Easy Smoked Ham Recipe

This is the most delicious and flavorful smoked ham that is covered in a rich and creamy homemade cranberry honey butter. It's the perfect holiday ham that is smoked to perfection and ready to grace your dinner table this holiday season!

Smoked ham has never been so easy to make! Covered in a simple cranberry butter, this makes for the best holiday ham, especially for Christmas or Easter! Smoked low and slow, this ham smoker recipe forms the most delicious and succulent sweet crust. And it pairs so well with these southern deviled eggs, these smoked baked beans, and these smoked green beans!

Even if you're new to smoking meat, this recipe is simple enough for a beginner. And it's especially easy for people who have been smoking meat for years. Regardless of what type of ham you are smoking, the process is easy and doesn't require a full days worth of smoking like it does when smoking a brisket or smoked pork shoulder.

And just like when you smoke a pork loin, you'll have plenty of leftovers! Try using some of the leftovers in this ham and potato casserole and in this white bean chili recipe! It really enhances the flavor in every bite!

Jump to:

• ✔️ Quick Recipe Overview
• ℹ️ Why This Recipe Works
• 🛒 Ingredients You'll Need
• 🐖 Types Of Ham
• 🔪 Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
• 🙋 Recipe FAQs
• 💭 Expert Tips
• 📚 More Smoker Recipes
• Easy Smoked Ham Recipe

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🛒 Ingredients You'll Need

All you need is a fully-cooked ham and four simple ingredients to make the compound butter.

• Ham - if you're feeding 6 to 8 people, you'll need 3-4 pounds of boneless ham. Using a bone-in ham also works well.
• Butter - use unsalted butter because the meat is already naturally salty. I'm a big fan of using unsalted butter in most recipes because it allows me to control the level of saltiness in a dish.
• Brown sugar - dark brown sugar provides a deeper layer of flavor because it contains molasses, which means it adds more sweetness. And that helps balance out the natural saltiness from the ham.
• Whole cranberries - fresh is best. However, frozen cranberries can be used. Just don't use canned cranberries when making the butter.

See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

🐖 Types Of Ham

When you buy a ham at the grocery store or from a butcher shop, most of the time it is fully pre-cooked and has either already been cured, smoked, or baked. This recipe works well on any pre-cooked ham, but it especially tastes good on a pre-smoked ham.

When it comes to smoking a ham, my preference is to use a spiral ham because of how flavorful and tender it turns out. It is easy to find and one of the most common types you'll find during the holiday season. And, they come in all different sizes. It gets its name because it's sliced in one continuous spiral, leaving the meat on the bone in its original shape.

City hams are also very common and can be found at most grocery stores. They come whole, are wet cured, and typically smoked. While they are readily available, they are typically very large, weighing in between 15-25 pounds. Because of their size, they're usually cut into a butt and a shank portion, with the butt yielding larger slices. You'll find that some are boneless while others are a bone in. 

When it comes to this recipe, it doesn't matter if you have a ham on the bone or if it's boneless. It comes down to convenience and individual preference. A pre-cooked and ready-to-eat ham can be purchased as both boneless and bone in versions. A lot of people really like a bone in ham because it looks amazing is extremely juicy as well as very tender. But it is really hard to slice, which is why I chose boneless for this recipe.

🔪 Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions

Step 1: Start by making the compound butter. It's shockingly easy and fast to make. Get the full recipe for making the cranberry compound butter. Don't skip this step! The flavor of the cranberry butter is what sets this smoked ham recipe apart from all the other recipes.

When making the compound butter, you'll split the batch into 2 different piles. One pile will be for covering the meat before placing it on the smoker. The remaining pile will be placed on parchment paper and then rolled into a tube to be refrigerated until firm.

Step 2: After the compound butter is made, prepare the smoker accordingly and preheat it to 225°F.

Step 3: While the smoker is preheating, cover the ham with the remaining non-refrigerated cranberry butter. Use your hands or a bastings brush to ensure it's spread evenly. Then, add 2 tablespoons of brown sugar on top of the butter mixture.

Step 4: When the smoker has preheated, place the meat directly on the smoker rack.

Step 5: Insert a digital meat thermometer into the center.

Step 6: Once the meat is on the smoker rack, let the it smoke low and slow. There is no need to move or turn it.

Step 7: The ham is considered done when the thermometer reaches 145°F, which will take between 2-3 hours depending on the size. Even though the ham is already pre-cooked, the internal temp still needs to reach 145°F to ensure it is hot all the way through.

Since it's smoked low and slow, the outside layer has time to form the most delectable golden brown crust. It's incredibly flavorful and adds both depth and texture to every bite!

Step 8: When done, remove the ham from the smoker and allow it to rest for 2-3 minutes.

Step 9: While it's resting, remove the chilled cranberry honey butter from the refrigerator.

Step 10: Thinly slice the compound butter and place the cold slices in between each piece and allow it to melt.

Now you're ready to enjoy one of the best smoked hams you'll ever eat! Learning how to cook a smoked ham has never been easier and is incredibly tasty!