How To Cook A Spiral Cut Ham

A spiral cut ham is a very popular dinner to have during the Holidays, especially on Christmas and Easter. When you buy a Bone-In Spiral Ham at the grocery store or butcher, it comes smoked which means it is fully cooked, and cut around the bone into serving slices. They are generally 7-10 lbs. and will serve anywhere from 10-20 people. I am going to share with you how to reheat and glaze your Spiral Cut Ham so it comes out perfectly juicy and delicious. Plus how to cut the spiral cut ham for serving.

Spiral Cut Smoked Ham is an economical choice over some other popular holiday entrees like prime rib or beef tenderloin. You will pay around $2-$4 per pound for your ham, where as a prime rib or beef tenderloin will be closer to $15-$30 per pound, or more!

One of our favorite spiral cut hams to purchase is the Kirkland Applewood Smoked Spiral Sliced Ham from Costco. Look for the one that comes wrapped in gold foil and is available at Easter and Christmas… possibly Thanksgiving too. (There is a picture further down)

How Long To Cook A Spiral Ham

A spiral sliced ham is generally smoked and therefore comes fully cooked when you buy it at the grocery store or butcher. So when we talk about “cooking a smoked ham”, you are really just reheating it for serving.

The very first thing you want to do is take note of the weight of your ham. This will help you determine exactly how long you are going to cook it for.

You will achieve the best outcome for your ham if you cook it “low and slow”. This means that you will cook at a lower temp, 300°F, for about 12 minutes per pound. The ham pictured was 7.92 lbs. So I just multiplied 7.92 x 12 minutes = 95 minutes.

The 95 minutes does not include the time for caramelizing the glaze. That will take an additional 20 minutes at 400°F… you can find all of those directions in the recipe card below.

How To Cook A Spiral Ham

This is a quick overview of how to cook your spiral ham, for all the detailed instructions and measurements, pop down to the recipe card.

Glaze Recipes for Spiral Cut Ham

Glazes can be super simple to make. Generally they contain some kind of sugar like brown sugar or agave, a flavor component like fruit, jams, liqueurs, herbs or chutneys, and a savory ingredient like garlic, soy sauce, or Dijon mustard.

Sometimes your ham will also come with a glaze packet that you reconstitute with water or juice. These are definitely okay to use, we just find that they are overly sweet.

Here are a few glaze recipes that would be amazing for your Spiral Cut Ham:

• Classic Brown Sugar and Mustard Glaze
• Marmalade Ham Glaze
• Mango Chutney and Garlic Glaze
• Bourbon Maple Ham Glaze

Tips for Cooking a Spiral Ham Perfectly

1. Take note of the weight of the ham, this will determine your cook time.
2. Retain the ham juices from the packaging and pour into the roasting pan. Helps keep things moist!
3. Remove the plastic bone cover from the cut side of the ham before cooking.
4. Cover the pan tightly with foil to keep your ham from drying out.
5. The ham is already fully cooked. You are just warming it low and slow.
6. Totally acceptable to cook the ham to 110°F internal temp.
7. Don’t over-cook and dry out the ham, 12 minutes per pound at 300°F.
8. Use a homemade glaze to give your spiral cut smoked ham really delicious flavor.
9. Plan on ½ pound of bone-in ham per person.

How to Cut and Serve Spiral Cut Ham

The nice thing about a bone-in spiral cut smoked ham is that it is already sliced in serving slices. However they are still attached to the ham as a whole via the bone in the center.

Here is how to cut the ham into serving slices:

1. Set the ham on it’s side so that the bone is visible. Two large forks will make easy work of moving or turning your ham.
2. Run a long sharp knife around the bone. This will loosen all the slices.
3. You can now pull the slices off of the ham, actually they may fall off as you cut.
4. The ham slices will have natural seams or fat lines, so don’t be alarmed if the slices fall into 2 or 3 pieces each. That actually makes them a more manageable size for serving. (FYI-the really dark pieces on the bottom are the most tender and juicy)
5. You can leave the slices on the cutting board for people to serve themselves, or plate the slices on a serving platter and take to the table.
6. Serve additional glaze on the side.

Cooking Spiral Ham: How Much Do I Need?

When you are planning on serving a crowd it can be hard to estimate how much ham you are going to need. With a bone-in spiral sliced ham, take into account the weight of the bone, it is a good idea to plan on ½ lb. per person.

7-8 lb. should serve around 10-16 people.

8-9 lb. should serve around 16-18 people

9-10 lb. should serve around 18-20 people

What To Serve with Spiral Cut Smoked Ham

If you are making a whole Spiral Country Ham you will want some comfort food side dishes to enjoy! Our very favorite combo are these Cheesy Potatoes, Green Beans and Deviled Eggs. Add some really good dinner rolls and butter and you are SET!

If you are planning an Easter Dinner, then we have a GREAT post that shares a complete Easter Dinner Menu for 10 People:

If you are planning on making ham for Christmas Dinner you will want classic Holiday side dishes like:

• Mashed Potatoes
• Gravy
• Traditional Stuffing or Sausage Stuffing
• Green Bean Casserole Or Corn Casserole
• Cranberries
• Roasted Asparagus

Storing Leftover Ham

Generally when you are serving ham, you will have leftovers. They make great ham sandwiches or we have plenty of leftover ham recipes available on Mom’s Dinner.

Keep leftover ham in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 5 days. You can reheat to eat or just snack on the cold ham!

You can also freeze leftover ham. It will be good in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight to use.

Also plan to use the ham bone in recipes. It has a TON of flavor and can be used in things like ham and bean soup or green beans with ham. The ham bone can also be frozen for up to 3 months.

Leftover Ham Recipes

Most likely you will have some ham leftover after your feast. If anything, you will definitely have a ham bone leftover (don’t toss it!!!). We have a whole post including 35 recipes to use up your leftover ham. Here are some of our faves:

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