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Slathered in a rich brown sugar glaze and cooked to perfection, this Air Fryer ham is going to win everyone over at your next holiday dinner table. It’s seriously delicious, SO easy to make, and perfect for when you’re hosting a small crowd, and don’t want to go all out- just like my favorite Air Fryer turkey breast recipe!
Air frying locks in the flavor, cuts down the cooking time and also frees up your oven for your other holiday sides and bakes!
Now that I have an Air Fryer, I love to use it to make everything possible, including my favorite holiday ham. If you’re looking for more holiday recipes to use with this air-fried ham, you might also want to check out Air Fryer Stuffing, Air Fryer Turkey Breast, and Air Fryer green bean casserole.
This is the perfect dish to go along with our favorite Air Fryer Easter Recipes.
Quick Look At This Recipe
✨ Flavor: Sweet and savory.
⏱️ Prep time: 10 minutes.
🔥 Cook time: 43 minutes.
⏲️ Total time: 53 minutes.
👥 Servings: 8 servings.
🥄 Tools: Air Fryer, basting brush, foil.
❄️ Freezer friendly: Yes.
👩🏻🍳 Tip: Choose the right sized ham that can fit your Air Fryer basket. I used my 5.8-quart Cosori Air Fryer, so I picked a 3 pound spiral ham for this recipe.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Cooking ham in the Air Fryer is super easy. It’s a great way to speed up the process of cooking without drying out the ham.
- The brown sugar glaze (same as the one I used for my Air Fryer candied walnuts) is lip-smacking delicious – make sure you make more- for leftovers!
- The recipe is simple, and there are very few steps involved. Before you know it, you’ll have the finishing touch on a perfect holiday dinner or weeknight dinner.
Table of Contents
Recipe Ingredients
- Ham: I used a 3 pound ham here. If you have a smaller Air Fryer, pick one that is around 2.75 lbs. Make sure it says fully cooked on the package.
- Butter: For that rich flavor. I used unsalted butter.
- Brown sugar: For that natural, caramel-like sweetness. I used it for my Air Fryer candied bacon recipe and it was SO good!
- Cinnamon: A classic- for that earthy flavor and aroma.
See recipe card for quantities.
Variations
- Don’t want to use brown sugar? Maple syrup is a great alternative to get that sweet, sticky shine. I used it for my Air Fryer maple glazed pork chops recipe and it turned out just as delish!
- You can also lend the ham a different flavor by using peach preserves (just like I did for my Air Fryer peach glazed chicken recipe) instead of brown sugar. This will again, caramelize beautifully as it air fries and you’ll get that glossy shine on the outside.
How to Cook Ham in the Air Fryer
- Melt butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Set aside.
- In an Air Fryer basket lined with two sheets of foil, place the ham and brush the mixture over the top and around the sides of the ham.
- Wrap the ham completely and air fry at 300 degrees F for 20 minutes. Remove, brush again with the glaze, cover and air fry again for 20 minutes.
- Pull the foil away, brush again with the glaze and return to the Air Fryer. Increase the heat to 380 F and air fry for 3 minutes. Remove, slice and serve.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Make sure you allow the ham to sit at room temperature for a few minutes before cooking.
- Different Air Fryers cook at different wattages so you might need to adjust the cook time according to the kind of Air Fryer you’re using.
- Hams come in different shapes and sizes. Larger sized ham will be close to the heating element and might brown the top of the ham when you remove the foil for the last 3 minutes of cook time.
- If you have a few extra minutes, consider scoring the outside of the ham before you air fry it. This will help it soak up all that beautiful glaze- I did this when I made my Air Fryer pork belly recipe.
Serving Ideas & Suggestions
Team up this easy Air Fryer ham with some classic holiday sides like Air Fryer sweet potato casserole, Air Fryer baked potato, Air Fryer carrots and my favorite Air Fryer green bean fries. And of course, don’t forget the classic holiday desserts like Air Fryer cinnamon roll bunnies, which are perfect for Easter, or my Thanksgiving classic Air Fryer apple crisp, which hits the spot every single time.
Use up your leftover ham to make some delicious Air Fryer ham and cheese sliders, which you can team up with some simple appetizers like Air Fryer stuffed mushrooms and Air Fryer jalapeno poppers – perfect for any house party or get-together.
Looking for some more easy holiday recipes? Check out the ULTIMATE list of Air Fryer Thanksgiving Recipes and Christmas Recipes and my Ultimate Air Fryer Holiday Gift Guide!
Recipe FAQs
Ham is fully cooked at 140 degrees Fahrenheit,. Cooking it to a higher temperature can cause the meat to dry out, so keep that in mind.
Letting the ham sit at room temperature for a few minutes ensures that it cooks evenly. Make sure you don’t let it sit for more than 20 minutes though!
Cooked ham can stay at room temperature for about 2 hours. Make sure you refrigerate it quickly.
You can store the leftover ham in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Reheating leftover ham can be tricky because you don’t want it to dry out. Add a tablespoon of water to the bottom of the Air Fryer basket and reheat the ham at 250 degrees F for 3-5 minutes, or until heated through
More Air Fryer Ham Recipes
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Air Fryer Ham
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, unsalted
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 pound ham
Instructions
- First, melt the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Set aside.
- Place the two large sheets of foil in the basket of the air fryer. Add the ham to the center of the basket.
- Brush the butter and brown sugar glaze over the top and around the sides of the ham.
- Once the ham has been glazed, cover with foil and place into the preheated air fryer at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, carefully remove the ham from the air fryer and add additional glaze. Seal the top of the foil onto the ham and cook at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for an additional 20 minutes.
- Carefully pull the aluminum foil at least half way down the ham and brush with the glaze one more time.
- Place the basket back into the air fryer and increase the heat to 380 degrees Fahrenheit and continue to air fry ham for 3 minutes.
- Carefully remove the ham from the air fryer basket and slice and serve.
Notes
- Depending on the kind of Air Fryer you have, the cooking time may vary slightly than my Cosori 5.8 quart Air Fryer.
- I personally don’t allow my ham to sit out longer than 20 minutes before cooking, but it’s a good idea to allow your entire ham to sit at room temperature so that once you’ve started the cooking process, the ham will cook evenly.
- Use leftover ham to make ham and potato soup, ham and cheese sandwiches, ham casserole, or ham and cheese sliders.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
HI, I like the recipes and the way you lay them out with the instructions and descriptions on what you made and how and what you used. Do you have a cook book or anything I can put on my computer with all of your recipes ?
We have a cookbook called Air Fryer All Day that is available at Target, Barnes N Noble, Amazon, and other store. It publishes in October 2023.
Great recipe but for health reasons I can’t use that amount of butter, any healthier options pls?
You can always use a butter substitute for this recipe.