Double Smoked Ham with Maple-Mustard Glaze

Ingredients

• 1 half leg of ham that is already pre smoked

For the Glaze:

• ¾ of a cup of maple syrup (or honey if you wish)
• ¾ of a cup of brown sugar
• 3 tbsp of Dijon mustard
• ¾ tsp of ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp of allspice

Directions

1. If you have picked a ham that still has the hock, using a utility knife, slice around this, leaving some skin on the hock as a handle. Then slice down the sides, being careful not to slice through into the fat or meat.
2. Using a sharp knife make shallow parallel slices in the fat, then turn the leg around and make slices in the opposite direction as the first ones, thus creating a diamond pattern.
3. Start the caramelization process with a squeeze of orange juice at the start of the cook, it’s enough to help create the sticky outer and also helps the smoke to adhere to the ham.
4. Set up your smoker to be running at 275°F with lump charcoal.  Then add some apple and cherry wood for smoke. Apple because it is a great flavor to pair with ham and cherry, as it actually creates the best color.
5. Place the ham inside on a wire rack in a tray that has been lined with foil, purely to help in the clean up at the end, and also add three cups of hot water in it.
6. In a saucepan place ¾ of a cup of maple syrup (or honey if you wish), ¾ of a cup of brown sugar (make sure it is packed in tight to the measuring cup), 3 tbsp of Dijon mustard (you can substitute for another type of plain mustard if you wish), ¾ tsp of ground cinnamon and ½ tsp of allspice (you could also use nutmeg). Stir this over a medium heat for around 15 minutes until the sugars dissolve and it thickens up.
7. Once the internal temp reaches 130°F, it is time to start gazing. I recommend using a silicone basting brush, they just tend to hold my liquid and therefore make applying rubs and glazes a lot easier. Give the ham a thick coat and put the lid of the smoker back on.
8. Set the internal temp probes alarm to 140°F now, once it reaches this temp it will time to take it off the heat.
9. Keep reapplying the glaze every 15 to 20 minutes now until it does reach the finished internal temp.
10. The overall smoking and glazing time will take around 3 to 3 and a half hours, depending on the size of your ham. Once it is ready and resting on a chopping board, I like to warm up the glaze again and give it one last thick coating while I allow the ham to rest for 5 minutes before slicing into it.