After living in the US for more than 4 years, my cooking style has changed quite a bit. I’ve started to cook more American food, especially when it comes to the holiday season. Sometimes I add Asian elements to American comfort food, to keep the dish interesting while maintaining a level of comfort. This Thanksgiving we made curried green bean casserole and it was a big hit. This Christmas we’re thinking about serving Peanut Butter Eggnog Milk Tea, Soft Cinnamon Rolls with Sesame, Roasted Kabocha Squash Soup, Asian Pear Salad, and this gorgeous Pineapple Glazed Ham.
Why this recipe
Cooking a whole bone-in ham is intimidating. It’s an expensive cut of meat and you definitely want a reliable recipe for it.
It’s super easy to put together. The result is a beautiful shiny, sticky glaze that is interesting enough to be different from your traditional glazed ham but still comforting enough for your guests. You can use either spiral-cut ham or skin-on ham, and fully cooked or partially cooked ham. The instructions for each of these are included in the recipe. You can make the glazed ham in advance and reheat it on the day of your party, further reducing your pressure as host.
Ingredients you need
You can see the ingredients for the glaze in the picture below.
If you’ve been cooking Chinese recipes from my blog, you probably have most of these ingredients in your pantry. If not, you can find most of them in a regular grocery store. The only tricky ingredient might be the Shaoxing wine. You can replace it with dry sherry (possible to find in most liquor stores) or rice wine (Japanese sake). If you prefer not to use alcohol, you can skip the wine altogether.
What type of ham to use
There are a few types of ham you could use for this recipe.
Bone-in, fully-cooked, spiral-cut ham
It means the ham is cured, smoked, cooked, and ready to eat right out of the package. It’s also pre-cut into slices which makes it easier to serve. It means that you simply need to heat up the ham and serve it. This recipe uses a low temperature, to ensure the glaze will thicken and the surface will be browned, while maintaining a juicy texture without drying out the meat. I recommend this cut if you want to use the minimal prep and cooking time (like I did!).
Bone-in, fully-cooked, skin-on ham
The ham is cured, smoked, and fully cooked with the skin on. You will need to remove the skin and score the fat into a crosshatch pattern before brushing on the glaze and baking. It might sound intimidating but is actually very easy to do. Watch this video to see how. The benefit of this method is that the ham is intact and has a layer of fat. The fat will keep the interior extra juicy once baked. I recommend this cut if you want to achieve the best result but do not mind a bit of extra work.
Bone-in partially-cooked ham
The ham is cured and smoked but requires further cooking. I don’t see a reason to use this cut, since it requires more cooking time. But I’ve included the method in the recipe, in case this is what you have available.
How much ham to buy
To determine the amount of ham to buy, you need to decide whether you want to serve it as a main dish or alongside other main courses.
With other main courses
1 lb (1/2 kg) per 4 people (minus the bone-in part, which is usually 2 lbs / 1 kg), with 4 oz. (120 g) per person
A 6-lb (3 kg) ham serves 16 people A 8-lb (3.5 kg) ham serves 24 people A 10-lb (4.5 kg) ham serves 32 people
Ham as the only main course
1 lbs (1/2 kg) per 2 people (minus the bone-in part, which is usually 2 lbs / 1 kg), with 8 oz. (250 g) per person
A 6-lb (3 kg) ham serves 8 people A 8-lb (3.5 kg) ham serves 12 people A 10-lb (4.5 kg) ham serves 16 people
Of course, you can always prepare a bit more so you will have leftovers to make other delicious ham dishes after the holiday.
How to make the glaze
You can make the glaze by simply combining all the ingredients for it in a saucepan and boiling it for 5 minutes. The sauce will thicken a bit once cooked, and a bit more once chilled.
There is one more step you can do to make your ham extra glazy. Add a cup of pineapple juice into your roasting pan. It will catch the juices and glaze that drip down from the ham. Once you’re done cooking, the pan drippings will form a thick, sticky sauce. You will apply that sauce to the finished ham, to give it a final thick layer of glaze for that glossy look.
Cooking process
Set up the ham on a wire rack in a roasting pan. Brush the glaze all over the ham. I usually apply 2 to 3 layers of glaze on the first pass, to make sure the ham is fully covered. Glaze the ham every 20 minutes. You will see the ham start to get charred after 1 hour or so. If the top of the ham starts to get too browned, cover with an aluminum dome to prevent burning. Once done, the ham will be beautifully browned all over and juicy inside.
Like I mentioned earlier, you will apply the pan juices onto the ham once the ham is baked, to give it an extra shiny and juicy look.
Other Asian inspired Christmas recipes
Sichuan Roasted Whole Chicken The Best Slow Roast Duck Cantonese Roast Chicken Candied Walnuts with Spice Easy Milk Bread Rolls Peanut Butter Eggnog Milk Tea
If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it @omnivorescookbook on Instagram! I’d love to see what you come up with. Lilja Walter is a part of the Omnivore’s Cookbook team and worked closely with Maggie to develop and test this recipe.
