Mastering Smoked Ham in a Masterbuilt Electric Smoker

As a lover of smoked meats, ham is one of my favorites. A juicy smoked ham hits the spot whether it’s for Easter dinner or just a weekend cookout. While excellent smoked ham can be found at delis and restaurants, nothing beats the flavor of smoking your own at home.

If you own a Masterbuilt electric smoker, you have the perfect tool to make competition-worthy smoked ham right in your backyard Masterbuilt smokers are known for being easy to use while still producing authentic smokehouse results.

In this article, I’ll share my tips for smoking the best ham using a Masterbuilt electric smoker. You’ll learn everything from choosing the right ham to glazing and serving delicious smoked ham that your family and friends will rave about.

Why Smoke Your Own Ham?

Here are some of the benefits of smoking your own ham at home:

• Customize the flavor – Commercial hams often have a generic smoked flavor. When you smoke it yourself, you control the wood, rubs and glazes.

• Moist and tender texture – A ham smoked low and slow is more moist than oven baked. The collagen breaks down for fork-tender meat.

• Cost savings – Smoking an inexpensive raw ham yields tastier results than buying a premium pre-cooked ham.

• Smokehouse quality – An electric smoker makes it easy to achieve real pit-smoked flavor at home,

• Fun weekend project – Smoking a ham takes several hours, making it a fun Saturday or Sunday activity.

If you’ve never smoked a ham before, it may seem intimidating. But with some basic guidance, the Masterbuilt electric smoker makes it foolproof.

Picking the Right Ham for Smoking

The first step is selecting what type of ham to smoke. You have a few choices:

Raw Fresh Ham

• Needs to be fully cooked – smoked to 145°F internal temperature.
• More work but superior flavor.
• Requires 10-18 hours of smoking time.

Pre-Cooked Ham

• Just needs to be heated through – smoke to 140°F.
• Convenient and less time consuming.
• Ideal for beginners.

Bone-in or Boneless

• Bone-in has more flavor but takes longer to cook. The bone shields some meat from smoke.
• Boneless cooks faster. Easier to carve but may be less juicy.
• I prefer bone-in for maximum flavor and presentation.

Other Considerations

• Select a ham between 8-12 lbs. Overly large hams are hard to smoke evenly.
• Look for minimal water added (% on label). High water content dilutes flavor.
• Go for natural hardwood smoked if pre-cooked. Avoid chemical smoked flavor.

For beginners, I recommend a small bone-in fully cooked ham around 10 lbs. This size has great presentation but doesn’t require marathon smoking time. Choose a low sodium ham without artificial ingredients.

Must-Have Smoking Supplies

Aside from the ham itself, here are the supplies you’ll need:

• Masterbuilt Electric Smoker
• Digital meat thermometer
• Disposable foil pan
• Apple, cherry or maple wood chips
• Spray bottle of water
• Pastry brush
• Disposable gloves

You’ll also need ingredients for making a glaze. I’ll share my favorite recipe later on.

Step-By-Step Smoking Instructions

Follow this simple process for foolproof smoked ham every time:

1. Remove Ham Packaging and Rinse

Unwrap the raw ham and give it a quick rinse under cool water. Pat it completely dry with paper towels. This removes any dusty coating from packaging.

2. Bring to Room Temperature

Place the ham on a sheet pan and allow it to come to room temperature, about 30-45 minutes. This helps it cook evenly later.

3. Score the Fat (Optional)

For enhanced flavor and glaze absorption, you can lightly score the fat cap in a diamond pattern using a sharp knife. This isn’t mandatory but I recommend trying it.

4. Add Wood Chips

Plug in and preheat your Masterbuilt smoker to 225°F. Fill the wood chip loader with apple, cherry or maple chips. I prefer apple or cherry with ham.

5. Place Ham in Smoker

Put the ham directly on the bottom smoking rack. Insert a digital meat thermometer into the thickest part of ham, making sure it isn’t touching bone.

6. Maintain Ideal Temperature

Keep the temperature steady at 225-250°F for the entire cook by monitoring it and adding more wood chips as needed. Water in the pan helps regulate temperature.

7. Smoke Until Reaching 130°F Internal

Let the ham smoke, undisturbed, until the thermometer registers 130°F. This ensures the inside is heated through before glazing.

8. Apply Glaze

Remove ham at 130°F and liberally brush glaze all over the outside using a pastry brush and disposable gloves.

9. Return Ham to Smoker

Put the glazed ham back into the hot smoker, being careful not to brush the sticky glaze on the racks or walls. Close the door immediately to retain heat.

10. Finish Cooking to 140°F

Continue smoking until the internal temperature reaches 140°F. This fully cooks the ham without drying it out.

11. Remove from Smoker and Rest

When the ham hits 140°F, use gloves to carefully transfer it to a cutting board. Tent loosely with foil and let rest 10-15 minutes.

12. Carve and Serve

Finally, remove string or netting and carve the hot ham into thin slices. Serve while warm and enjoy!

It’s that simple with an electric smoker like the Masterbuilt. The key is keeping an even low temperature and using a meat thermometer to monitor doneness precisely.

Now let’s cover how to take the flavor up a notch with my go-to glaze recipe.

Maple Mustard Glaze

Brushing on a flavorful glaze halfway through smoking is key to incredible ham. The sugar caramelizes and forms a sticky, spiced crust.

Glaze Ingredients:

• 1⁄2 cup maple syrup
• 1⁄2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp mustard
• 1⁄4 cup apple juice
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1⁄2 tsp cloves

Simply whisk all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool and thicken more before using.

Apply liberally when the ham reaches 130°F internal temperature.

Masterbuilt Electric Smoker Tips

Here are some additional tips specific to using a Masterbuilt smoker:

• Use maximum smoke setting to start for dense smoke flavor. Lower to medium after 2 hours.
• Add a water pan for increased humidity that keeps the ham moist.
• Spritz ham with apple juice if glaze starts to blacken or dry out.
• Check wood chip level often and replenish early to prevent heat loss.
• Use an oven-safe meat thermometer so you don’t need to open the door.
• Avoid peeking! Every time the door opens, heat and smoke escapes.

Troubleshooting Smoked Ham

Here are some common issues and how to prevent them:

Problem: Ham is too salty.

Solution: Opt for a low sodium or no salt added ham. Omit any extra salt from rub or glaze.

Problem: Ham is dry or tough.

Solution: Smoke at 225-250°F. Don’t exceed 140°F internal temperature. Rest before slicing.

Problem: Ham has bitter or acidic taste.

Solution: Use more wood chips for fuller smoke flavor to balance acidity.

Problem: Ham has a funky chemically flavor.

Solution: Buy a natural hardwood smoked ham with no artificial flavors added.

Problem: Ham is unevenly smoked.

Solution: Cook a smaller ham. Check for hot spots in smoker. Rotate if needed.

Problem: Glaze won’t stick.

Solution: Score fat cap before smoking. Apply glaze thicker on second coat.

Serving Smoked Ham

Aside from slicing the hot ham straight from the smoker, here are some tasty ways to serve it:

• In omelets, quiches or frittatas
• Diced in potato salad or macaroni salad
• Added to soups like split pea, bean or potato
• On home-baked pizzas
• Sandwiched between biscuits or croissants
• Tossed with pasta and peas
• In breakfast burritos or sandwiches

Leftover smoked ham stays good for a week in the fridge and can be frozen for later use. Remember to remove any bones before storing.

Satisfying Smoked Ham Meals

Here are some full meal ideas perfect for serving alongside your Masterbuilt smoked ham:

• Smoky baked beans and coleslaw
• Scalloped potatoes and roasted asparagus
• Pineapple glazed carrots and yeast rolls
• Classic green bean casserole and salad
• Sweet potato salad with grilled corn
• Mozzarella caprese skewers and pasta salad

You really can’t go wrong pairing smoked ham with classic side dishes. The possibilities are endless!

The Takeaway

With the right techniques, smoking an incredible ham at home using a Masterbuilt electric smoker is easy and fun. The key steps are choosing a small bone-in ham, keeping the temperature steady, glazing at 130°F, and cooking to 140°F.