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Sous Vide Ham with Honey Chipotle Glaze is made with just six ingredients and turns out tender and juicy with minimal effort. It’s perfect for Christmas, Easter or any day of the week!
This sous vide ham recipe will simplify your holiday baked ham this year!
If you’re anything like us, ham usually makes an appearance on your holiday table. This honey baked ham has been a favorite of ours for years.
It’s coated in a delicious orange chipotle glaze and makes enough to ensure we get to enjoy all of the leftover ham recipes like this instant pot bean soup!
While we will always love a traditional oven baked ham, this sous vide version I'm sharing today just makes life so much easier!
The ham cooks in a water bath for 4-6 hours, so it’s pretty hands off! The controlled temperature of the water bath also ensures the ham doesn’t dry out and turns out juicy every time.
And, if the caramelized glaze is your favorite part, no worries. You just brush it on at the end and give the ham a quick bake in the oven!
If you try this sous vide ham, I suggest serving it with honey roasted parsnips, easy scalloped potatoes, air fryer carrots, instant pot carrots and roasted parmesan cauliflower. It’s all so good together!
Jump to:
Why this recipe works
- Hams should be cooked low and slow and that’s precisely what the sous vide does! As hams usually come precooked, they don’t need a long cooking time, but they need to be cooked at a low enough temperature so they heat through without drying out. A sous vide water bath ensures your ham is heated through and turns out perfectly juicy!
- It’s also the perfect recipe if you’re low on oven space. For the holidays, there are always so many side dishes to prepare. By cooking the ham using the sous vide method, you free up your oven for other recipes. You just need a few minutes in the oven at the end to bake the glaze on the ham!
- Speaking of glaze, the honey chipotle glaze is caramelized goodness! It’s sticky, sweet and spicy. All of the things that are essential for a delicious glaze and complements the salty ham perfectly!
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What is Sous Vide?
Sous vide is basically a method of cooking using what is called an immersion circulator (i.e. the sous vide machine). This immersion circulator circulates water in a temperature controlled water bath at a certain temperature to perfectly cook your food every time.
Because the temperature doesn't change, and it keeps your meat (or dessert, veggies, etc.) at the same temperature, your risk of overcooking becomes very minimal.
To learn even more about sous vide cooking, head over and read "what is sous vide cooking and the benefits of sous vide cooking."
What is the Water Displacement Method?
The displacement method is where you slowly submerge a ziplock bag in water pushing the air out of the top of the bag (the bag should be slightly open at the top to allow air to escape).
Use a clip (I use sous vide magnets) to clip the bag to the side to keep it from floating and getting air and/or water inside.
Tools Used
You will also want to check out these posts on the best sous vide containers and the best sous vide bags for more information!
Other sous vide recipes
Ingredients
You’ll need a 3-4 pound boneless ham for this recipe. Make sure you’re using a precooked smoked ham as opposed to a cook-before-eating or fresh ham, which require different cooking times and temperatures.
A 3-4 pound ham will feed about 6-8 people. You can go a little bigger, as long as it fits in your water bath, and you can also use bone-in if that’s your ham preference.
For the honey chipotle glaze, you need just five ingredients!
For the spicy kick, you’ll need 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce. (One is plenty, so don’t go overboard here!)
To tame the spiciness and help create a sticky, caramelized glaze, I like to use 2 tablespoons of honey and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. You can substitute maple syrup if that’s your preference, and granulated sugar will work in a pinch if you don’t have brown sugar.
You can also use this hot honey for a nice tang!
To add a depth of flavor and complement the sweetness of the glaze, you’ll also want to add 2 tablespoons of champagne vinegar and a ¼ cup of brandy to the glaze.
If you don’t have champagne vinegar, white wine vinegar will work too. And if you don’t have brandy, you can substitute rum, whisky or wine, or for a non-alcoholic replacement, try 100% pure apple juice or white grape juice.
Step by step instructions
Heat a sous vide water bath to 140F degrees.
Place the ham in a vacuum sealable bag (or ziplock freezer bag if using the water displacement method).
Vacuum seal the bag and cook in the water bath for 4 hours. **Cook for 6 hours if using a larger, bone-in ham.
When done cooking, remove the bag from the water, remove the ham from the bag and place on a foil lined baking sheet.
Heat the oven to 500F degrees.
Brush the ham with the glaze (below) and place in the oven for 20 minutes, removing to baste with more glaze every 7 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Slice and serve.
How to make honey chipotle glaze
Place all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan.
Heat over medium heat until simmering, stirring constantly to ensure it doesn't burn.
Remove the chipotle pepper after about 3 minutes (unless you like a very spicy glaze).
Turn the heat down and let it simmer, stirring regularly, for about 3-5 minutes, until thickened and glossy.
Expert tips
- Make sure you’re using a precooked smoked ham and not a cook-before-eating or fresh ham, as they require different cooking times and temperatures.
- It’s important that you remove the air from the sealable bag as this keeps bacteria out of the bag.
- The ham should be fully submerged in the water bath in order to cook safely and properly. If it starts floating from air getting in the bag, just open the bag, let the air out and reseal it.
- To prevent the bag from floating, you can also use a sous vide sinker weight.
- Be sure to baste the ham a few times with the glaze while it browns in the oven. This will ensure it doesn’t dry out and creates maximum caramelization!
- Keep an eye on the ham in the oven. We're browning it at 500F degrees so it may start to burn quickly.
- You can use a larger, bone-in ham for this recipe. Just make sure you increase the cooking time in the water bath from 4 to 6 hours.
Common questions
As this recipe calls for a precooked ham, you only need to heat it in the water bath for 4 hours to heat it through. This timing is based on a 3-4 pound boneless ham. If you’re cooking a larger, bone-in ham, it will take about 6 hours.
Since the ham is precooked, the sous vide water bath is set to a temperature of 140F degrees. The USDA states that this is a safe internal temperature for precooked smoked ham.
Since the ham is already cooked, the sous vide is almost a foolproof way to prepare ham. Leaving the ham in the water bath longer than recommended won’t dry it out but it will start to create a softer texture. For a juicy yet firm ham, I recommend sticking with the 4-6 hour cooking time. If you leave it for another hour or two it still shouldn’t impact the texture of the ham.
Yes, you can sous vide frozen ham. You’ll just need to add extra cooking time. A general rule is to add half of the standard cooking time to frozen foods. So, in the case of this ham, if you’re cooking it for 4 hours, you would add another 2 hours to the sous vide time for a frozen ham.
Absolutely! Since spiral hams are usually larger and bone-in, you’ll want to cook it for around 6 hours.
Technically, since hams come in vacuum sealed packaging, you should be able to sous vide them in their packaging. While I’ve heard of others doing this, my recommendation is to remove the commercial packaging and vacuum seal it yourself. By doing this, you’re ensuring the right type of plastic bag is being used and the bag is sealed properly.
Make it a meal
Here are a few of our favorite recipes to serve with ham:
- Truffle Mashed Potatoes
- Sous Vide Green Beans
- Cheesy Cauliflower Bake
- Instant Pot Cornbread
- Spicy Mac and Cheese
If you love this recipe, please leave a star rating and a comment below and let us know your favorite thing about it. We'd also love to connect on Instagram! Follow us at @went_here_8_this for awesome recipes and all sorts of fun food stuff 🙂
Recipe
Sous Vide Ham
Ingredients
- 3-4 pound boneless ham bone-in can be used as well
Honey Chipotle Glaze:
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
- ¼ cup brandy
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Instructions
- Heat a sous vide water bath to 140F degrees.
- Place the ham in a vacuum sealable bag (or ziplock freezer bag if using the water displacement method).
- Vacuum seal the bag and cook in the water bath for 4 hours. (Cook for 6 hours if using a larger, bone-in ham).
- When done cooking, remove the bag from the water, remove the ham from the bag and place on a foil lined baking sheet.
- Heat the oven to 500F degrees.
- Brush the ham with the glaze (below) and place in the oven for 20 minutes, removing to baste with more glaze every 7 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Slice and serve.
Honey Chipotle Glaze:
- Place all the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan.
- Heat over medium heat until simmering, stirring constantly to ensure it doesn't burn.
- Remove the chipotle pepper after about 3 minutes (unless you like a very spicy glaze).
- Turn the heat down and let it simmer, stirring regularly, for about 3-5 minutes, until thickened and glossy.
Expert Tips:
- Make sure you’re using a precooked smoked ham and not a cook-before-eating or fresh ham, as they require different cooking times and temperatures.
- It’s important that you remove the air from the sealable bag as this keeps bacteria out of the bag.
- The ham should be fully submerged in the water bath in order to cook safely and properly. If it starts floating from air getting in the bag, just open the bag, let the air out and reseal it.
- To prevent the bag from floating, you can also use a sous vide sinker weight.
- Be sure to baste the ham a few times with the glaze while it browns in the oven. This will ensure it doesn’t dry out and creates maximum caramelization!
- Keep an eye on the ham in the oven. We're browning it at 500F degrees so it may start to burn quickly.
- You can use a larger, bone-in ham for this recipe. Just make sure you increase the cooking time in the water bath from 4 to 6 hours.
Nutrition
Joseph Goins says
This sounds awesome. I know you only said to NOT use a fresh ham about a million times, BUT I have some fresh hams to cook and having some issues finding good info. Any idea how I would do that? I'm guessing I just cook it longer to ensure the entire ham reaches 140?
Danielle says
I was hoping to get a fresh ham recipe out before the holidays, but I don't think I'm going to make it. I haven't really tested it yet, but because it's not pre-cooked it will need to cook much longer than this recipe. I would do 140F for 8-12 hours. It's also going to depend on how large the hams are. If they're smaller, the lower end time will likely suffice. Larger hams will require a longer time to reach temp. I hope this helps!
Angela says
My new go-to ham recipe! Love that this is sous vide and the honey chipotle glaze is perfection!
Danielle says
I'm so glad to hear that. Thanks Angela 🙂
Gloria says
I really need to play with my sous vide more. This looks perfect for the holidays. Ham is always a hit.
Danielle says
The sous vide is just so fun! Especially when your oven is full...
Dannii says
We always serve up ham at Christmas and this chipotle glaze sounds amazing.
Danielle says
The glaze is my favorite part 🙂
Mandy Applegate says
This was delicious, my whole family loved it!
Danielle says
Yay!
Jessica Stroup says
Fantastic! This recipe was super easy to follow and absolutely delicious!
Danielle says
So glad to hear it!