There are two different methods you could use to thaw a ham. They are the refrigerator method and the cold water method. These are the only two ways you should thaw a ham. Never just leave your ham sit out to thaw it, because there is the change for bacteria to grow.
The best method is the refrigerator method. The way this works is you put the frozen ham in the refrigerator to thaw. It is a slow way to thaw a ham but it is the safest. Thawing a ham in the refrigerator reduces the chance of bacterial infection since it is thawing in a cold environment. For a small ham it will take around 4 to 5 hours per pound to thaw. A large ham will take 5 to 7 hours per pound.
The other method to thaw a ham is the cold water method. This way is much faster than the refrigerator method. It is safe too as long as follow these directions. You want to fill your sink with enough cold water to cover the ham. Put the ham in a large storage bag so it isn’t exposed to water. If the ham is exposed to the water there is a greater change for bacteria to grow, and it will also lose flavor and color. Also if you use this method you must replace the water with fresh, cold water every 30 minutes. Never use warm or hot water.
Cold water thawing times are 2 to 3 hours for a small ham and 30 minutes per pound for a large ham. If you use this method, the ham should be cooked right away after it is thawed. It should not be stored, and you cannot refreeze the ham again unless it is fully cooked.
I don’t recommend it, but you can also cook a frozen ham. You will just need to increase the cooking time. In some case it will take a lot of extra time to cook a frozen ham especially if it is a large ham. This is why I recommend that you thaw your ham using one of the methods above.
Now that you have a thawed ham you need to cook it. They method I love and recommend is to grill the ham. You could also smoke the ham too, which is another great way to prepare a ham. If you are looking for a glaze check out my favorite ham glaze recipe.