A smoked ham is a culinary favourite, and graces many holiday tables for good reason. If you smoke ham on a pellet grill, this tasty meat turns from a classic to a work of art.
The meat, which comes from a pig’s hind leg, is pink from curing and has been brined and smoked to give it that classic sweet, smoky, and slightly salty taste we all love. For how to choose a smoked ham—whole? half? bone-in? spiral cut?—check out our ham guide. For how to smoke (or in most cases, double smoke) a ham, read on.
As any pitmaster knows, smoking ham on a wood pellet grill takes the flavor to a whole new level. The Traeger grill, with its precise temperature control and smoky hardwood flavor, is the perfect tool for making next-level ham. If you’re new to the process, have no fear! In this guide, we’ll walk through step-by-step how to smoke a juicy, mouthwatering ham on your Traeger.
Choosing Your Ham
Obviously, the star of the show is the ham itself! When selecting a ham to smoke, you have a few options:
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Bone-in or Boneless: Bone-in hams have more flavor, but boneless are easier to carve. Choose based on your preference.
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Whole or Half For special occasions go for a impressive whole ham. Halves and portions work well for smaller groups.
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Pre-Cooked or Fresh Pre-cooked hams just need to be heated, while fresh require full cooking but offer superior taste
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Spiral-Sliced These pre-sliced hams reheat easily though you’ll get cleaner slices DIY.
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Cured: Hams labeled “city”, “country”, or just plain “ham” are cured and ready for smoking.
Ideally, choose a cured bone-in half ham around 6-8 lbs. This provides fabulous flavor, while still being manageable on the Traeger.
Prepping Your Ham
Before firing up the grill, take a few quick steps to get your ham ready to smoke.
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Remove Packaging: Unwrap your ham and discard any plastic, netting, or metal. Leave any bone protector intact.
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Trim Fat: Use a sharp knife to trim off any excess fat or skin, leaving a thin layer over the meat.
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Score the Fat: Crisscross shallow cuts across the remaining fat to help render fat and form a crust while cooking.
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Apply a Rub: For extra flavor, briskly rub the ham all over with a dry seasoning blend. Try Traeger Coffee Rub or Traeger Perfect Pork Rub.
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Refrigerate Uncovered: Letting the ham rest uncovered in the fridge overnight helps form a pellicle for better smoke absorption.
Now your ham is ready for some serious Traeger time!
Setting Up Your Traeger Grill
Smoking ham requires holding at a consistent low temperature for hours, so Traeger’s precision is perfect.
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Preheat to 225-250°F: Plan to cook at this low and slow range to keep the ham nice and moist.
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Use Smoke Setting: If your grill has a “smoke” option, use it for extra smoky flavor.
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Add Smoke Tube: Use a pellet smoke tube for additional smoke if desired.
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Use Wood Pellets: Cherry, apple, or maple pellets pair excellently with ham.
Once your Traeger is dialed in, it’s go time!
Smoking Your Ham to Perfection
Now for the fun part – actually smoking your ham! Follow these simple steps:
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Insert Meat Thermometer: Monitor the temperature using a leave-in thermometer placed in the thickest part without touching bone.
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Place Ham Fat-Side Up: Put the ham directly on the grill grates. The fat will baste the meat as it renders.
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Cook Until 140°F Internally: Smoking time varies, but plan for 18-24 minutes per pound. Cook until the ham reaches an internal temperature of at least 140°F.
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Spritz Hourly: Spray or mop the ham with apple juice or broth hourly to prevent drying out.
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Rest 30 Minutes: Before carving, tent the ham loosely in foil and let rest for 30 minutes to allow juices to redistribute.
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Carve and Serve! Now you can slice into your masterfully smoked ham! Dig in!
Smoking ham on your Traeger grill delivers incredibly moist, flavorful results every time thanks to precise temperature control.
Glazing Your Smoked Ham
One way to take your smoked ham to the next level is finishing it with a sweet and sticky glaze. Whip up a quick glaze and apply it during the last 30-60 minutes of smoking.
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Sweet Glazes: Brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, jam, pineapple juice all make tasty bases.
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Savory Add-Ins: Consider mustard, herbs, spices, hot sauce, Worcestershire, or orange zest.
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Make it Shiny: Melt in butter, oil, or preserves for a glossy sheen.
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Get Creative: Craft your own signature glaze combo in minutes on the stovetop.
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Apply Multiple Coats: Brush on a fresh layer of glaze every 15 minutes until the ham reaches desired doneness.
The possibilities are endless when making a flavorful ham glaze!
Epic Traeger Ham Recipes to Try
Ready to get smoking? Here are some sensational Traeger recipes to inspire your next ham session:
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Maple Glazed Ham: A maple, brown sugar, and mustard glaze makes this ham crazy delicious. The sweetness pairs perfectly with smoky flavor.
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Easter Ham: Transform a basic cooked ham into an Easter showstopper with a glaze of brown sugar, pineapple, and Traeger Sweet & Heat BBQ sauce.
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Apple Cider Glazed Ham: Apple cider reduced into a glaze coats the ham in delicious sweetness and pairs perfectly with apple wood pellet smoke.
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Honey Ham: For mouthwatering flavor, coat smoked ham with a simple glaze of honey, brown sugar, mustard, and spices.
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Cherry Cola Ham: Coca-cola and cherry preserves create a unique, tasty sweet and tangy ham glaze.
With the right ham, prep, smoking technique, and killer glaze, you can craft Amazingly delicious smoked ham on your Traeger that your whole family will go crazy for.
Frequently Asked Traeger Ham Questions
Smoking a ham on a Traeger grill is easy as pie, but you may still have a few questions:
What’s the ideal size ham for a Traeger?
For the average family, a 6 to 8 lb bone-in half ham is perfect. This size has great smoke absorption and still feeds a crowd.
How long per pound should I smoke ham?
Plan for about 18-24 minutes per pound at 225-250°F until the internal temperature hits 140°F. So a 6 lb ham takes 2-2 1/2 hours.
What pellets work best for smoking ham?
For ham, sweeter, fruit-based pellets like cherry, apple, and maple provide excellent balanced flavor.
Should the ham be cooked fat-side up or down?
Keep the ham fat-side up so the rendering fat continually bastes the meat, keeping it extra moist.
Is it okay to smoke a pre-cooked spiral ham?
Sure, smoking an already-cooked spiral ham boosts flavor. Just smoke until hot, about 2 hours.
What’s the best way to reheat leftover smoked ham?
Chopped in scrambled eggs, tossed in hash, or simply warmed is all delicious. Baked in the oven also brings back moistness.
Can you smoke a fresh uncured ham?
Absolutely! An uncured “fresh” ham has incredible pork flavor. Fully cook to 145°F internal temperature just like a pork roast.
Enjoy Signature Smoked Ham from Your Traeger Grill
From choosing your ham to firing up your grill, prepping to carving, you now have the insider tips for smoking standout ham on your Traeger. Smoky, juicy, glazed ham makes for an incredibly memorable meal with family and friends. Try your hand at smoking ham and soon you’ll have everyone begging for your secret Traeger recipe! Dig into your own mouthwatering smoked ham and enjoy your new go-to grilling specialty.
HOW A FRESH HAM IS SMOKED
A fresh ham, also known as a green ham, is a pork ham cut that has not been cured or smoked. It’s not common to find fresh ham at the grocery store, so make sure you get this cut from the butcher if you want to smoke and cure a ham yourself. If you do, make sure you follow a recipe from a reliable source because curing can be tricky. (Sidenote: A fresh ham is also delicious roasted. It’s not a ham at all, even though its name sounds like it, a “picnic” ham is not a fresh ham. It can come whole, like a city ham that has already been cooked. A whole fresh ham can feed at least 20 people or a half
Before being smoked, the fresh ham is cured.
As with brining, which means soaking meat in a salty liquid to keep it fresh, curing makes meat juicy and adds flavor. But curing goes one step further and usually means that nitrite and/or nitrate have been added to help the meat last longer, make it taste better, and give it that pink color we associate with holiday ham. This word can also be used to describe smoking meat. Both curing and smoking used to be done to keep bacteria away, but now they’re just done for flavor and texture.
Usually, the brine solution is heated and mixed to make sure the sugar and salt dissolve. The solution usually has sugar, regular salt, curing salt, and aromatic flavorings like garlic and herbs. The liquid is then cooled and poured over the ham to completely submerge it. There is no set amount of time that a ham needs to be cured, but as a general rule, it takes about one day per pound of ham. Some butchers will go as long as 30 days.
How long to smoke a ham when its fresh?
A fresh ham is usually smoked low and slow, between 225°F and 325°F, but the temperature can change. This keeps the big piece of meat tender. The temperature inside the ham must reach at least 145°F. Depending on the size of the ham and the cooking temperature, this could take anywhere from 5 to 10 hours.
HOW TO “DOUBLE” SMOKE A HAM
Most people who cook a ham for the holidays choose a “city” ham, which means it has already been cured and smoked. Technically, this ham can be eaten right out of the package. However, it’s much more pleasant to eat when reheated. One of the best ways to reheat it is by smoking a ham on a pellet grill. Hitting a ham over low heat on the Traeger makes the smoky flavor stronger while the low heat keeps it moist and tender. This process is sometimes called “double smoking.”
Set the Traeger no higher than 325°F (and lower if you want more smoke flavor) and heat the ham slowly. This will give it the best taste. Do you want to know how long to smoke a ham? The time it takes to reach the perfect temperature of 140°F to 145°F will depend on how big it is, but it could be anywhere from 1 1/2 to 4 hours. To keep track of its progress, put in a leave-in meat thermometer like a MEATER. For an estimate, consider 10 to 15 minutes per pound of ham. For part of the reheating process, cover the ham in foil and baste it with liquid, like broth, apple cider, or a mix of the two. This will keep the ham moist.
Consider sweeter woods when double-smoking a ham. You don’t want to add too much smoke when reheating the ham because it already has a smoky flavor, though the amount will depend on the ham. Instead of mesquite, choose one of our “sweeter” and kinder blends, like cherry, apple, or pecan. To learn more about your pellet options, look here.
Glaze your ham—or not. If you want to, you can glaze your ham instead of cooking it. It will taste better (usually sweeter) and look better. You should glaze your ham in the last half hour or so of cooking, when it has reached about 130°F.
Let the ham rest before carving. Even though the times can change, remember that ham is very versatile and doesn’t have to be piping hot to taste great. Also, if your ham is done before you thought it would be, let it rest for at least 30 minutes. It can stay at room temperature for up to two hours before you serve it.