Orange Marmalade Glazed Ham

This succulent, juicy orange marmalade glazed ham makes the perfect centrepiece for any celebratory meal. The gammon is simmered in orange juice and festive spices before being covered in a zesty marmalade glaze.

I couldn’t contemplate Christmas without a cooked ham!

I cook a ham every Christmas simply because we all love it, but it’s mainly for my number two son who doesn’t do turkey. Not that I mind in the slightest! I look forward to using up the leftovers just as much as I enjoy Christmas dinner.

One of my Boxing Day rituals include making us HUGE turkey, ham, stuffing and cranberry sauce club sandwiches for lunch. In the unlikely event of any pigs in blankets going spare, I throw a couple in. I only make this sandwich once a year. It’s one of my very favourite things about Christmas time.

They are EPIC and keep us going for the rest of the day. A couple of slices of this sweet, sticky glazed ham really takes the sandwich to another level. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

how to make a glazed ham

I’ve included instructions in the recipe card below for cooking the gammon on the hob, slow cooker and Instant Pot.

how to cook gammon on a hob

Place the gammon joint in a large pan and add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries if using, halved onion, black peppercorns and the zest and juice of the orange.

Pour over the orange juice and top up with enough water to cover the gammon. Bring to the boil and skim off any impurities that rise to the surface. Reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours (for a 1.4kg gammon joint.)

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the liquid to cool down a little before lifting the gammon out.  If you’re cooking the gammon in advance, place it on a serving plate or roasting tin and let it cool completely (this will take a while, but it’s important to do so as quickly as possible) before wrapping in foil and placing in the fridge.

how to cook gammon in a slow cooker

Place the gammon joint in your slow cooker pot and add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries (optional), halved onion, peppercorns and the zest and juice of the orange. Pour over the orange juice and enough water to completely cover the gammon. Cook on LOW for 6-7 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.

how to cook gamon in an INSTANT POT

Place a trivet in the Instant Pot. Place the gammon on the trivet and pour over about 250ml (one cup) of orange juice. Add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, halved onion, peppercorns, and the zest of one large orange. Place the lid on the Instant Pot and press MANUAL.

Set the timer to 33 minutes (the general advice on the Instant Pot UK community Facebook page is to go for 11 minutes for every 500g which worked perfectly for my 1.4kg joint) Leave the pressure to release naturally before opening the lid and removing the gammon from the pot.

One piece of advice – although you could glaze the ham in the Instant Pot, I believe you get a much better result doing it in the oven.  The heat of the oven gives you a beautifully burnished, sticky glaze that the Instant Pot just can’t replicate in the same manner.

You’ll find further information on how to cook a gammon in the Instant Pot on the Feisty Tapas website.

to make THE GLAZE

Preheat the oven to 200C/180Fan/400F. In a small bowl, mix together the mustard and marmalade. Stir in the orange juice.

Remove the gammon from the liquid and transfer to a roasting tin double lined with foil. Remove the thick layer of fat and score into a diamond shape if desired (I don’t always bother doing this)

Pour the marmalade glaze all over the gammon. Cover with foil, place in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes if you’ve just removed the ham from the simmering liquid OR for 40-45 minutes if you cooked the gammon in advance.

how many people does this glazed gammon serve?

The gammon joint I used for this recipe makes enough for about 6-8 people.

If you have a larger piece then you’ll need to adjust the cooking time – the general rule of thumb is 30 minutes for every 450g (1lb) on the hob.

can you double this recipe?

Sure! If you’re cooking for a larger crowd, the recipe can easily be doubled. I know it sounds obvious, but make sure you have a pot large enough to fit the gammon and juice!

should i let a gammon cool before glazing?

Ideally you should allow the gammon to cool down before you add the glaze. It’s much easier to glaze a cold gammon.

can i make glazed gammon ahead of time?

Yes, absolutely! I always cook the gammon in the orange juice on Christmas Eve morning, although you could do this up to two days in advance if it helps. Once the gammon is cooked, allow it to cool completely (it’s very important that the gammon is cold when you place it in the fridge – you don’t want food poisoning!) then wrap well in tin foil before refrigerating.

When you’re ready to glaze the gammon, remove from the fridge an hour before you intend to finish it off in the oven. You’ll need to cook the gammon for 40-45 minutes to make sure it’s piping hot in the middle.

***Please note that this post is very old and I will be updating the terrible photos and adding step by step photos very soon! But it’s a fantastic recipe that never, ever fails***

what to serve with glazed gammon

Gammon is such a versatile meat that goes with practically anything – whether it’s part of a slap up roast dinner with roast potatoes, cauliflower cheese or my Christmas spiced red cabbage and roasted veg, served alongside a creamy potato gratin or just good old ham, egg and chips! Come on, who doesn’t love that from time to time?

If you have an air fryer, you could make these air fryer roast poatoes to go along with it or even just good old creamy mashed potatoes.

what to do with leftover gammon

There are so many meal possibilities with leftover ham – you could make my classic lentil soup recipe but add the ham during the last 30 minutes to heat it through, make a creamy pasta bake or a delicous ham and mustard gratin.

As much as I adore my much loved Pigs in blankets macaroni cheese recipe, it would also be very good with chunks of leftover ham.

I like to serve leftover ham cold for Boxing Day dinner with pickles, a potato salad, creamy coleslaw and a bag of good quality crisps. It’s a fabulous lazy meal for when you can’t face the idea of cooking and just want to sit and eat in front of the TV….which of course is what Christmas is for, isn’t it?

recipe notes

When I published this post a few years ago, all spice berries were pretty easy to source.  I could find them in my local health food shop and many large supermarkets. Unfortunately, they now seem to be almost impossible to locate in the UK (at least, they are in the highlands of Scotland!) 

If you’re also having trouble finding them, please don’t substitute with ground all spice – you can just omit them from the recipe without any harm. You could always add a few more peppercorns, an extra cinnamon stick or a star anise if you enjoy the flavour.

More Christmas recipes…

• Easy Brined Roast Turkey Crown 

• Rolled Turkey Breast with apricot and cranberry stuffing 

did you make this recipe?

I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below – and rate the recipe by clicking on the stars in the recipe card.

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Orange Marmalade Glazed Ham

Yield: serves 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes

This delicious orange marmalade glazed ham (gammon joint) is slowly simmered in orange juice and spices then covered in a sticky mustard marmalade glaze. 

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Ingredients

• 1 x 1.4kg unsmoked gammon joint
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1/2 tablespoon allspice berries (optional, see recipe notes)
• 1 onion, peeled and cut in half
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1 litre fresh orange juice
• For the marmalade glaze:
• 1 tbsp Dijon or wholegrain mustard
• 3 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon, optional
• 1 tablespoon orange juice

Instructions

Hob/Oven Method -

1. Place the gammon joint in a large pan and add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, halved onion and black peppercorns. Pour over the orange juice and top up with enough water to completely cover the gammon. Bring to the boil and skim off any impurities that rise to the surface. Reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the liquid to cool down a little before lifting the gammon out. If you're cooking the gammon in advance, place it on a plate or suitable tin and let it cool completely (this will take a while, but it's important to do so as quickly as possible so it's not hanging around for too long) before wrapping in foil and placing in the fridge.

Slow Cooker -

1. Place the gammon joint in your slow cooker pot and add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, halved onion and peppercorns. Pour over the orange juice and enough water to cover the gammon. Cook on LOW for 7 hours or HI|GH for 4-5 hours. Follow the instructions below for the glaze.

Instant Pot -

1. Place a trivet in the Instant Pot. Place the gammon on the trivet and pour over about 250ml (one cup) of orange juice. Add the cinnamon sticks, allspice berries, halved onion and peppercorns. Place the lid on the Instant Pot and press
2. MANUAL.
3. Set the timer to 33 minutes (the general advice on the Instant Pot UK community Facebook page is to go for 11 minutes for every 500g which worked perfectly for my 1.4kg joint) Leave the pressure to release naturally before opening the lid and removing the gammon from the pot.

For the glaze:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/180Fan.
2. In a small bowl, mix the mustard and marmalade together. Stir in the orange juice.
3. Remove the gammon from the liquid and transfer to a roasting tin double lined with foil. Remove the thick layer of fat and score into a diamond shape if desired (I don't always bother doing this)
4. Pour the marmalade glaze all over the gammon. Cover with foil, place in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes if you've just removed the ham from the simmering liquid OR for 40 minutes if you cooked the gammon in advance.

Notes

When I published this recipe a few years back, all spice berries were easy to source. Unfortunately, they now seem to be almost impossible to locate in the UK. If you're also having trouble finding them, please don't substitute with ground all spice - you can just omit them from the recipe.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 grams
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 101Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 64mgCarbohydrates: 24gFiber: 2gSugar: 18gProtein: 1g

Calories and nutritional information are provided by a third party application and should be viewed as indicative figures only.

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