Maple-Bourbon Ham Recipe

Maple-Bourbon Ham Recipe

  • 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons Dijon or honey-Dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon bourbon or other sour-mash whiskey
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • 2 teaspoons coarse salt, either kosher or sea salt
  • 12-pound to 14-pound bone-in cooked ready to-eat ham
  • ¼ cup pure maple syrup
  • ¼ cup bourbon or other sour-mash whiskey
  • ¼ cup cider vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon or honey-Dijon mustard
  • ¾ cup pure maple syrup
  • ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons bourbon or other sour-mash whiskey
  • 3 tablespoons Dijon or honey-Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons butter, preferably unsalted
  • 2 tablespoons minced onion
  • 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons yellow mustard seeds, cracked
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  1. The night before you plan to smoke the ham, score the top, fatty side of the ham in wide crisscross cuts through the fat layer, about ¼ to ½ inch deep. Combine the paste ingredients in a small bowl. Apply the gooey, sticky paste evenly to the ham, pretending you’re a kid playing in something that will appall your mother. We find it easiest to manage the task if we arrange a large plastic bag on the counter, set the ham in the bag, rub the meat with the paste, and then pull the bag up snug and close it. Refrigerate the ham overnight.
  2. Before you begin to barbecue, take the ham from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for 45 to 60 minutes.
  3. Prepare the smoker for barbecuing, bringing the temperature to 200°F to 220°F.
  4. If you plan to baste the meat (see Notes, “To Mop or Not”), mix together the mop ingredients in a saucepan. Warm the mop liquid over low heat.
  5. Transfer the ham to the smoker. Cook for 5½ to 6 hours, basting the meat with the mop about once an hour in a wood burning pit, or as appropriate in your style of smoker. Brush the ham with the glaze twice during the last hour of cooking. The ham is ready when thoroughly heated through and infused with smoke flavor.
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