Slow Cooker Ham

Make a Crockpot Ham for your next holiday feast. You only need a half ham that fits your slow cooker, fruit juice, dried fruit, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, and ground cloves. Most of the cooking time is hands-free so you can do other things.

This Slow Cooker Ham recipe is perfect paired with Scalloped Potatoes and the easiest Air Fryer Asparagus for a fantastic Easter Dinner. Remember you can freeze ham you have leftover for quick and easy protein in the weeks to come.

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Ham plays a starring role at many a holiday feast. While the humble ham may be relegated to ham and cheese sandwiches most of the year, it’s welcomed with open arms at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.

Over the years, I’ve come to realize how vital my oven is during feast days. It seems like it runs 24/7, particularly when I want to bake my own dinner rolls (which I do), bake my desserts (which I do), and prepare the best scalloped potatoes in the universe (which I most definitely do!)

This means that I need to find alternative cooking methods so my oven can be free to make all the things in due time. My solution is to cook ham in my 6 quart slow cooker! This crockpot ham recipe is loosely adapted from a vintage 1970s recipe in Jacqueline Heriteau’s Best of Electric Crockery Cooking and allows both me and my oven to be free for other things!

I can get the slow cooker ham going early in the day, allowing it to soak up all the yummy flavors and then finish it off with a glaze in the oven right before serving. I get my ham AND my scalloped potatoes, too!

Why Make This

It’s easy. It’s super easy to prepare a Crockpot Ham. Load up a large oval slow cooker 5 to 7 hours before meal time. Most of the time will be hands-free cooking! Even for non-holiday meals, it’s a simple dinner; one of those great things to serve with mac and cheese.

It’s delicious. This slow cooker ham warms in a fruit juice bath and then gets an oven blast to glaze the sugar coating. It’s so yummy and perfect for your holiday meals from brunch to supper.

It’s a good cheap eat that will make you the hit of the party. Ham tends to be a pretty economical protein, especially at the holidays, making Crockpot Ham one of the best main dishes to serve for large get-togethers. No need to buy a fancy shop, honey baked ham. You can make your own!

You’ll have yummy leftovers. Chances are a half ham is more than enough for a festive meal. This means that you can make the most of one meal prep and use that meat in the days and weeks to come. Ham leftovers are the best! Be sure to chop or slice the leftover slow cooker ham and freeze it in meal-size portions to use later. Be sure to make Creamy Ham Pasta with Peas & Tomatoes.

Pro tip: You may be hard pressed to find a whole or half ham any other time of the year other than holidays. Hint: if you want to make a ham during off-holiday months, stock up on Christmas Clearance or after Easter.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make Crockpot Ham:

one large half ham – Be sure to buy one that fits in a large slow cooker with the lid secure. I like to buy the smoked boneless half ham that Costco now carries. It looks small, but trust me, it’s mighty. It cooks up beautifully. You’ll want a fully cooked ham so that all you need to do is thoroughly heat it and then glaze it for your holiday meal. Please see the notes below about using a spiral cut ham or fresh “cook-before-eating” ham.

apple juice – I usually stock up on apple juice when it’s on sale, so that’s the juice I normally use. You can use grape, pear, or pineapple juice or a cranberry juice blend.

dried cranberries – Again, dried cranberries are one of my grocery staples, but you can also use dried apricots, dates, raisins, dried currants, or dried cherries. 

brown sugar – The caramel-like flavor of brown sugar really makes the brown sugar glaze extra special. You can use dark or light brown sugar. If you don’t have any, take a few extra minutes to make brown sugar yourself as it does make a difference. (See the variations for using honey instead.)

Dijon mustard – This adds a spicy little kick to your brown sugar ham glaze. You can use regular mustard or whole grain mustard if that’s what you have.

ground cloves – You just need a bit of this spice, but it makes a difference.

Variations

There are lots of ways to mix and match the flavors in this Crockpot Ham. Consider one of these options:

• Brown Sugar Pineapple Ham – Use a mix of apple and pineapple juice as well as dried or fresh pineapple instead of the cranberries.
• Honey Ham with Apricots – Use apple or white grape juice as well as dried apricots. Instead of brown sugar, use honey in the glaze but very little of the juices from the slow cooker.
• Spiral Cut Ham – You can cook a spiral cut ham slow in the slow cooker, however, it gets really tender! It will likely fall apart when you remove it from the crock unless you use a foil sling like we do for crockpot meatloaf or a removable rack underneath it. Since an unsliced half ham is cheaper, that’s what I recommend.
• Fresh Ham – Fresh hams (as opposed to fully cooked hams) need to come to an internal temperature of 145°F with a three-minute rest period to be considered safe to eat. See the USDA recommendations for ham safety and be sure to test the temp before removing the ham from the slow cooker to glaze.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Here’s how to make Crockpot Ham:

Check to make sure the ham you bought fits in the slow cooker!

Place ham, cut side down into crockpot. Add apple grape juice and dried cranberries. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours.

Carefully remove the ham from crockpot and place in roasting pan, on its side.

Heat the oven to 375 ° Combine brown sugar, Dijon mustard, ground cloves, and enough of the juices from the crockpot to create a paste. Spread the paste over ham’s surface. Place in the hot oven to glaze, about 20 to 30 minutes.

Remove the ham from the oven. Slice and serve. Garnish with the dried fruit that has now been rehydrated as a delicious addition to the slow cooker ham!

Be sure to promptly package leftovers (within 2 hours of serving) and consume or freeze within 4 days’ time. Learn how to freeze ham to extend the life of your dish.

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FAQs

More Great Crockpot Recipes

Love ham slow cooker style? Want to explore more ways to use your Crock-pot? Be sure to try our Slow Cooker Chicken Stock and these other main dish recipes:

This post was originally published December 24, 2010. It has been updated for content and clarity.