Southern Baked Ham Recipe with 3-Ingredient Brown Sugar Glaze
Set this Southern baked ham recipe on the holiday table and watch everybody try to guess what’s in that shiny brown sugar glaze. It comes from my great-grandmother Lela, and her 3-ingredient glaze is just brown sugar, yellow mustard and a splash of Coke. A bone-in smoked ham bakes wrapped in foil for an hour, gets a second coat of glaze and bakes 30 minutes more uncovered, so you’re looking at about 1 hour 45 minutes plus a short rest before slicing.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Baked Ham With Brown Sugar Glaze
- Serves: 4
- Main Ingredients: approx 8-lb. smoked, ready-to-cook, bone-in ham, packed brown sugar, coke, yellow mustard
- Why You'll Love It: This recipe for baked ham features the easiest and tastiest 3-ingredient brown sugar glaze that makes your ham positively shine. Also, save that ham bone for other delicious recipes!
There’s no honey, ground cloves or pineapple rings in this ham glaze, and nobody misses them. A good baked ham is a wonderful main course for Easter, Christmas or any Sunday dinner, and the leftovers usually give me at least three more meals. One of my favorite ways to use them is to warm up some Jordan rolls the next morning, split them and layer in warm slices of ham for a quick breakfast with a cup of coffee. Save that ham bone with a little meat still on it, too. Pop it in a gallon-size bag in the freezer and it’ll flavor the best pot of pinto beans or Senate bean soup you’ve ever had.
There’s another great ham recipe in my cookbook that you won’t find on SouthernPlate.com, so be sure to check it out.
Why This Baked Ham Recipe Works
The Coke turns the brown sugar and mustard into a glaze that’s a lot looser than you’d expect, so it brushes right on and coats every part of the ham you can reach. Wrapping the ham in foil for the first hour keeps it juicy while it heats through, and then the second coat of glaze bakes uncovered so it can brown on the outside.
What You Need for Brown Sugar Glazed Ham
- Smoked ham: I use an 8-pound smoked, ready-to-cook, bone-in ham. Spiral-cut and boneless hams are out there too, but bone-in is the one I recommend for this recipe, and you get that ham bone for later.
- Brown sugar: Light or dark, whatever you have in the pantry.
- Coke: Any cola works, including Diet Coke or Diet Dr. Pepper. For a more traditional glaze, swap in orange juice, or try ginger ale if you dare.
- Yellow mustard: Just a tablespoon of plain yellow mustard balances out the sweetness.
Helpful Tips Before You Start
- Use a baking pan with sides. The ham juice will leak out, and if it gets in the bottom of your oven you’ll have quite the smell in your house.
- Heavy-duty foil is great if you have it, but regular foil works fine. No sense spending extra money when you don’t have to.
- No basting brush? Spoon the glaze over the ham in big gobs and smear it around.
- If the glaze doesn’t loosen up after stirring, add another tablespoon of Coke.
- I slice my ham with an electric knife I got for about $25, but a sharp regular knife works just fine.
How to Make a Baked Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze
1Stir the glaze
In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, Coke and mustard. It will turn a lot more liquid than you expect.
2Glaze and wrap the ham
Line a rimmed baking pan with foil and set the ham in the center. Brush half of the glaze over every part of the ham you can reach, then wrap the foil up and seal it well.
3Bake for 1 hour
Bake the wrapped ham at 350°F for 1 hour.
4Glaze again and bake uncovered
Peel the foil back without moving the ham and brush on the rest of the glaze. Return it to the oven uncovered for 30 minutes more, or until lightly browned.
5Rest and slice
Let the ham sit for about 10 minutes before slicing. If you need to serve it later, cover it with foil to keep it warm, but I suggest slicing within half an hour, because that’s about as long as anybody can stand waiting once they smell it.
What to Serve with Baked Ham
For a holiday or Easter ham, I like it with homemade mashed potatoes or mashed sweet potatoes, a pot of fresh green beans and a plate of Southern deviled eggs. Cheesy hashbrown casserole, candied sweet potatoes and a basket of homemade dinner rolls round it out nicely, and a cool tomato, onion and cucumber salad keeps things light. Planning a big holiday dinner? My holiday menu ideas have plenty more sides to pick from.
Baked Ham FAQs
How long do you bake a ham at 350 degrees?
For an 8-pound smoked, ready-to-cook, bone-in ham, I bake it wrapped in foil for 1 hour, then uncovered for 30 minutes more after the second coat of glaze. Hams vary, so check the label on yours for its heating instructions too.
Can you make a ham glaze without honey?
This one doesn’t use any honey at all. Brown sugar, yellow mustard and Coke make a sweet, tangy glaze that’s simple to stir together from what’s already in your pantry.
What can I use instead of Coke in ham glaze?
Any carbonated soda works, including Diet Coke or Diet Dr. Pepper. Orange juice makes a more traditional glaze, and ginger ale is fun if you want to try something different.
Southern Baked Ham with 3-Ingredient Brown Sugar Glaze
Ingredients
- 1 approx 8-lb. smoked, ready-to-cook, bone-in ham
- 1 cup packed brown sugar light or dark, whatever you have
- 2 tablespoons coke or your favorite carbonated soda
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Instructions
- Line a large pan with a lip around it with aluminum foil. Place the ham in the center of the foil.1 approx 8-lb. smoked, ready-to-cook, bone-in ham
- In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, coke, and mustard to make your glaze. Brush half of the glaze over the ham. Wrap the entire ham well in foil. Place in a 350-degree oven for 1 hour.1 cup packed brown sugar, 2 tablespoons coke, 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- Remove the ham from the oven and peel back the foil, but don't move the ham. Brush the remaining glaze over the ham and return to the oven, uncovered, for another 30 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Allow it to sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes or so before cutting. If you need to serve it later you can cover it with foil to keep it warm and let it sit on your stovetop. I suggest cutting it within half an hour of removing it from the oven because that is about as long as you'll be able to stand waiting once you smell it.
Notes
- Storage: Keep leftover ham in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Serve it cold or reheat it quickly in the microwave. Freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container or bag for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Soda swaps: Any cola works, including Diet Coke or Diet Dr. Pepper. Use orange juice for a more traditional glaze, or ginger ale for something different.
- Use a pan with sides: The ham juices will leak, and they’ll smoke if they drip into your oven.
- Ham: This recipe is written for a bone-in smoked ham. Check your ham’s label for its heating instructions.
- For a festive touch: Decorate the ham with maraschino cherries.
Nutrition
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LOL, I commented before I even read the recipe! Your glaze–looks so easy. The glaze I have always used has been brown sugar, mustard and pineapple juice out of the can of pineapple rings that I attached to my ham with toothpicks. 🙂
Ahhhh! Sunday dinners. When my parents were living and I was much younger (before I married and moved away), Sunday dinner was a time for the brothers and their families to come home. Both of them lived locally so it was pretty easy. I guess my favorite Sunday dinner was beef roast that had been cooked in the pressure cooker, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans that mom had canned out fo the garden that dad grew, mom’s corn casserole, and biscuits with grape jelly. Sometimes dessert was just a plain yellow cake with no icing that my dad would bake on Sunday morning or sometimes it was a fruit salad. Sometimes no dessert at all–just a second biscuit with butter and grape jelly. Almost always, we had sweet iced tea.
My parents have since passed away many, many years ago. I have been gone from home for many more years. So, the sunday dinner has gone by the wayside. However, when my house sells (pray for me on this issue that it happens soon), and I move back to WV, Sunday dinner will be come a tradition again. My two brothers live within 20 minutes of each other, and maybe see each other twice a year. I have discussed this with the wives and their children. This tradition will be started up again–not every week like it was when Mom and Dad were still living, but defintely once a month!!! I am SOOO excited. We are going to start BIG family Thanksgiving dinners and Christmas Dinners again with the SIBLINGS (my brothers and I) and all of the children who are close enough to make it. I have a niece whose family lives in TN, and I have two daughters who live near Savannah and in Germany respectively, so not everyone will be able to make it every time. But, the tables will always fit one more!!
I grew up in Alexander City,Alabama and no Sunday was complete in our house without Sunday dinner from the Springhill Dairy Quick. Their specialty was broasted chicken, slaw, rolls and crinkle-cut french fries. As a child I avoided the slaw with a passion, but I would fight to the death for the largest piece of chicken, which I would proceed to smother in ketchup. Happily full, I would excuse myself to the couch to watch the Sunday Shirley Temple movie that was shown every week. Sadly, the Springhill Dairy Quick is no longer with us. In the name of progress it was replaced several years ago by the new Green Front store(liquor store to you non-Alabamians) and Sundays have never been the same.
Sunday dinners were not a big deal when I was growing up, but I’m changing that for my children!!
My motto is “if I cook, they will come”. My oldest son is a senior. He invites as many friends as he wants on Sundays. The first Sunday I did this, one of his friendsnsaid it was her first home-cooked meal in two years. I was heart-broken for her.
Two weeks age that same girl helped make the apple pie for dessert!!
My younger children can’t wait to be the one who can have as many friends as they want. It has changed our Sundays forever.
I love it! I think I will adopt that motto as well, “If I cook, they will come.” What a wonderful FIELD OF DREAMS!!
We use to go to one or the other of my grandparents on Sunday after church. We’d go to one, one Sunday and the other, the next. After my mama’s mama died, we just went to my daddy’s mama’s. They use to let the kids and the men folks eat first. Then the women would eat. My Granny wouldn’t do all the cooking. Others chipped in too. After Granny got to old to take care of herself, we went to one of my aunts on Sundays. This continued for a long, long time. Loved all the good southern food!
We would always go to my grandmothers house nearby (she lived 10 mins away) and always had sunday dinner there. One of my favorite meals she made was chimichangas, but it always changed depending on what she had planned. After her passing 6 years ago we no longer have big sunday dinners, but it is something I would like to start up again, inviting my parents and siblings over for a big ole dinner.
I grew up on a farm near Memphis, TN during the 1940’s and 50’s. Our Sunday dinner was usually fried chicken, white gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a delicious caramel cake. On Saturdays, Mom baked her specialty – caramel cake and picked a chicken from the chicken pen, killed it, dressed it and got it ready to cook on Sunday immediately after church. About once a month we had a pot roast with root veggies and a wonderful gravy. During the summer months we had an added fresh vegetable salad straight from the garden. I truthfully can say I have never had a meal since those that tasted as good. I have often tried to make Mom’s caramel cake from her recipe and to duplicate her fried chicken, but so far I haven’t been successful.
My children often tell me that I cook like Mom did, which I might do, but it just doesn’t taste like Mom’s. I really miss her.