Of all the glazed ham recipes I’ve used of the years, this maple glazed ham recipe is by far the easiest. Whether you’re making it for your Christmas ham or just as a gammon joint on it’s own, this maple syrup glazed ham is an absolute winner.
So although “maple” isn’t an overly festive ingredient but Christmas is DEFINITELY the time to cook hams. This maple glazed ham recipe is simply the easiest Christmas ham recipe you’ll find. It’s bound to bring a smile to everyone’s face.
I cooked this yesterday for a little family party and it disapeared super quickly. A good amount of the ham went straight away from my taste tests. Got to be thorough right? I mean what if the next slice of maple syrup gammon didn’t taste the same? Better to be safe than sorry! Plus.. chef’s perks…
How to Make Maple Glazed Ham
To make this maple syrup gammon, place the Ham in a deep sided casserole or stock pot, add some veg and a pinch of salt in some water. Bring it to the boil and leave to simmer for a while. This step helps to season the ham and give it a lovely flavour all the way through. It also gives the ham just the right balance of savory to accompany the lashings of sticky, sweet lushness that this maple gammon glaze offers.
When the ham has part cooked in the casserole, take it out and remove the sticky skin. Coat with maple syrup and add to the oven! Keep basting every now and again and you’ll end up with a maple syrup gammon that is just divine. It takes a bit of time but really, it’s minimal effort.
In our family, we’re all major fans of the “crispy black bits” and will fight over it often. I’ve taken this Christmas ham to the edge for just that reason. Every slice promising a crispy sticky bit and a lovely marbled perfectly moist slice of baked ham goodness. This Sweet and savory baked ham is an absolute winner and one I’m thrilled to share!
This Maple glazed ham is just so is to make. There is no secret ingredient to this gammon glaze. It’s just maple syrup. Lots and lots of maple syrup.
Other Glazed Ham recipes to try
The secret to how to cook a gammon a joint is all in the pan before you stick it in the oven. You can make just about anything into a gammon glaze. As long as it has a balanced flavour with some super sugary and sweet bases like maple syrup, you’ll transform your gammon joint recipes for sure. My favourite glazed hams are honey and mustard glazed ham, apricot glazed ham and of course the maple syrup glazed ham above!
The only thing I’m regretting is not having any leftovers to make some leftover ham recipes.
The Easiest Maple Glazed Ham
Ingredients
- 1 Large onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 large carrot, top cut off, peel on
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- .5 tsp sea salt
- 1 Uncooked & unsmoked gammon Joint – With Skin On – choose one that has a lot of fat on it
- 300 ml pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Prepare the carrot and onion. Wash, but don't worry about peeling the carrot.
- Place a large pot with a lid or cast iron casserole on a medium heat,
- Add the peppercorns and heat until they become very fragrant.
- Place your onion, carrot, bay leaves, salt and water into the pot and stir to make sure all the peppercorns are dislodged from the bottom.
- Place your gammon with any string in the center of the pot and cook for 20 minutes per 450g (1lb).
- Whack up the heat to high and wait to boil. Once it's reached a rolling boil turn down the heat and leave to simmer.
- About halfway through the cook preheat your oven to 190* (Gas 5)
- Once your ham has finished boiling, carefully remove from the pot and let cool slightly. This bit is gonna be a bit sticky.Remove the string and with a sharp utility or paring knife, remove the skin leaving as much of the fat as you can.
- Line a baking tray with foil (you'll thank me later) and once the skin has been removed, score the fat deeply in a crisscross and place on the tray, fat side up.
- Pour about a third of the maple syrup gently over the ham, using a pastry brush to coat evenly.
- Place the ham in the oven and keep an eye until those delicious black bits begin to form. Remove the ham from the oven and as before brush the maple syrup all over, don't be afraid to dip the brush in the syrup on the bottom of the tray. By now this will have gone quite"treacle". This is all just flavour. Keep repeating this until you're satisfied the ham is how you want it. I like mine quite dark and sticky so I repeated this every 10 minutes and about 4 times. When you're finished, remove the ham from the tray and place on a plate. Add one final brush of the syrup from the bottom of the tray just for that extra glisten.
- You can carve this right away but be warned, you will try some and you'll keep going back for more.
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