Pineapple Ham (Spiral Ham Recipe) - The Cookie Rookie® (2024)

FAQs

What happens when you put fresh pineapple on ham? ›

Don't bother decorating the outside of your ham with fresh pineapple, as the enzymes in the fruit will turn the meat to mush.

Spiral cut hams should be covered with aluminum foil to help retain moisture when re heating. You could also place a foil pan with water underneath the ham to create some steam inside the oven to keep everything moist.

The glaze should not be applied until the final hour to 30 minutes, in order to avoid burning the sugars. What you're going to do with the glaze ingredients is just combine most of them into a paste, and then apply it to the ham. After that, the heat in your oven will take care of everything.

Glazing: Empty contents of the glaze packet into a small saucepan. Add 22 mL (1 1/2 tbsp) warm water. Heat glaze mixture on high, stirring constantly, until glaze begins to boil. Remove immediately from heat.

Mushy meat typically is a result of excess tenderizer use.

The key ingredient lies within the pineapple itself: bromelain. This enzyme is the active ingredient that tenderizes meats naturally, breaking down tough protein fibers. As the meat marinates, bromelain gently breaks down these fibers, resulting in a noticeably softer, more tender texture.

Spiral Sliced Hams

Remove packaging, reserving liquid. Place ham cut-side down on a large sheet of foil in a roasting pan. Pour reserved liquid over ham and wrap completely with foil. Warm ham in oven for 10 to 12 minutes per pound.

To avoid drying it out, add water to the bottom of your roasting pan, place the ham on a baking rack above the water, and cover it with foil. You'll also want to use a meat thermometer to check your ham's temperature to avoid overcooking.

Remove all packaging materials and place ham face down directly into baking dish or roasting pan. (Place whole ham on its side.) Cover tightly with lid, foil or place in cooking bag and heat at 275°F for approximately 12-15 minutes per pound.

Heat oven to 325°F. Remove all packaging materials. Place ham, cut/flat side down, on rack in shallow roasting pan; cover tightly with aluminum foil. Heat approximately 18 to 23 minutes per pound until heated through.

When should I put my glaze on my ham? ›

About 20 minutes prior to the end of cooking time, begin glazing the ham but applying it with a silicon brush. Continue to glaze every 5 minutes until the ham is done. The ham is ready when a thermometer reads an internal temperature of 135-140f.

Preheat the oven to 325°F. You don't need to wash a ham before baking. If you ask us, baked ham is delicious even when you leave it plain; however, scoring a diamond pattern with a chef's knife in the outer layer and brushing on a glaze during baking makes the ham a showy centerpiece and adds flavor.

In large saucepan, stir together glaze packet contents, 2 cups water and brown sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, 2 to 3 minutes or until brown sugar is dissolved.

While the included honey glaze packets are meant to save time, making a homemade glaze is simple and worth the extra time for a better, fresher flavor. Making a homemade glaze also gives you the freedom to create different flavors and unique ingredient combinations to elevate your pre-cooked ham.

If you don't cover your ham while cooking it will quickly dry out. Instead: Put some aluminum foil over your ham while it's cooking. It is recommended that the ham is covered for at least half of the cooking process and only removed during the last half when you glaze it.

Pineapple is a popular ingredient to pair with ham because the sweetness of the pineapple helps to neutralize the saltiness of the meat.

Can pineapple change the texture of ham? Pineapple will only change the texture of ham if you use fresh pineapple. Make sure to use canned pineapple rings when baking ham, or the acidity of the fresh pineapple will break the meat down too much and make it mushy.

“Typically, when you're doing a country ham, you need something sweet to neutralize the ham's saltiness, and pineapple does this really well.” And it's not just me and Benton: Pineapple shows up in ham recipes—atop the ham, in glazes slicking the ham, in shield-your-eyes versions of fried rice—the world over.

Juices from the roasted pineapple neutralize the cured ham's saltiness, making a dish that delights the tastebuds.