This spiral ham is a classic with a fresh twist—glazed with just four ingredients: fresh orange, cloves, Dijon, and honey. Perfect for Easter or Christmas.
Spiral Ham with Orange and Clove
If you’re hosting Easter this year—or just in charge of the main dish, this spiral ham with orange, clove, and honey is easy and delicious! Spiral ham is already a win: it’s fully cooked, pre-sliced, and feeds a crowd. But when you dress it up with a glaze of fresh orange juice, honey, and warm spices, it becomes the perfect
centerpiece for your Easter table. If cloves are not your thing, try my Honey Baked Ham, Honey-Mustard Ham, or Apricot-Rum Glazed Spiral Ham.
Why You’ll Love This Spiral Ham
Nothing is easier for a holiday dinner than making a baked ham! The oven does most of the work. Just whisk the orange glaze ingredients, pour over the ham, and bake.
If you make this healthy spiral ham recipe, I would love to see it. Tag me in your photos or videos on Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook. And be sure to join the Skinnytaste Community to see what everyone’s cooking!
What You’ll Need
Here are the ingredients for this easy spiral ham recipe. See the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
- Bone-In Ham: Buy a pre-cooked spiral ham that weighs 6 to 8 pounds.
- Honey thickens the glaze, helps it stick to the ham, and provides sweetness.
- Oranges: We’re using the whole orange–zest, juice, and orange slices–for maximum citrus flavor. The zest and juice go in the glaze, and the ham bakes on sliced oranges.
- Dijon Mustard’s tangy flavor complements the sweetness of the honey and sugar.
- Cloves provide an aromatic, warm spiced flavor.
How to Make Spiral Ham
Spiral cut hams are already cooked, so we are just adding the glaze for flavor and warming it up. See the recipe card at the bottom for printable directions.
- Make the Ham Glaze: Whisk the honey, orange juice, zest, mustard, and cloves in a small bowl.
- Prep the Ham: Place the orange slices in the bottom of a roasting pan or baking dish, and place the ham on top. Spoon a third of the orange glaze over the ham and cover it tightly with foil.
- How Long to Cook a Spiral Ham: Bake the ham at 325°F for 12 minutes per pound until the internal temperature reaches 140°F. (Check it with a meat thermometer.)
- Caramelize the Glaze: Remove the ham from the oven, remove the foil, and set the oven to broil. Turn the ham over so the fat is facing up. Spoon or brush the remaining glaze over the ham and broil for a few minutes. Keep an eye on it to ensure it doesn’t burn.
- How to Serve: Once the glaze is caramelized and golden, remove the ham from the oven and baste it with juices from the bottom of the pan. Transfer it to a platter and serve.
Variations
- Sweetener: Swap honey with maple syrup.
- Spices: Substitute ground cinnamon or allspice for cloves or omit it if you prefer.
Serving Suggestions
This orange-glazed ham would be perfect for Easter or any large gathering since it feeds a crowd. Here are more ideas plus my favorite side dishes to go with it:
Storage
- Refrigerate leftovers for 5 days.
- Freeze it for up to 3 months. Store it in an airtight container or zip-locked bag with parchment paper between slices to easily remove a serving or two as needed.
- Thaw ham in the refrigerator and add it to any recipe, like quiche, beans, or fried rice. You can also microwave it until defrosted.
Spiral Ham FAQ
Regular hams are not sliced, while spiral hams are pre-sliced in a spiral shape, making them more convenient.
Since spiral ham is already cooked, the main reason for baking it is to flavor it with a glaze. Here are some tips to ensure it doesn’t dry out:
1. Cover the ham with foil.
2. Bake it at a low temperature. I recommend 325°F.
3. Cook it for the correct amount of time. It takes about 12 minutes per pound, so do the math! For a 6-pound ham, that’s about 72 minutes.
Don’t throw away the ham bone! Save it and make my Leftover Ham Bone Soup with potatoes and cabbage.
More Easter Recipes You’ll Love
For more Easter recipe ideas, check out these five delicious spring recipes for inspiration!
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Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
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Add the honey, orange juice, zest, mustard, and cloves to a small bowl and whisk to combine.
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Place the orange slices in an even layer in the bottom of a baking dish or roasting pan. Place the ham on top of the oranges, cut side down. Spoon ⅓ of the glaze over the ham. Cover tightly with foil. Bake the ham for 12 minutes per pound, until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees F.
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Take the ham out of the oven and remove the foil. Turn the heat up to broil.
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Using tongs and a spatula, carefully turn the ham so the fat is now facing up. If the ham begins to fan out a lot, ball up a piece of foil to tuck up against it to help keep it all together. Spoon the remaining glaze over the ham all over the meat. Return the ham to the oven, uncovered, to cook for an additional 3-5 minutes, until caramelized and golden. Keep an eye on it as everyone’s broilers are different and it can caramelize quickly.
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Remove from the oven baste all over with the juices from the bottom of the pan. Transfer ham to a platter and serve with leftover pan juices.
Last Step:
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- Cook time: 1 hour 40 minutes – 2 hours 25 minutes (depending on the size of
your ham) - Makes 16 to 32 servings based on weight of ham
Serving: 3 oz, Calories: 130 kcal, Carbohydrates: 6 g, Protein: 16 g, Fat: 5 g, Saturated Fat: 1.5 g, Cholesterol: 48.5 mg, Sodium: 771 mg, Fiber: 0.5 g, Sugar: 6 g
