch when tied around the shank end.
What to serve with glazed ham
Now every year, I make ham and I make these salt and vinegar smashed potatoes. So if you want to know what I am eating on Christmas day, then that’s it. I’ll probably also serve this roasted vegetable salad or this roasted broccoli salad on the side.
Other contenders for sides include, dairy free potato salad (always a crowd favourite), dairy free cauliflower cheese bake or these simple air fryer roasted potatoes.
You can also serve up the sliced ham cold with some bread rolls and salad for a simple lunch.
Storage and freezing instructions
Once the ham has cooled to room temperature, you can store it in the fridge or freezer depending on how quickly you expect to eat it.
You can wrap the ham tightly in aluminium foil, plastic wrap, or place it in an airtight container to prevent drying out, but the best method is to use a ham bag. The ham should last around a week – honestly sometimes longer.
You can also portion the ham and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months.
👉 And if you want to know what to do with leftover ham, then stay tuned because I have an epic post in the making with so many ideas you’ll want to buy another ham just to be able to make them all.
Recipe FAQs
While I did say I wasn’t going to provide substitutions, if you are alcohol free you can sub the bourbon with additional orange juice. This way you’ll have a brown sugar orange glaze that will have a slightly different flavour profile but will still be delicious.
Scoring the fat allows the glaze to seep into the surface, flavouring the ham while also creating a beautiful, caramelised crust. It also helps the fat render more evenly.
Yes you can! You can prepare the glaze itself up to 3 days in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge, and reheat it gently before using. Otherwise if you want to serve the ham cold, you can cook the ham, allow it to cool and then store in the fridge until ready to serve.
If you do make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below! And tag any of your creations on Instagram with @eightforestlane as I would love to see.
More recipes for your Christmas table:
Air Fryer Roast Pork
Grilled Prawns
Mango and Avocado Salad
Air Fryer Roast Chicken
Bourbon Brown Sugar Glazed Ham
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 half leg, bone-in cooked ham about 4-5 kg
- 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
- ½ cup bourbon
- ½ cup orange juice
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
Instructions
- Remove the ham from the fridge 30-60 minutes and allow it to come to room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Prepare the Ham. Using a sharp knife, carefully remove the skin from the ham, leaving a thin layer of fat underneath. You can do this by cutting the skin around the shank end, about 10 cm up and running a small knife around the large cut edge of the skin and using your hands to help peel back the skin.
- Score the fat in a diamond pattern by making shallow cuts about 2 cm apart in both directions.
- Place the ham on a roasting rack in a large baking dish and add 2 cups of water to the base of the dish to keep the ham moist and prevent the glaze drippings from burning.
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar, bourbon, orange juice, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, ground ginger, and ground cloves. Stir until the brown sugar dissolves, then simmer for 5-7 minutes until slightly thickened.
- Brush the ham generously with the glaze, making sure to get it into the scored cuts. Place the ham in the oven and bake for 1 ½ hours, basting with more glaze every 15 minutes. If the shank end starts to burn you can cover it with foil.
- Once the glaze is caramelised and the ham is golden-brown you can remove it from the oven and let it rest for 15-30 minutes before carving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a guide only and is calculated using automated online tools, therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe.
Kate says
Tried this last year and it was a hit with everyone! Getting ready to do it again this year. Definitely recommend, you won’t be disappointed!
Sally says
So great to hear! Thanks Kate.