Ham is always top of the list over the festive season.
No Christmas table feels complete without a big juicy smoked ham taking center stage.
If you are new to smoking you may be a little nervous about cooking this holiday meal.
But the cooking process to smoke ham on a pit boss pellet grill couldn’t be easier with my simple steps below.
Table of contents
Smoking a Ham
Regardless of whether you decide to glaze with honey, bourbon , maple, brown sugar, or one of the other delicious flavors, the process is the same.
The grill does most of the work.
All you need to do is load it up with your favorite wood pellet, (I like to use applewood or cherrywood with ham) prep the meat and let it do its thing.
With this ham recipe, you’ll have everything you need for the perfect holiday Christmas ham to keep your guests fed and happy.
Looking for an Easter ham recipe? I have you covered here.
Whole Ham or Half Ham?
The choice between smoking a whole ham or half ham really just comes down to the number of people you need to feed, and whether your grill can comfortably cope with the size.
A whole ham refers to the entire back end of the animal and weighs on average 18 to 20 pounds.
The whole ham encompasses the butt and shank area, whereas a half ham is either one or the other.
As a general rule of thumb, aim for about ¾ pound per person.
Types of Hams
The first step to a perfect ham is choosing one that suits your purpose.
There are three types of hams available for general purchase:
Fresh Ham
Fresh ham is also known as uncured ham. It means the ham that requires cooking before eating.
Sourcing a fresh ham may require a trip to the butcher as it’s less popular in general supermarkets.
Most shoppers prefer cured pre-cooked ham.
Country Hams
Country hams refer to hams that have been dry-cured with salt, smoked, and aged for 3 months before sale.
As they’ve been smoked they can last for a longer period of time but tend to have a strong salty flavor.
They can often be found in the grocery store, but run a little expensive as they are labor-intensive.
City Ham
City hams are by far the most popular and can be found in most grocery stores.
They can be bone-in or bone-out pre-cooked meat.
A brine of sugar, salt, seasonings, and curing agents are injected to cure, giving its distinctive depth of flavor.
Bone-in or Boneless?
Bone-in or out is an individual choice, but most that are smoking tend to go for bone-in.
The bone tends to conduct heat, so cooks more evenly. You can remove the bone after cooking.
As the bone cooks, it releases tasty proteins for a juicier, delicious flavor.
Boneless are easier to slice, so it tends to be a choice between convenience or extra flavor.
What You Need For Smoked Ham
- Ham of choice
- 100ml Honey
- 200g Brown Sugar
- 200ml Apple Juice
- 1 TSP – Cinnamon
- 20 Cloves
- 1/4 – 1/2 TSP Black Pepper
What Temperature Should You Smoke Ham At?
Preheat the grill to a temperature of 200°F
Load up the hopper with wood chips.
Flavors like apple, maple, or cherry wood pellets go very well with ham, giving a lovely smoky flavor without overpowering the natural flavors.
How to Prepare the Ham For Smoking
Pat dry the ham with a paper towel.
Score the surface with a criss-cross diamond pattern 1/2 inch deep every 1/2 inch in both directions.
Doing so will help the glaze penetrate into the ham and make it more flavorful.
Then push the cloves into the cut as I have done in the photo below.
What Temperature to Smoke Ham At?
You need to set the temperature to 200°F to cook the ham, then you increase it after six hours.
Once placed on the grill, close the lid and cook the ham at 200°F for the first six hours then increase the temperature to 230°F for the next six hours.
Keep the temperature low to avoid drying out the meat during the cooking time.
How Long to Smoke Ham For?
The average time for smoking ham is around 10-15 minutes per pound.
The cooking times will vary, depending on the size, and the temperature of the grill.
However, the most effective way of monitoring is to use a digital meat thermometer to measure the internal temperature.
How to Prepare The Glaze For The Ham
Mix all the glaze ingredients in a bowl stirring frequently until the glaze becomes the consistency of a syrup.
If needed, add more apple juice to achieve the right consistency.
The glaze will be brushed on the ham from hour 6 every hour after that.
Glazing the Ham
There’s a wide variety of glaze options to try.
For example, maple glaze, apricot glaze, apple glaze, brown sugar honey glaze, cherry glaze, coca cola glaze or even a delicious maple champagne glaze.
The ideas are endless, and experimentation is encouraged!
Once the internal temperature has hit 120°F, begin the process of glazing the exterior surface.
Remove from the grill and place in an aluminum foil roasting pan.
Brush over evenly with the glaze and return to the grill.
Re-glaze every 10-20 minutes in the final stages of cooking.
How to Smoke Your Ham
Place the precooked ham on the smoker and cook for 6 hours.
Be aware that when cooking at higher temperatures, you risk drying out the ham.
Brush the Honey Glaze on the whole surface of the ham.
Continue to cook to an internal temperature of no more than 90 degrees.
At this point, it’s important to keep a close eye on the ham to make sure the glaze doesn’t burn.
How to Know When The Ham It Cooked?
Once the internal temperature reaches a proper temperature of 140F, the ham is ready to remove.
Remove from the grill and let it rest under aluminum foil for about 20-25 minutes before serving.
As you can see, the process of double-smoking a ham on a pellet grill is an easy one and is sure to become a classic holiday dish the entire family will love.
Serve it up with some fresh roast vegetables and the festive table will be heaving with a meal fit for a king!
Want to Serve With Smoked Ham
Here are some of my favorites things to serve with ham
Remove from the grill and let it rest under aluminum foil for about 20-25 minutes before serving.
Looking for More Holiday Recipes?
Looking for more holiday recipes to wow your guest? Here are some of my favorites
Pit Boss Smoked Ham
Equipment
- 1 Pellet smoker
Ingredients
- Ham of choice
- 100 ml Honey
- 200 g Brown Sugar
- 200 ml Apple Juice
- 1 TSP – Cinnamon
- 20 Cloves
- 1/4 – 1/2 TSP Black Pepper
Instructions
Pre-heating the Grill
- Preheat the grill to a temperature of 200°F
- Load up the hopper with wood chips.
Preparing the Ham
- Pat dry the ham with a paper towel.
- Score the surface with a criss-cross diamond pattern 1/2 inch deep every 1/2 inch in both directions.
- Then push the cloves into the cut as I have done in the photo below.
- Once placed on the grill, close the lid and cook the ham at 200°F for the first six hours then increase the temperature to 230°F for the next six hours.
- Keep the temperature low to avoid drying out the meat during the cooking time.
Prepare Glaze
- Mix all the glaze ingredients in a bowl stirring frequently until the glaze becomes the consistency of a syrup.
- If needed, add more apple juice to achieve the right consistency.
- The glaze will be brushed on the ham from hour 6 every hour after that.
Glazing the Ham
- Once the internal temperature has hit 120°F, begin the process of glazing the exterior surface.
- Remove from the grill and place in an aluminum foil roasting pan.
- Brush over evenly with the glaze and return to the grill.
- Re-glaze every 10-20 minutes in the final stages of cooking.
How to Smoke Your Ham
- Place the precooked ham on the smoker and cook for 6 hours.
- Brush the Honey Glaze on the whole surface of the ham.
- Continue to cook to an internal temperature of no more than 90 degrees.
- At this point, it’s important to keep a close eye on the ham to make sure the glaze doesn’t burn.
- Once the internal temperature reaches a proper temperature of 140F, the ham is ready to remove.
- Remove from the grill and let it rest under aluminum foil for about 20-25 minutes before serving.
- Serve it up with some fresh roast vegetables and the festive table will be heaving with a meal fit for a king!
Smoke On!
Charlie
Author: Charlie Reeves
Hi, I’m Charlie, I am head taste tester at Simply Meat Smoking! I love it grilling, smoking, and getting out in the yard with the kids! The family also love to test all my recipes (especially my EXTRA CRISPY pulled pork, smoky pork loin, and ANY SEAFOOD I grill)
You will usually find me playing with the kids, perfecting my brisket bark, or sipping beers with boys around the fire. Can’t wait to share all my delicious smoking and grilling adventures with you!
You can read more on our About Us page.
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