As the vacations strategy, an all-important query looms: will you make turkey or will you make ham this yr? For these of you on Group Ham, this Crockpot Ham recipe is the best, most scrumptious solution to cook dinner ham for a crowd. Even should you’ve by no means made a vacation ham earlier than, this recipe gained’t allow you to down!

Why You’ll Love This Easy Crockpot Ham Recipe

• It’s Ham, Ma’am. Or sir. Anyway, the purpose is: ham is scrumptious—savory, candy, succulent, and salty. With this crockpot ham recipe, you’ll get all that deliciousness with none of the stress. We’re speaking 5 minutes of prep time right here!
• Set It and Overlook It. A lot of the nervousness concerned in vacation entertaining is the psychological Tetris you need to play when determining what must go within the oven and when and at what temperature. Enter: crockpot ham. Like Crockpot Pork Roast, the ham frees up helpful actual property within the oven and because it’s a principally hands-off recipe, your time is free to make your sides (or sip on an Apple Cider Cocktail together with your friends).
• Travels Nicely. Heading to Friendsgiving or one other gathering the place the oven is occupied? This sluggish cooker ham solves that drawback.
• Leftovers for Days. Use the leftover ham to make sandwiches for lunch, or add Sluggish Cooker Ham and Bean Soup, Ham Casserole, and Scalloped Potatoes and Ham to your meal plan for the week after the vacation.
• Good for Particular Events. Ham, together with turkey, is a staple for a lot of vacation celebrations. The stress is on whenever you’re selecting a ham recipe to make for household and associates, however relaxation assured: this ham recipe with a brown sugar glaze will elicit these excited oohs and ahhs and all of the compliments. 

What You Have to Know When Buying Ham

If that is the primary yr you’re making ham for the vacations, you won’t know the place to begin. There are such a lot of choices!

• Metropolis ham is the brined number of ham. Most hams bought in the US are metropolis hams.
• Nation hams are hung to dry; they’re cured with a dry rub and might also be smoked. Consider this because the American equal of Serrano ham or prosciutto.
• Contemporary hams are uncooked; whereas metropolis ham and nation ham might be eaten chilly or warmed to a secure temperature, recent hams should be cooked.

Plan to buy a metropolis ham for the vacations. You should buy a complete ham or a half ham.

Right here’s a primer that can assist you make your buy.

1. Keep away from Hams Which can be Injected With Saline Answer. Metropolis hams are brined one in all two methods: soaking the ham in saltwater for a number of days or injecting brine straight into the meat to expedite the brining course of. Greater high quality hams are submerged in brine, moderately than injected.
2. Keep away from Canned Ham, Too. Canned ham is made by urgent and forming scraps right into a can-shaped loaf. Evidently, that is not the ham you wish to serve for the vacations.
3. Select Bone-In Ham. Boneless ham is best to chop, however leaving the bone in helps maintain the ham moist and flavorful, so it’s value the additional effort. Plus you need to use the ham bone for On the spot Pot Break up Pea Soup!
4. Spiral vs. Entire Ham. Spiral hams are very talked-about for the vacations as a result of they’re already pre-cut. Handy! Sadly, being pre-cut makes them susceptible to drying out.

For this recipe, we’ll use a bone-in ham.

How you can Make Crockpot Ham

The Components

• Cooked Bone-In Ham. Don’t use spiral-cut ham, as it’ll dry out within the sluggish cooker.

• Liquid. To maintain your ham moist. Dry white wine, apple juice, or water will all work.
• Glaze. I like to recommend my Straightforward Brown Sugar Ham Glaze, which provides this crockpot ham the basic sweet-and-savory taste everybody loves.

The Instructions

1. Reduce. Rating the ham diagonally left to proper, then proper to left, making a diamond crisscross sample.

2. Add the Liquid. Pour the wine or juice right into a 6-quart or bigger oval sluggish cooker. 

3. Add the Ham. Cowl and cook dinner till the ham is heated fully by means of and reaches 140 levels F on an instant-read thermometer.

4. Glaze. On the finish of the cooking time, put together the glaze. Switch the ham to a chopping board and brush with the glaze combination.

5. End. Make Ham Gravy, if desired. Slice, serve, and ENJOY!

Storage Suggestions

• To Retailer. Retailer leftover crockpot ham in an hermetic storage container within the fridge for 3 to five days.
• To Reheat. Reheat ham within the microwave, or place it in a baking dish with a number of tablespoons of water, broth, or inventory; cowl and reheat in a 325 diploma F oven till the ham reaches an inside temperature of 165 levels F.
• To Freeze. You may freeze leftovers in an hermetic container or zip-top freezer bag. Thaw within the fridge, then reheat in response to the directions above.

What to Serve with Crockpot Ham

Recipe Suggestions and Tips

• Don’t Overcook the Ham. Because it’s already cooked, it simply must be warmed by means of and infused with taste. This is likely one of the most typical errors individuals make when cooking ham for the vacations! A 5 pound ham takes about 5-7 hours within the sluggish cooker to cook dinner.
• Use a Meat Thermometer. That is the easiest way to make sure that your ham has reached the right inside temperature. Because the ham is already cooked, loads of the visible cues we use for doneness not apply. Plus, totally different sized hams will want totally different quantities of time to succeed in a secure 140 levels F.
• Don’t Use a Spiral Ham. Whereas they might be handy for serving, they’ve a a lot increased chance of drying out within the sluggish cooker.
• Make Sufficient Crockpot Ham for Everybody. Questioning how a lot ham to make per particular person? Plan for about 1/3 to 1/2 pound of ham per particular person for bone-in ham. Some sources even advocate as a lot as 3/4 pound per particular person, so if your loved ones has huge appetites, you’re serving extra adults than youngsters, otherwise you need leftovers, maintain that in thoughts!