To smoke a precooked ham, put it in a pan in a smoker held between 225°F and 300°F, add a light fruitwood smoke, glaze it near the end, and take it off when the thickest part reaches 140°F if it is a cooked ham packaged in a USDA-inspected plant, or 165°F for any other precooked ham. Those two numbers come from USDA’s safe minimum temperature chart. Because the ham is already cooked, the job is to reheat it and add smoke and glaze without drying it out. That is why this is often called a “double smoked” ham.
Know What Kind of Ham You Bought
Everything else depends on the label. The USDA FSIS safe minimum internal temperature chart splits ham into categories with different targets:
| Ham type | USDA FSIS internal temperature |
|---|---|
| Raw (fresh) ham | 145°F, then rest 3 minutes |
| Precooked ham packaged in a USDA-inspected plant, to reheat | 140°F |
| Other precooked ham, to reheat | 165°F |
| Leftovers of any type | 165°F |
Read the label first. A ham marked as fully cooked and packaged in a USDA-inspected plant is a reheat job with a 140°F target. If the package tells you to cook it, it is not a reheat job: treat it as raw ham and cook it to 145°F with a three-minute rest. If you are reheating ham that was already served once, such as leftovers from another meal, the target is 165°F.
What You Need
- A smoker, pellet grill or covered grill set up for indirect heat
- A disposable foil pan or roasting pan large enough for the ham
- Two thermometers: one for the smoker’s air temperature and one for the ham. USDA FSIS recommends exactly that pairing in its fact sheet Smoking Meat and Poultry.
- Mild wood such as apple, cherry or maple
- Your glaze ingredients
- Foil for tenting
Step-by-Step: Smoking a Precooked Ham
1. Bring the smoker to temperature
FSIS’s smoking fact sheet says to keep the smoker’s air temperature between 225°F and 300°F throughout the cook. For ham, a temperature in the middle or upper part of that range shortens the time the meat spends drying in the smoker. Pick a target, then confirm it with a thermometer near grate level.
2. Prepare the ham
Take the ham out of its packaging and discard any plastic disc over the bone. Set it cut side down in the pan. For a spiral-sliced ham, cut side down is important: it keeps the slices pressed together so they do not fan open and dry out. For a whole, unsliced ham, you can score the fat in a shallow diamond pattern so the glaze has something to grip.
3. Smoke it
Place the pan in the smoker and close the lid. Ham already has a cured, often smoked flavour, so go easy on wood. Fruitwoods add colour and sweetness without fighting the cure. Our guide to the best woods for smoking compares the common choices. If you smoke on a charcoal unit, FSIS advises using only approved fire starters and setting the smoker in a well-ventilated area away from trees, shrubs and buildings.
4. Protect the slices
Check the ham’s outside every hour or so. If the edges darken or the slices look dry before the center is warm, tent the pan loosely with foil. Some cooks pour a little apple juice or water into the pan to keep the atmosphere moist, much as FSIS describes using a water pan in a smoker.
5. Glaze near the end
Sugary glazes burn if they go on too early. FSIS’s smoking guidance says to apply sauces during the last 15 to 30 minutes of smoking to prevent excess browning or burning, and the same rule works for a ham glaze. Brush it on, close the lid, and give it one more coat about ten minutes later if you want a thicker finish.
6. Check the temperature
Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the ham, away from the bone. Take it off at 140°F for a USDA-inspected packaged cooked ham, or 165°F otherwise. Rest it for a few minutes before carving so the glaze sets.
How Long Does It Take?
Time depends on the size of the ham, the smoker temperature, whether it went in cold from the refrigerator, and the weather. FSIS’s smoking fact sheet notes that cooking time depends on many factors, including the meat’s size and shape and the outdoor conditions, which is exactly why it insists on thermometers. Read the package directions for a reheating time per pound as a starting point, start checking the internal temperature well before that, and allow extra time on a cold or windy day.
Glaze Ideas That Work With Smoke
A good ham glaze needs sugar for gloss, acid to balance the salt, and a little spice. Some combinations to try:
- Brown sugar and mustard: brown sugar, Dijon mustard and a splash of cider vinegar.
- Maple and black pepper: maple syrup with coarse pepper and a pinch of ground clove.
- Honey and orange: honey, orange juice and zest, and a little grated ginger.
- Cherry and chipotle: cherry preserves warmed with a spoonful of chipotle in adobo.
- Barbecue-style: a thin, tangy sauce, such as a vinegar-forward variation of our homemade BBQ sauce, cut with apple juice.
Warm the glaze in a small saucepan so it brushes on smoothly. Keep the brush and glaze separate from anything that touched raw meat. If a glaze becomes a family standard, it belongs in a family recipe memory book alongside the rest of the holiday table.
Serving and Holding
FSIS’s guidance for serving says hot food should be held at 140°F or warmer and that perishable food should not be left out for more than 2 hours at room temperature, or 1 hour when it is above 90°F. That comes from the agency’s Basics for Safe Food Handling. On a buffet, slice what will be eaten soon and keep the rest of the ham covered in a low oven or a warmer, or refrigerate it.
Storing and Reheating Leftover Ham
The cold storage chart in the same FSIS publication gives refrigerator times for fully cooked ham:
- Whole: 7 days
- Half: 3 to 5 days
- Slices: 3 to 4 days
Put leftovers in shallow containers so they cool quickly. When you reheat them, the FSIS temperature chart’s leftover target of 165°F applies. Our guide to storing and reheating leftover grilled food walks through the process. The bone makes excellent stock for split pea or bean soup; freeze it if you will not use it within a few days.
Frequently Asked Questions
What internal temperature should a smoked precooked ham reach?
USDA FSIS says to reheat cooked hams packaged in USDA-inspected plants to 140°F, and all other precooked hams to 165°F. Leftover ham being reheated should reach 165°F.
What smoker temperature should I use for a precooked ham?
USDA’s smoking guidance calls for keeping the smoker’s air temperature between 225°F and 300°F. The upper part of that range shortens the cook and helps avoid drying out a spiral-sliced ham.
Should a spiral ham be wrapped in foil in the smoker?
Leave it uncovered at first so it takes on smoke, then tent it loosely with foil if the outside darkens or the slices start drying before the center is hot. Cut side down in a pan also helps.
When should I put the glaze on?
In the last 15 to 30 minutes. USDA FSIS recommends applying sauces in that window during smoking to prevent excess browning or burning.
Can I smoke a fresh, uncured ham the same way?
A fresh ham is raw pork and is a different cook. It must reach 145°F with a three-minute rest, according to USDA FSIS, and it will take much longer than reheating a precooked ham.