Smoked Ham Recipe Quick Easy

Love smoker recipes? Try smoked leg of lamb, smoked chicken breast, smoked beef tenderloin, and smoked pork loin. Smoking meats is one of my favorite ways to elevate classic holiday centerpieces, and this smoked ham recipe is no exception. It’s such an easy and hands-off way to prep a traditional ham. Every time I make it, my guests BEG me to host every single year. Well, let’s say I’m still waiting for someone else to offer hosting duties…

Why I love this recipe

Failproof. Cooking ham in a smoker may sound challenging, but even beginner home cooks will have an easy time mastering my recipe. Stress-free holiday meal. While the ham does its thing in the smoker, my oven is free to cook our other main holiday dishes. Mouthwatering flavors. Nothing compares to the flavor smoked meat has (yes, even roasting meat for hours on end!). You can even change up the subtle notes by using different wood chips. Versatile. Make this ham the star of your holiday meal or slice it up and use it for sandwiches, salads, or appetizers! It’s a fun alternative to my classic pork butt roast.

Ingredients needed

Ham. I used a cooked boneless ham, but you can also use a fully-cooked bone-in ham for extra flavor. Either way, look for one with minimal added sugar and flavorings (I highly recommend a butcher over a grocery store for this). Dry rub. My simple ham dry rub is made with equal parts paprika, sugar, salt, and black pepper. Basting sauce. I used chicken stock as the base of the ham basting sauce. From there, pineapple juice, olive oil, and mustard give it a robust and tangy flavor and caramelized crust. Finishing glaze. I love to glaze smoked ham with a mix of honey, pineapple juice, and mustard (aka my 3 ingredient ham glaze!). Feel free to swap the honey for maple syrup if you want.

How to smoke a ham

I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Step 5 – Rest, slice, and serve. Let the ham rest before slicing and serving with your favorite holiday side dishes.

Arman’s recipe tips

Pat the ham dry. While testing this recipe, I found that the dry rub adhered better to the ham when it was patted dry with paper towels. Temperature control. I highly recommend keeping a consistent and controlled temperature in your smoker. Aim for around 210°F for a slow and even smoke. Checking for doneness. You’ll know the ham is done cooking when a meat thermometer measures the internal temperature between 140ºF to 145°F. Let it rest. In all my meat recipes, I recommend letting the meat rest for 10 to 20 minutes after cooking. This gives the ham juices time to soak back into the meat, giving you tastier results.

Storage instructions

To store: Store the leftover ham and/or slices in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. I don’t know about you, but in our household, we typically surround the smoked and glazed ham with balsamic roasted brussels sprouts, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, honeynut squash, and other holiday side dishes.

Choose your wood pellets. For traeger smoked ham, I like to use hickory, apple, cherry, and maple wood pellets. Each one gave me phenomenal results! Switch up the glaze. You aren’t limited to the smoked ham glaze I used in this recipe. Try teriyaki sauce, brown sugar and mustard, or hot honey sauce instead.

To freeze: Wrap the leftovers tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Place them in a freezer-safe resealable plastic bag, and freeze for 2 to 3 months. To reheat: To keep the slices juicy, place them on a baking sheet with a splash of water, cover with aluminum foil, then heat it in a 275ºF oven until warmed through.