Glazed Ham with Whiskey Sauce

Ingredients 0/6

Step 1

Scor the ham with shallow cuts—make crisscross slashes through the fat but be careful not to cut into the meat. Stick whole cloves where the lines cross, pushing them in as deep as you can. Heat your oven to 300°F and line a sturdy baking sheet with foil to catch the drips.

Step 2

Warm up a saucepan over medium heat and pour in the whiskey. Let it simmer until it reduces by about a third—that usually takes around 15 to 20 minutes and helps mellow out the sharp alcohol flavor. Turn the heat down to medium-low, add the butter, and stir it in until it melts. Then mix in the brown sugar and honey, letting everything cook together until it thickens into a nice glaze, about 10 to 15 minutes more.

Step 3

Brush the ham all over with some of the glaze and place it on your prepared pan. Cover it tightly with foil. Pop it in the oven and bake for an hour, basting every 15 minutes with the glaze and any pan juices you see, then covering it back up with foil each time.

Step 4

After that hour, take off the foil and keep baking until the ham reaches at least 145°F on an instant-read thermometer—this should take about another half hour. Keep basting a couple more times during this final stretch to keep it moist and flavorful.

Step 5

When it’s done, pull the ham out and tent it with foil for about 10 minutes so the juices can soak back in. Save the pan drippings for serving. Trim off any excess fat and skin, slice it up, and arrange on a platter. Pour the pan juices over the top or serve them on the side for extra flavor.