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I kinda went into this copycat Honey Baked Ham using a slow cooker copycat recipe with a little pessimism. It sounded good. It looked good. But would it really remind me of the real thing? And I admit it started out a little rough. I couldn’t close my slow cooker with the ham in it so I had to tear off a big piece of foil to cover it. Apparently I tossed my allspice and cloves (probably due to the dates being a bit in the past) out so I omitted them. Frustration was running high. Panic was starting to set in. But, in the end, for no good reason. None. The end result was fantastic. Just as sweet as the real thing. Just as tender and juicy. This was a great ham. My fears were completely unfounded!
Sweet Ham O’ Mine
This Honey Baked ham using a slow cooker copycat recipe is sweet. Yes, so is the real thing. I actually didn’t end up using all of the sugar mixture with my just-over -8-pound ham. I used maybe 1/4 cup less. Really I shoulda just gone for it. It is sweet. It’s supposed to be. I think no matter if you go full-on-sweet or slightly-less-sweet, like me, you’ll love this ham
Take Time, Be Sweet!
Make sure you take your time getting both the sugar mixture and the glaze all over the ham. Every inch of it. Kinda open up the slices a bit and get some in there, too. And make sure you don’t skimp on the broiler time. Let it get nicely brown and caramelized. And be careful taking it out of the oven!
Big Ham, Small Cooker
I have an 8-quart slow cooker. It’s bigger than the two of us ever need. Or was until now. As I mentioned, the ham fit into the slow cooker but I couldn’t get the lid on. You gotta have a lid. Or some sort of lid, at least! So I tore off a large piece of foil and wrapped it tightly over the ham and top of the cooker. It was sealed nice and tight. Perfect. No heat got out, and the flavor stayed in!
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Honey Baked Ham using a Slow Cooker (Copycat Recipe)
Ingredients
- 8 pound bone-in spiral sliced half ham excess fat trimmed, if desired
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ cups sugar see my note
- ½ teaspoon seasoned salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ tsp ground cloves you can omit the cloves and allspice, if desired.
- pinch ground allspice
Instructions
- Lightly spray your slow cooker with non-stick spray.
- Place the ham into the slow cooker, cut-side down.
- Combine the butter and honey then pour over the ham. Spread it out using your fingers, getting some of the mix between the ham slices.
- Cover and cook on low for 5 hours. If the ham is too tall for your slow cooker, tightly cover with a piece of aluminum foil. Keep the lid (or foil) closed tightly for the entire cook time.
- While the ham is cooking combine the remaining ingredients.
- Carefully remove the ham to a foil-lined baking sheet. Carefully is the key word here. It's going to be heavy. I used a pair of oven gloves. They got a bit messy, but I didn't drop the ham or get burned! Reserve the juices in the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Working in batches, sprinkle the ham with HALF of the sugar mixture and massage into the ham. The sugar will dissolve as you go. That's when you add more. I found it easier to turn the ham on its sides, adding sugar, massage, and turning the ham to get the next side until half of the sugar mixture is gone. It's ok if you don't use it all. Save it for glaze (below) or the next time you make a ham!
- Preheat your broiler to high for a minute or two then place the ham under the broiler. Broil for a few minutes, checking every minute, until hot and lightly caramelized.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the remaining sugar mixture and 3 tablespoons of the juices in the bottom of your slow cooker. If you don't have 3 tablespoons (I had a lot more!) add water.
- Bring the saucepan to a slight boil then remove from heat.
- Pull the baking sheet from the oven and brush the ham all over with the glaze. Get it in the nooks and crannies. Load it up!
- Return ham to broiler and broil another 2-4 minutes until golden brown and caramelized.
- Remove and let cool slightly before cutting and serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.
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An incredibly tender, sweet ham that will impress everyone!