Low Heat Is Key To Cooking Prepared Holiday Ham

With all the effort making a family-sized holiday feast takes, you deserve at least one easy to prepare dish this holiday season. We spoke with Tim Ziga, Culinary Expert at The Honey Baked Ham Company to get his curated insight on the best way to cook up a honey ham. His answer might surprise you. "We generally don't recommend heating our hams before serving," he said. "Simply remove from the refrigerator around 30 minutes prior to serving and it's ready for the table." It depends on the ham, but most glazed ham is pre-cooked, making it safe to eat without ever hitting the oven or any other cooking device. Just be sure that it's labeled as ready-to-eat.

However if you favor a warmer ham, Ziga says that you can do a bit of gentle cooking and offers a tried-and-true method. "I've had the best results with the following," he said. "Preheat [the] oven to 275 F. I don't recommend using a convection oven. Remove the foil and cover the entire ham (or just the slices desired) in aluminum foil. Place covered ham on a baking sheet and warm for 10 minutes per pound." Cooking a honey ham on low heat can add a nice crisp to the edges and allows the ham to be served warm without losing moisture or sacrificing flavors. Just be you don't overdo it, lest the ham dry out and the glaze melt away.

If you have leftover holiday ham, don't let it go to waste. It might even become your new favorite way to enjoy ham, according to Ziga. He shares, "I will add that one of my favorite ways to cook leftover ham is to throw it in a pan with a little bit of butter and fry it up. It's a completely different eating experience. The ham crisps up on the edges and the flavor really pops. It's great for breakfast with some eggs and toast." Post-frying, you can take it further and add the ham to an oven-safe dish with seasoned vegetables, shredded or cubed cheese, and a few whisked eggs for an easy breakfast frittata.

For an effortless after-holiday lunch, gather together a few slices of ham, sourdough bread (here's how to feed a sourdough starter if you want to make it from scratch), Gouda, mustard, and mayo. Optionally cook the sandwich on low heat or in an electric Chefman panini press grill for a premium texture. You can alternatively quickly sauté the leftover ham first for an added crisp.

For an even heartier meal add cubed ham to a creamy pasta dish with peas and Parmesan. No need to get too fancy, as sometimes the best holiday leftovers simply involve a couple slices of ham and a scoop of mashed potatoes — which you can upgrade with a few mix-ins. A slice of pumpkin pie elevated with eggnog will make the meal swoon-worthy. No wonder leftovers can be the best part of a holiday!