Holiday meals are some of my favorite ones to prep for. And it’s hard to imagine a big holiday meal without a ham in the middle of the table. Holiday hams are one of the staples of big dinners all over the country. Today, I’m making a ham on my Traeger Grill. It may be the new recipe you decide to add to your next holiday gathering.
Making My Holiday Ham on the Traeger Grill Recipe
This ham recipe is perfect for a big holiday meal, but it’s also great to cut up to use as sandwiches or to take on a picnic. I kept it simple, with only a few ingredients. But I did make homemade glaze that ended up being my not-so-secret-sauce to make this dish tasty and delicious. It will really be a crowd pleaser at your next family meal. Let’s get started!
The Ingredients
- Spiral cut, bone-in ham. I chose a pretty big one, but you can use whichever size will feed your crowd.
- Canola oil spray. Easily coat your ham with oil to use as a binder.
- Heath Riles BBQ Apple Rub. Fruity sweetness with a kick of spice makes this a clear winner for my ham recipe.
- Orange juice. I used this as a spritzer during the cooking process.
- Homemade apple glaze: I mixed apple jelly, apple cider, hot honey, and Heath Riles BBQ Apple Rub and reduced it over medium heat. I used it as the glaze on the ham.
The Equipment Setup
I fired up my Traeger Grill with Cherry Pellets pre-heated to 275 degrees F.
The Process for Making My Holiday Ham Recipe
I took a video of every step of this recipe and posted it to my Youtube channel. Feel free to watch it if you’d rather follow a video than a blog.
- Preheat the grill. I wanted the grill to be ready when I got the ham seasoned, so I set it on 275 degrees F to heat.
- Unpack the ham. I cut the ham out of the package, wiped it off with a paper towel, and laid it on a large metal pan.
- Spray on oil. Using short, quick sprays, I coated the entire ham with canola oil spray, working in a circular motion around the ham. This works as a great binder for the seasoning I’ll add next.
- Add some seasoning. I wanted my ham to have lots of sweetness and flavor, so I layered on my Apple Rub, making sure to coat all the sides. I wasn’t shy with pouring this rub on, ya’ll. I coated it GOOD.
- Place ham on cooling rack. I transferred the ham to a cooling rack, making it easier to get on the grill. I put the ham, rack, and all on the Traeger, closed the lid, and let it cook for 30-40 minutes.
- Spritz with orange juice. I opened the lid and used orange juice to spritz the ham. This adds more sweetness and a citrus-y zing to the taste. It also adds moisture back to the ham while it all cooks together.
- Make the glaze. While the ham cooked, I had some downtime which I used for the homemade glaze. I mixed all the ingredients together in a sauce pan and let them reduce over low heat.
- Check the temperature, add the glaze. Every hour or so, I checked the temperature and continued spritzing the ham with orange juice. Once the ham was at an internal temperature of 125 degrees F, I added the glaze. I made sure every part of the ham’s surface was coated with the glaze so it could sink in and mingle with the other flavors during the rest of the cooking process.
- Let it cook. After adding the glaze, the ham continued cooking until it reached an internal temp of 140 degrees F. This took about 3 hours.
- Remove ham from heat. I took the ham off the grill and placed it on a sheet pan to rest for about 20 minutes. This time gave all the flavors a final chance to mingle together and soak into the meat. It smelled absolutely delicious!
- Cut and taste. The holiday ham looked perfectly cooked. The rub gave it a nice, even color and the glaze made it look moist and tender. I got in there and, using a sharp knife, cut a piece of ham to taste.
The Results
It was so good I was almost speechless. This is a knock-em-dead recipe that turned out even better than I’d hoped. The rub gave the ham a perfect blend of sweet and heat, and the glaze added to the flavor. Add in the smoke flavor from the grill that mingled with the ham and other flavors, and it was bursting with deliciousness. And the meat itself was juicy and tender. This holiday ham will make everyone come back for seconds, and thirds.
Serving Suggestions for My Holiday Ham Recipe
Most people will want 1-2 pieces of ham on a sandwich or served by itself with a side or two.
Storing It
This recipe makes quite a bit, depending on the size of ham used. Carve up the ham and store any leftovers by wrapping them in aluminum foil and putting them in the fridge. You can use the ham on sandwiches or salads, or heat it up and eat it by itself for up to 3 days.
Equipment and Tools
Traeger Grill, Cherry Pellets, ChefAlarm, Stone + Wood Cutting Boards , Small saucepan (for glaze), Small wire cooling rack , Spray bottle, Large metal pan, Large knife
