Acey, here in North Carolina, Smithfield is the preferred brand. I don't like the fact that almost all of the spiral hams are presliced. I have bought other Smithfield ham products and have been very happy with them. Gina

I much prefer a NON spiral-cut ham, myself . . . and I've also never had a too-salty ham. Do you counter-balance the salt with a sweet? I use brown sugar or honey or pineapple juice, etc and it makes a perfect balance. I'm not partial to any particular brand; just stick to the major names.

I'm in Iowa and also love the Smithfield hams....
Don't know about the spiral cut...but the Smithfield hams I get here are not precooked and need to be cooked to 165 to be done....but they are really good.
And I also prefer a non spiral cut ham....with an electric knife it's really easy slice your own.
Linda C

I'm just keeping it easy on myself this time, so was looking for opinions on presliced. I like most hams anyway, just wondered if there was any outstanding ones that are presliced that I may not know about. I was trying to find reviews or ratings (LOL like Consumer's Reports would have), but I haven't found any.

It will take you 15 minutes to slice a ham with an electric knife....and you will save easily $10 and get a ham that is more moist.
And Wal mart has a nice electric knife for $9.99.
The best presliced ham I have ever had is Honeybaked. Yep pricey but very good.
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: Honeybakes spiral sliced

Smithfield is my go-to ham. I get the spiral cut. So much easier for me all alone in the kitchen to get it all to the table at the same time. Just be careful not to dry it out when you warm it. I've had the Honeybaked ham and yes, it is wonderful.

Hi, I've never posted on this forum before but I was browsing and saw your post and thought I would reply. Cooks Illustrated rated grocery store hams. I tried the Cooks spiral hickory smoked honey ham last Christmas because of their review and it was better than other grocery spiral hams I have tried before. If you do a search you might be able to find their ham reviews.

I would never buy another one of Costco's spiral-cut ham. I believe the brand was Prime Select which is normally a good brand.

I bought one at Kroger's one year that was every bit as good as Honey Baked. I think it was their own brand.

I looked up Cook's ham. They had a merger with Smithfield in 2006. And all their products come from many different packing houses. So I contacted them to ask the question is Cooks on par with a Smithfield ham. I'll see what they say. Hopefully their quality control covers all their named products. Thanks for all the responses. I'll try to remember to post their response if they have anything of value to say back to me!

For what it's worth. . .my daughters and I went to a Paula Deen "show" in DC last month, and she couldn't say ENOUGH good things about Smithfield. Michael and a chef from Stanford did all the cooking, while Paula schmoozed w/ the audience. When a young girl held something up, Paula said, "What's that, honey?"

"It's your first cookbook!" was the reply.

Paula said, "Why, let me see that! It was self-published, you know, and I ran out. I don't even have one of my own. Where'd you get it, honey?"

"I got it on e-bay."

"Well, how much didja pay for it, darlin'?"

"A thousand dollars."

Paula almost fell off the stage at that. When she caught her breath, she said, "I don't have that much money!"

Of course, we all laughed at that. Finally, she did something she said she wasn't supposed to do. She signed the girl's book.
I'm sure the girl felt her money was well spent.

chery2

I'm sure she did have good things to say about Smithfield, she's a paid spokesperson for them. I agree, they are good hams.. but I won't buy them anymore. Smithfield has 2 plants...one is Union and offers good pay and benefits..the one in Tarhill, NC is not. The folks that work in the TH NC plant have been trying to unionize for a long time...

Silly

I've bought the Smithfield spiral-cut many times and think they're really good. I'll admit to mixed feelings about them too, though. Their Smithfield plant is a major polluter of the Pagan River, which flows into the James River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. But their hams are definitely tasty and usually on sale this time of year for 1.79 a pound.

At BJ's you can get a Carando. They come wrapped in red mylar. You will love it. A friend recommended them to me. It's the only ham we use now. Moist and tasty too!

I have bought a few brands, and so far I have always been happy with Cook's brand hams. They haven't been too salty, they are nicely sliced, etc. And usually they go on sale here a few times a year. I have frozen them more than once, defrosted, and cooked like I normally would have and had good results.

The costo easy slice ham? Blech. Salty, the meat had an odd texture and a background taste like it was from an old boar that they chased around for hours before slaughtering. None of us liked it. I froze the leftovers hoping to find a way to use it and not waste it, and they did not freeze well either. The meat got stringy and gamey.

Smithfields are good, but for the price I don't think they are superior. And plus, I won't eat it unless I make it myself because too many people are used to fully cooked hams, and I don't like slimey undercooked smithfield hams.

If only I had known then about Costco's return policy! I would have brought that sucker back.

Here's another vote for the Carando spiral sliced ham.

Honey Baked Hams and Heavenly Hams are not worth the money. Their hams come from the same farms and are exactly same as the ones you buy in the grocery stores.
-----
The only difference between them and the one from the grocery store is the PRICE. Heavenly Ham and Honey Baked Ham Co charge more than double the price of the grocery stores hams! Don't get me wrong. Their hams are delicious but so are the grocery store hams.
-----
I bought a Spiral Sliced ham from Giant Eagle in Ohio. It came from a farm in West Virginia. It was absolutely excellent.
-----
Since the hams are fully-cooked when you buy them, there is no worry that you are serving raw pork.
-----
The grocery store bought hams are very easy to bake in the oven. Fifteen minutes before the hams are done just add the honey glaze that comes with the ham.
-----
Don't be stupid and waste your money on Heavenly Ham or Honey Baked Ham!

Ohiomichael, people in my town figured that one out and consequently both Heavenly Ham and Honey Baked Ham were put out of business here. You do have to be careful which grocery store ham you buy though because they are definitely not all created equal.

I vote for Cooks. It is priced right and has a great flavor. Bought one on sale yesterday for $1.49 a pound.

DP

My next question was going to be about buying hams. So I decided to bump this thread. My brother-in-law used to get the hams for us from Sysco's but he took a job out of state now and I don't think he'll be able to order the ham for us.

Thought other people might be wondering what hams to get for Easter too. Looks like Smithfield, Honeybaked and Carando are the main contenders.

Here in Georgia we always buy a Smithfield ham at Krogers. Usually a ready to eat or warm in the oven for a few hours. I usually will put on the ham pineapple, brown sugar and cloves and if I have them maraschino cherries. Always tasty.I've prepared half and whole hams. Then I will have the ham bone for bean soup. We will have this at any holiday.
Mary

I like all ham. Yes, some can be dry, but it depends on how you cook it. Did you ever try a slow-cooker ham? I hear its amazingly moist and amazingly easy. I'm going to try it this weekend.

I tried cooking a ham in the crockpot, and it was delicious. I’ll only cook them that way now.

Most hams are already cooked. You are just heating them up. And probably drying them out.

My DIL says that Costco has a very good ham right now.

Elery says he likes the spiral sliced ham from Sam's Club, it comes with a packaged glaze. I prefer our own, of course, but if it's a year when I didn't raise a pig, we'll actually have to buy a ham. Funny, when the neighbors raise pigs they sometimes have extra packages to sell, but it's never bacon or ham!

I agree, sushipup, most hams are already fully cooked, they only require heating and the application of glaze if you're using it.

Annie

Haven't had ham in some time. Not been in a grocery in months. Time for Holiday ham. I usually get one at Costco once a year about this time. I soak it in a big pot of water like a 'reverse brine' over night in the fridge to pull out some salt, then refill with fresh water with lots of bay leaves and peppercorns and spices, bring to a simmer on the stovetop for an hour or two, drain, slather on a mustard, maple syrup, horseradish cream and roast in the oven till some crust forms. Make soups, and extra leftover slices freeze well in food saver bags for quiche, frittatas, and other quick meals for the winter months.

Oh yum, sleevendog, I like the addition of horseradish, it might make me actually like ham a little better. It's not that I dislike it, I'm apathetic, same with bacon. I seem to have completely lost my taste for either of those. I'll eat them but they are not my first choice. A bit of horseradish, though, that might do the trick...

Annie

Try a Cook's Spiral Bone In Ham. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

I have a tiny vintage tv in the kitchen pantry run and often have the two cooking/food networks on for background noise....zip back and forth between the two as some are 'nails on chalkboard'. CooksIllustrated tasted hams yesterday and I think Cook's won by a landslide. Barely paying attention because I thought testing only three was not a good and fair test. They did test without heating and glazing.

(I think it was Cook's brand. It was a clear package)

I just checked and they have tested a few times but I don't have access to their site.. Then looked for other 'best' reviews. Many winners. Then found my method posted above and it is a JuliaChild recipe I'm sure where I first came upon it....simmering in aromatics. I used Kirkland because it jumped in my cart passing by.

I've never bought a spiral ham before, but we have 13 coming for the big day and we are both dealing with gimped legs this year (due to injuries) and wanted to simply our meal. We are doing a turkey too, so I'm hoping to put the ham in the slow cooker. I got one from Costco. It looks great! I also have a cooking bag that I will use.

I have been buying Cook’s spiral cut ham for years. thought they were good. thanksgiving 2021 since my family loves ham i served Cook’s spiral ham. ham was salty and i was very disappointed. i have to try another brand.

I know this is a very old thread, but the subject is timeless. I bought my first Cure 81 ham last year and thought it was very good. I usually get a spiral sliced ham and IIRC this was.