Best Baked Christmas Ham Recipe

Don't leave it until the last minute to order your Bendigo Christmas Ham! Next, you'll need a baked ham recipe to go with. A quick Google can easily overwhelm you as there's so many "best christmas ham recipe" suggestions to scroll through. I've shared mine below. I love this recipe because it's not intimidating and it mostly uses pantry staples and easy to find ingredients. Download a printable version of the recipe here.

Ingredients:

• 4-5kg ham leg (depend on how many people serving)
• 150ml maple syrup
• 50g brown sugar
• 4 cloves, extra cloves for decoration
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• Juice of 1 lime

A baked ham as a centrepiece at your table is one of those moments that really says "it's Christmas!!" ...but it doesn't have to be complicated. I like this recipe because it's simple and it still hits those classic sweet vs. sour/acidic flavour notes. That wave of nostalgia still sweeps the table. The sticky goodness of a traditional baked ham with the family is just one of my favourite things!

Method:

1.Preheat the oven to 220°C.
2. Use a sharp knife to score the skin around the sides and hock of the ham,
before using your fingers to gently remove the rind.
3. Make light cuts in the fat with a sharp knife in a criss-cross pattern. Place
the ham on a rack over a baking tray and fill tray with enough water to
cover the base. This will avoid any excess glaze burning in the tray.
4. For the glaze, combine all the ingredients in a small pot and simmer over
a medium heat for 2 minutes or until it forms a light syrup. Brush the whole ham with half of the glaze. Put into preheated oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Keep brushing the ham with remaining glaze every 10 minutes. When the ham is golden brown, it is ready. Time will vary depending on size.
5. Allow to rest for 15 minutes before carving.

Notes:

• Save the rind: Be sure to keep the piece of rind which can be used to cover any leftover ham in the fridge.
• Use a ham bag for any left over ham. Make sure to soak the bag when first using in boiling water and white vinegar. This keeps the bag fresh.
• Repeat every 3rd day until ham is all used.