• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Hungry Healthy Happy
  • Christmas recipes
  • About
  • Recipe Index
  • FREE eBook
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Christmas recipes
  • About
  • Recipe Index
  • FREE eBook
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Let's get social!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Christmas recipes
    • About
    • Recipe Index
    • FREE eBook
    • Contact
    • Subscribe
  • Let's get social!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Hungry Healthy Happy » Recipes » Pork

    Slow Cooker Gammon

    Published: Dec 3, 2021 · Written by Dannii Martin · This post may contain affiliate links · 19 Comments

    1888 shares
    • 108
    Diet: Gluten Free / Low Fat
    Jump to Recipe
    Slow cooker ham with a text title overlay.
    Slow cooker gammon with a text title overlay.

    This Slow Cooker Gammon recipe is the easiest was to cook a gammon joint and it gives you the most deliciously tender, fall apart ham, that is perfect for a roast dinner. Minimal prep time and just a few ingredients, this gammon joint is cooked in cider and apple juice with some spices and then glazed with honey and mustard and baked to perfection to finish it off.

    A plate of sliced ham next to bowls of roast potatoes and slaw.

    This slow cooker ham recipe is so simple, but results in the best ham. It has a slightly sweet taste from being cooked in the apple juice and cider, and then being glazed with honey and it just falls apart when carving. Let the slow cooker do all the work and then finish it off in the oven for a crispy skin.

    If you are looking for some other meat recipes to go on a roast dinner, then why not try our Slow Cooker Roast Beef, Honey Roast Duck, Roasted Turkey Breast or The BEST Roast Chicken?

    Jump to:
    • Why you will love it
    • Ingredients needed
    • How to cook gammon in the slow cooker - Step by step
    • What is the difference between ham and gammon?
    • Variations
    • What to serve with slow cooker gammon
    • Storage
    • Leftover ham recipes
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Extra tips
    • More slow cooker meat recipes
    • Recipe
    • Feedback

    Why you will love it

    • A nice roast dinner alternative - We love a roast dinner, but having the same roast beef or chicken can get a little boring. This is still delicious and seriously impressive, but something a little different.
    • Delicious hot or cold - We love it served hot with all the trimmings, but actually, we love the leftovers too. Cold in a sandwich or on a salad is just as good.
    • Saves space in the oven - I don't know about you, but our oven is pretty much bursting when we cook a roast dinner. This is all done in the slow cooker, with the option to finish it off in the oven at the end. It's a great space saver for a roast.

    Ingredients needed

    All the ingredients needed for this recipe with text overlay labels.
    • Gammon joint - You can use a smoked or unsmoked gammon joint. We used smoked because we like the extra flavour, but you might find that too salty. If you have smoked gammon, but you don't want it salty, then you could boil the salt away by placing it in a saucepan of boiling water and bring it to the boil. We used a 1.3kg joint and we found that was enough to serve 8 people. We used a boneless join, as it is easier to carve, however a bone-in joint is juicier. You would need to adjust your cooking time though.
    • Carrot and onion - This is just used to add flavour to the apple juice and cider that the gammon joint cooks in. You could add other vegetables in to it as well if you wanted to.
    • Cloves - These are totally optional, but it really adds to the flavour and gives it a festive taste. This does taste quite "clovey", which we love, so use less if you don't love the flavour. Or, you can just leave them out.
    • Mixed spice - This gives the ham a lovely flavour and it's perfect for the festive season.
    • Apple juice and Cider - This is the liquid that the gammon cooks in and it gives it the most incredible, and slightly sweet, flavour. You could just use water if you prefer.
    • Honey, Brown sugar and Dijon mustard - This is all mixed together to create the glaze for the slow cooker ham. You don't have to glaze it and finish it in the oven, if you just want to keep this as a slow cooker dish. But it does add a nice crispiness to it.

    A full ingredients list with measurements is in the recipe card below.

    How to cook gammon in the slow cooker - Step by step

    One: Put the gammon joint in the slow cooker, fat side up. Add the carrots and onions around the side of it.

    Two shot collage of a gammon joint in a slow cooker, then with carrots and onions added.

    Two: Rub the mixed spice into the top of the gammon. Add the cloves and pour the apple juice and cider into the slow cooker, being careful to avoid the top of the ham.

    Spices rubbed over the gammon then liquid added to the slow cooker pot.

    Three: Cook on high for 5 hours or low for 7 hours.

    Cooked gammon in the slow cooker.

    Four: Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Remove the gammon form the slow cooker and put onto a baking tray. Using a sharp knife, score the gammon in a criss-cross pattern.

    Two shot collage of the gammon on a baking tray then with diagonal score marks in the top.

    Five: Mix together the honey, sugar and mustard.

    Two shot collage of honey, sugar and mustard in a bowl, before and after mixing.

    Six: Pour the honey mixture over the gammon. Put in the oven for 30 minutes, until the top has crisped up.

    Two shot collage of the ham smothered in the mixture, before and after cooking.

    What is the difference between ham and gammon?

    There seems to be some confusion around this, but they are essentially the same thing. Gammon is the raw joint, which you can buy smoked or unsmoked, and it comes from the back leg of the pig and needs to be cooked before eating. Ham is cooked, so when gammon is cooked it becomes ham.

    Variations

    Liquid - We used apple juice and cider, as it adds a nice tanginess, and some sweetness too. However, you could just use water which would make this an easy and budget friendly dish. However, there are other options when it comes to the liquid too. You could use cola, which makes it nice and sweet, but not too sweet. You can use full fat or diet coke and you can even use cherry cola.

    Pineapple juice works instead of apple juice too, but it does give it a tangier and sweeter flavour. In terms of the amount of liquid, we like to use enough to almost cover the gammon joint.

    Glaze - We went with honey and mustard, which is a classic flavour flavour combinations, especially when it comes to ham. But, if you want to give it a more fruity vibe, then why not mix together some mango chutney and sweet chilli sauce and smother that over as a glaze?

    Pulled ham - We have cooked this so it can be sliced and served as you would another roast meat. However, if you wanted to pull the meat apart to use like you would pulled pork, then you just need to leave it in the slow cooker for another 2 hours until it's really tender and just falls apart with 2 forks.

    Slices of cooked ham in front of some roast potatoes.

    What to serve with slow cooker gammon

    This slow cooker gammon goes with so many different things. We love serving it up as a roast dinner with any (or all!) of the following side dishes:

    • Easy Roast Potatoes
    • Roasted Tenderstem Broccoli
    • Roasted Swede, Roasted Brussels Sprouts
    • Sage and Onion Stuffing
    • Honey Mustard Roasted Parsnips
    • Air Fryer Pigs in Blankets

    We also love serving it with Creamy Mashed Potato and some slaw. There are lots of different slaw recipes for you to try on the blog - why not try our No Mayo Coleslaw, Crunchy Asian Slaw, Broccoli Slaw or Mexican Coleslaw?

    This gammon recipe also goes REALLY well with our Slow Cooker Red Cabbage.

    Storage

    Store: You can store the leftovers of the slow cooker gammon wrapped up in the fridge for up top 3 days.

    Freeze: You can wrap slices of the ham and put them in a freezer bag and they will keep for up to 3 months.

    Defrost: Defrost the individual slices of ham in the fridge overnight.

    Reheat: If you want the ham warm again, you can wrap the slices in foil and warm them in the oven.

    Leftover ham recipes

    This makes 8 generous servings, so if you have leftovers them make sure that none of it goes to waste, as there is so much that you can do with it. We love chopping it up and stirring it in to our 10 Minute Cream Cheese Pasta. You could also use it to make an epic ham sandwich, with some other roast dinner leftovers too.

    Why not make our Leek and Potato Soup and stir some chunks of chopped ham in to it or use it instead of bacon in our Healthy Carbonara.

    You can use it in a quiche or omelette, or even put it on a pizza. Why not use it instead of chicken on our BBQ Chicken Pizza?

    A pile of slices of cooked ham.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Do I have to add liquid to the slow cooker?

    No, you don't actually have to add any liquid to the slow cooker at all. But, we find that adding at least 250ml (whether that is water, apple juice or cider), really helps to keep the meat moist. But, it won't burn if you don't add any liquid.

    How long do you cook gammon in the slow cooker?

    We cooked ours for 5 hours on high or you can cook low for 7 hours.

    How to tell if gammon is cooked?

    To see if you gammon is cooked, put a knife in to the thickest part and pull it out to see if it is tender. If it is hard to pull out, and still feels fleshy and springy, then it isn't cooked and it will need to go back on for 30 minutes more. The best way to tell if gammon is cooked is to use a meat thermometer. Ham should be 62°C (145°F) when inserted in to the thickest part.

    What should I do with the leftover liquid in the slow cooker?

    Don't waste this, as it can be used as the stock in soups and stews. Why not look at all our Soup Recipes for inspiration?

    What slow cooker to use.

    There really is no rule here, just make sure that the gammon you are using can fit in your slow cooker. We use a Crock Pot DuraCeramic Slow Cooker and we love it. What I love most about it is that you can put the bowl insert on the hob too, meaning you can brown meat, sauté vegetables or thicken gravy in it. I also love that it has a clear lid, as I am so impatient that I want to keep looking and seeing what it is doing. If you don't have a clear lid, then lifting it to see will release lots of the heat and add to the cooking time.

    heart icon

    Extra tips

    • If you didn't want to use alcohol in this slow cooker gammon joint, then you could just use apple juice and replace the cider with more apple juice.
    • Make sure you remove the plastic that coats the skin of the gammon, as this should not be cooked.
    • If you wanted to try something a little different for the glaze, then mix together some mango chutney and sweet chilli sauce and smother it on the gammon.
    • Before putting the gammon onto a baking tray, line it with foil. This will prevent the honey mixture sticking to the tray, which can be very difficult to clean.

    More slow cooker meat recipes

    • Slow cooker beef brisket sliced up on a serving board.
      Slow Cooker Beef Brisket
    • Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken and rice on a blue plate.
      Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken
    • Slow Cooker Lamb Rogan Josh in a silver balti dish. Naan bread and mango accompany it.
      Slow Cooker Lamb Rogan Josh
    • A bowl of slow cooker pulled pork.
      Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

    If you’ve tried this slow cooker ham recipe, then let us know how you got on in the comments below.
    Tag us in your creations on Instagram @hungryhealthyhappy - Use the hashtag #hungryhealthyhappy too.

    Recipe

    Slices of slow cooker gammon on a blue plate.

    Slow Cooker Gammon

    By: Dannii Martin
    This Slow Cooker Gammon recipe is the easiest was to cook a gammon joint and it gives you the most deliciously tender, fall apart ham.
    A circular logo saying GF.
    Gluten Free
    the words low fat in a white circle.
    Low Fat
    4.86 from 27 votes
    Pin Print Save recipe Recipe saved!
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: British
    Prep: 10 minutes mins
    Cook: 5 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
    Total: 5 hours hrs 40 minutes mins
    Servings: 8 servings
    Calories: 214kcal
    Allergens:
    An illustration of a cow's head.
    Meat
    An illustration of a mustard bottle.
    Mustard
    An illustration of a wine glass.
    Sulphites
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • 1.3 kg (2.75 lb) Smoked gammon joint
    • 2 Onion - cut into large chunks
    • 2 Carrot - cut into large chunks
    • 0.5 teaspoon Cloves
    • 1 tablespoon Mixed spice
    • 750 ml (3 cups) Apple juice
    • 350 ml (1.5 cups) Cider (hard cider)
    • 4 tablespoon Honey
    • 1 tablespoon Light brown sugar
    • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

    Instructions

    • Put 1.3 kg Smoked gammon joint in the slow cooker, fat side up.
    • Add 2 Carrot and 2 Onion around the side of it.
    • Rub 1 tablespoon Mixed spice into the top of the gammon.
    • Add 0.5 teaspoon Cloves and pour 750 ml Apple juice and 350 ml Cider (hard cider) into the slow cooker, being careful to avoid the top of the ham.
    • Cook on high for 5 hours or low for 7 hours.
    • Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6.
    • Remove the gammon from the slow cooker and put onto a baking tray.
    • Using a sharp knife, score the gammon in a criss-cross pattern.
    • Mix together 4 tablespoon Honey, 1 tablespoon Light brown sugar and 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard.
    • Pour the honey mixture over the gammon. Put in the oven for 30 minutes, until the top has crisped up.

    Recipe tips

    • If you didn't want to use alcohol in this slow cooker gammon joint, then you could just use apple juice and replace the cider with more apple juice.
    • Make sure you remove the plastic that coats the skin of the gammon, as this should not be cooked.
    • If you wanted to try something a little different for the glaze, then mix together some mango chutney and sweet chilli sauce and smother it on the gammon.
    • Before putting the gammon onto a baking tray, line it with foil. This will prevent the honey mixture sticking to the tray, which can be very difficult to clean.

    Nutritional Information

    Serving: 1portion | Calories: 214kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 101mg | Sodium: 146mg | Potassium: 599mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 15IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg

    The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.

    You'll love these too...

    • A portion of toad in the hole on a plate with mashed potato and cabbage.
      Toad in the Hole
    • Four pulled pork tacos on a wooden surface.
      Pulled Pork Tacos
    • A pile of air fryer sausage rolls on a wooden board.
      Air Fryer Sausage Rolls
    • A pile of Christmas sausage rolls on a wooden board.
      Christmas Sausage Rolls

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. David

      November 12, 2023 at 9:05 pm

      5 stars
      Wow !!

      Reply
    2. Lesley

      March 06, 2022 at 2:27 pm

      5 stars
      Yummy , gammon was so pull apart tender and delicious. I used all apple juice and mango chutney version. We saved the onions and served them with the meat but blended the carrots into the cooking liquid , then added tomato puree, English mustard and Worcestershire sauce then thickened it with a bit of cornflour, made a yummy sweet and sour type of gravy/ sauce

      Reply
    3. kushigalu

      December 21, 2021 at 3:13 pm

      Love the flavor and the glaze. Would be perfect for holiday dinner. Thanks for sharing

      Reply
    4. Savita

      December 21, 2021 at 2:28 pm

      5 stars
      It looks delicious and so easy to make. Perfect for the festive season.

      Reply
    5. Natalie

      December 15, 2021 at 5:39 pm

      5 stars
      I'm making gammon for New Year's dinner. I've planned to do cranberry spiced gammon but now I'm thinking about trying your recipe. Looks delicious.

      Reply
    6. Jess

      December 15, 2021 at 5:31 pm

      5 stars
      I need to make these ASAP!

      Reply
    7. Tavo

      December 15, 2021 at 5:20 pm

      5 stars
      I love how easy to make this ham is! This is going straight to my Christmas table!

      Reply
    8. Toni

      December 15, 2021 at 4:22 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you so much! It turned out perfect! My family enjoyed it!

      Reply
    9. Andrea

      December 12, 2021 at 2:56 am

      5 stars
      So happy I found this recipe. It is very easy to follow!

      Reply
    10. Lauren Michael Harris

      December 11, 2021 at 10:02 pm

      5 stars
      Why have I never thought to make ham in the slow cooker?? I'm not a. huge fan, but the family has requested it for Christmas dinner. I think the seasonings in this recipe will give it great flavor! I'm actually looking forward to it now!

      Reply
      • Michelle

        December 22, 2021 at 2:34 am

        5 stars
        I love how easy and tender this gammon is in the slow cooker.

        Reply
    11. Claudia Lamascolo

      December 11, 2021 at 9:02 pm

      5 stars
      This is the perfect addition to my slow cooker recipes we just never have enough of them and this ham was so easy to prepare!

      i

      Reply
    12. Gina

      December 11, 2021 at 7:52 pm

      5 stars
      The spices and glaze on this are so incredibly delicious!

      Reply
    13. Andrea

      December 11, 2021 at 6:59 pm

      5 stars
      Fantastic spices and flavors on this gammon. It looks and sounds marvelous!

      Reply
    14. Tawnie Kroll

      December 10, 2021 at 6:04 pm

      5 stars
      So flavorful and I loved that it's made in the slow cooker, it made the house smell amazing! Thank you!

      Reply
    15. Angela

      December 10, 2021 at 4:47 pm

      5 stars
      Delicious! So easy to make and I love the flavor from the glaze.

      Reply
    16. Katherine

      December 10, 2021 at 4:23 pm

      5 stars
      Such a great way to cook gammon. My mother in law always makes it just like this at Christmas time.

      Reply
    17. Jill

      December 10, 2021 at 3:30 pm

      5 stars
      The flavors with the ham were perfect. Thanks for the recipe!

      Reply
    18. Amanda Wren-Grimwood

      December 10, 2021 at 2:22 pm

      5 stars
      I have never cooked a ham in the slow cooker but this is a great way to keep it moist. Looks gorgeous!

      Reply

    Made this recipe? Let me know! Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Slow cooker ham with a text title overlay.
    Slow cooker gammon with a text title overlay.
    Dannii in hat and glasses stood on a beach.

    Welcome! My name is Dannii. Here you will find easy family recipes with a healthy twist. Established in 2011, Hungry Healthy Happy has become one of the UK's most popular food blogs, with two successful recipe books published.

    About HHH»

    Christmas Recipes

    • Roast turkey breast sliced up on a serving board.
      Easy Roast Turkey Breast
    • Air fryer pigs in blankets on a plate with some thyme.
      Air Fryer Pigs in Blanket
    • Nutella Puff Pastry Christmas Tree on a wooden serving board.
      Nutella Puff Pastry Christmas Tree
    • A wooden serving board with nine Santa Hat Brownies
      Strawberry Santa Hat Brownies
    • Four different Christmas drinks in a collage.
      Christmas Drinks
    • Kid's Christmas Snacks on a wooden serving board.
      Kid's Christmas Snacks

    Books

    The Hungry Healthy Happy book cover.
    The healthy slow cooker book cover.

    Featured in

    Collage of media outlet logos.

    Popular Recipes

    • A pile of air fryer chips.
      The Best Air Fryer Chips
    • 10 Minute Chickpea and Spinach Curry on a blue and white plate.
      10 Minute Chickpea and Spinach Curry
    • Easy tomato pasta sauce coating tagliatelle on a white plate.
      Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce
    • Slow cooker beef brisket sliced up on a serving board.
      Slow Cooker Beef Brisket

    Footer

    Slow cooker ham with a text title overlay.
    Slow cooker gammon with a text title overlay.

    Help & Information

    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility Policy
    • Advertising
    • Blog

    About us

    • About us
    • Newsletter Sign Up!
    • Press enquiries
    • Web Stories
    • FAQ

    Follow us

    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • YouTube

    Featured in

    A selection of publications that Hungry Healthy Happy has been featured in

    As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2011-2023 Hungry Healthy Happy • All Rights Reserved • Site Design by D Martin

    • 108
    1.9K shares