Looking to transform that store-bought spiral ham into something truly memorable? Our smoked spiral ham with maple bourbon glaze takes a convenient holiday staple and elevates it through the magic of smoke and a sweet-spirited glaze.
Table of Contents
In this recipe:
The beauty of starting with a spiral-cut ham is the convenience – it’s already cooked and sliced, meaning our method focuses purely on adding flavor. By introducing it to your smoker and brushing it with our maple bourbon glaze, you’ll create layers of flavor that make this ham anything but ordinary.
What is Smoked Spiral Ham
Spiral ham is thinly sliced pre-cooked ham you can reheat and serve immediately. It’s typically bought and served for holiday meals like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and classic Easter dinner and can be found at your local grocery store around these seasons. Keep in mind pre-cooked country hams have more salt than regular spiral-cut hams when buying.
To amp up the pre-sliced hams, we skip the oven and put it on the smoker for twice smoked ham to make it even more delicious for serving. Cooking it low and slow will prevent the ham from drying out and lock in that fantastic smoky taste. We skip the classic brown sugar glaze and, instead, baste it with a lovely ham glaze full of bourbon and maple syrup for additional flavor.
Smoked Spiral Ham Ingredients
For the smoked spiral ham
- Spiral Cut Ham
- Mustard – acts as a binder
- GirlsCanGrill PK Pork Spice Blend
- OvertheFireCooking Maple Bourbon Spice Blend
- Bourbon
For the easy ham glaze:
- Maple syrup
- Bourbon
- Fig Chili Preserves (or your favorite preserves, anything with a little sweetness and heat is a great combo!)
How to Make Smoked Spiral Ham
Prep the Smoker
- The first step is to set your pellet smoker to 250 degrees F. Make sure the auger is full of pellets, and if using, add a smoker box or tube for extra smoke flavor! We love cherry wood chops, maple, or pecan smoking wood chips for this recipe.
Prep the ham
- Next, remove the ham from the package and pat dry. Finally, throw away the packaging materials and packaged ham glaze packet.
- Then, rub the outside of the ham with the mustard and season liberally with the spice blends.
- Place the whole ham on a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet.
Smoke the Spiral Ham
- Place the baking sheet on the preheated smoker and add the bourbon to the bottom of the pan.
- Smoke the ham for 3 to 3 ½ hours until the ham reaches an internal temperature of 140 degrees F with a reliable meat thermometer.
Make the maple bourbon glaze
- Meanwhile, whisk the ham glaze ingredients together in a small saucepan.
- Reduce by half over medium-low heat to create a thick but spreadable syrup. Set your glaze to the side and keep it warm until you’re ready to use it.
- With a basting brush, baste the ham every 15 minutes after 2 hours of smoking.
Rest and Serve
- When the smoked spiral sliced ham is done cooking and has reached 140F internally, remove the baking sheet from the grill and tent the ham with aluminum foil.
- Place ham on the counter and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
- To serve, follow the spiral serrations already on the ham and portion out slices.
- Garnish your ham with fresh rosemary and thyme, and serve the reserved maple bourbon glaze on the side for anyone who wants more.
What to Serve With Smoked Spiral Ham
Traeger Spiral Ham honestly goes with anything. Serve it with your favorite side dishes like:
- Smoked Brussels Sprouts
- Dutch Oven Mac and Cheese
- Cheesy Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Keto cranberry sauce
- Green Beans
- Collard Greens
- Buttery dinner rolls.
Or anything else you like to see on your holiday table!
Storage and Leftovers
To store your leftover ham, transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the fridge for 3-5 days.
We love sneaking in and grabbing one of the pre-sliced portions and piling them on leftover biscuits for quick bites!
To reheat your leftover ham, place it on a baking sheet and stick it in the oven at 350 degrees f until it’s warm. If you’re in a hurry, you can pop individual slices in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. Or reheat individual slices as ham steaks for grilled ham steaks or glazed ham steak dinners!
Once the entire family has devoured all the sliced ham, remove the rest from the bone and portion for later. You can use the ham bone in stocks or for added flavors in beans and greens.
Dice up any leftover smoked ham and store it in ziplock bags. Who doesn’t love leftover ham? This twice-smoked spiral ham goes with everything and makes your next couple of lunches easy.
Ways to use Leftover ham:
- Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup
- Diner-style Ham and Cheese Omelets
- Holiday Stratas or frittatas
- Diced into quesadillas
And pretty much anywhere you can think to use it!
There’s nothing like cutting into a Traeger Smoked Ham on Christmas Day. So next time you need an easy holiday meal or a delicious Sunday dinner, give this double-smoked ham a try; it will rock your world.
MORE DELICIOUS SMOKED HOLIDAY RECIPES
Beef Recipes
The Best Smoked Prime Rib on a Pellet Grill
Recipes With Pork
Smoked Pork Crown Roast
Recipes With Pork
Smoked Rack of Pork
Beef Recipes
Reverse Seared Prime Rib
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Smoked Spiral Ham Recipe with Maple Bourbon Glaze
Recommended Equipment
- pellet smoker or grill
Ingredients
For the smoked spiral ham
- 8 lbs Spiral sliced ham bone in
- 3 tbsp mustard
- 2 tbsp GirlsCanGrill PK Pork Spice Blend
- 1 tbsp OvertheFireCooking Maple Bourbon Spice Blend
- ½ cup Bourbon
For the easy ham glaze:
- 1/2 cup Maple syrup We use Choczero syrup to keep it keto
- 1/2 cup Bourbon
- 1/4 cup Fig chili preserves or your favorite preserves
Instructions
Prep the Smoker:
- Set your pellet smoker to 250 degrees F. Make sure the auger is full of pellets and if using, add a smoker box or tube for added smoke flavor.
Prep the Ham:
- Remove the ham from the package and pat dry. Throw away the packaged ham glaze.
- Rub the ham with the mustard and season liberally with the spice blends on all sides.
- Place the ham on a wire rack in on a rimmed baking sheet.
Smoke the Spiral Ham:
- Place the baking sheet on the preheated smoker and add the bourbon to the bottom of the pan.
- Smoke the ham for 3 to 3 ½ hours until the ham reaches and internal temperature of 140 degrees F with a meat thermometer.
Make the Maple Bourbon Glaze:
- Meanwhile, whisk the ham glaze ingredients together in a small pot.
- Reduce by half over medium-low heat to create a thick but still spreadable syrup.
- Keep warm.
Glaze the Ham:
- Baste the ham every 15 minutes after 2 hours of smoking.
Rest:
- When the ham has reached 140F internally, remove the baking sheet from the grill and tent the ham with foil.
- Allow it to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Serve:
- To serve, follow the spiral serrations already on the ham and portion out slices.
- Garnish with fresh rosemary and thyme and serve the reserved maple bourbon glaze on the side for anyone who wants more.
Notes
- Spiral ham is already cooked, so technically you are reheating it (or double smoking it) to 140 degrees F just to make it delicious for serving)
- We love adding a blend of wood chips to the smoker for this cook. We use maple and cherry or maple and oak for added depth of flavor.
Nutrition
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Recipe FAQs
Wondering how to smoke a ham? Set your pellet smoke to 250F, prep your ham, place it on a baking sheet, put it in the smoker, and close the lid. Allow it to cook for about 3 to 3 1/2 hours until it’s heated to an internal temperature of 140 degrees F. If you want more detailed instructions, follow our recipe below. We walk you through the entire smoking process.
It depends on the size of your ham and the temperature you are cooking. For example, an 8-pound ham will take about 3 – 3.5 hours at 250 degrees F; Or about 15 minutes per pound in the pellet grill.
Essentially, you’re reheating an already cooked hunk of meat, so you are going for warm enough to serve, not food safety, which is about 140 degrees F with a digital thermometer.
When picking a ham to serve a large group, plan on about 1/2 pound per person for a bone-in ham or 1/3 pound per person for boneless ham – bone-in is heavier than boneless. So if you are serving 15 people, you’d need a 5-pound boneless ham or an 8-pound bone-in ham).
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