Slow cooker gammon joint with balsamic & orange glaze

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We're BIG fans of a Sunday roast dinner in our family. As soon as the colder weather starts drawing in we love nothing more than knowing we've got dinner simmering away in the slow cooker while heading out for a family walk. This slow cooker gammon joint, with a balsamic and orange glaze, is always a hit with my family.

I have several other glazes listed below, including honey mustard glaze and a coca-cola glaze too - ideal if you're not a fan of balsamic vinegar or don't have it to hand. You can skip these glazes entirely and just serve this slow cooker gammon as is if you prefer.

This is a gammon joint that you can prepare in the morning, pop it in the slow cooker and then you don't have to do much until it's ready for serving. This is such a simple way to enjoy a family dinner without being tied up in the kitchen all day. Perfect for a Sunday roast!

I personally like to use a 750g gammon joint for this slow cooked gammon recipe. This is a great size for feeding a family, and having a little leftover for gammon, air fryer chips and eggs, a nice tasty omelette, a pea and ham soup or just a mini midweek roast dinner.

While you're here be sure to check out my slow cooker tips which is packed full of ideas to help you get the most from your slow cooker. I've got a ton of easy slow cooker recipes too that are perfect if you want to make more easy family meals.

You can leave this to cool slightly, and slice into slices, or you can tear it apart for this slow cooked pulled gammon meat/slow cooker ham, which is similar to slow cooker pulled pork, that is perfect for roast dinners, sandwiches and can easily last for several meals.

This is perfect for cooking up in December or for Christmas Day when you have more visitors and want to get ahead of some of the prep.

Ingredients for slow cooker gammon joint:

60g brown sugar (⅓ cup approx)

70ml balsamic vinegar (⅓ cup approx)

70ml pure orange juice (⅓ cup approx)

Gammon joint of choice - I typically use a 750g smoked gammon joint, as this is most widely available in UK supermarkets.

You could use a pre-made glaze, such as this balsamic glaze if you prefer to keep it on hand, or want to make it more convenient.

Method for how to cook gammon joint with balsamic & orange glaze or glazed ham:

Combine the brown sugar, balsamic vinegar & pure orange juice together.

Mix well.

I like to whisk it and then add this to the bottom of the slow cooker pot.

As I bought a smoked joint I boiled it for 5 minutes first on the hob, just to attempt to remove a little of the salt from my gammon joint. You can skip this step if you want to.

Place the gammon joint into the slow cooker. Make sure to remove the plastic from the outside first.

Turn the gammon joint over a few times in the glaze.

Slow cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours instead. Times will vary depending on the size of your gammon joint, and your slow cooker size too.

Aim to turn the gammon joint over a couple of times during the cooking time. Too frequent turning will lead to temperature drop in the slow cooker pot so I just do it every couple of hours now.

Remove the gammon joint.

You can serve as is, if you want to, or you can remove the leftover glaze from the bottom of the slow cooker pot and boil this on the hob until it thickens up a little.

Slice your gammon joint once it has cooled slightly if you want to keep it in whole slices and make sure to use a sharp knife.

If you want more of a shredded gammon then you can just use two forks to pull this apart, or meat forks.

Pour over your balsamic glaze, once reduced, or have it on the side of your plate as a dipping sauce.

This is also great served with 2 ingredient BBQ sauce if you fancy something a little different!

Cooking a 750g gammon joint in a slow cooker:

As you've seen above I have used a 750g gammon joint in my slow cookers. You can cook this on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours. Check it is cooked through with a meat thermometer before serving of course!

I tend to leave mine to rest in a roasting pan before I serve it, just so you can get some actual slices. If you don't want to wait then just shred it up as it still tastes absolutely delicious!

What colour should gammon be when cooked?

You want the gammon to be a dark pink colour and have an internal cooking temperature of at least 71C (160F approx).

I think the perfectly cooked gammon is the one in the photograph here. A nice dark pink colour and then it has a crispy top, from the glaze, and a lovely darker edge.

How much water do you need for this recipe?

None at all!

If you want to avoid the gammon sticking to the bottom of the slow cooker a little then you can use a splash of stock, but I don't feel the need as the glaze is sufficient for the cooking time.

You could use stock, before finishing with a glaze at the end, and then save that for making a ham and pea soup.

Turn it regularly to avoid it sticking and that should be sufficient. If you're not going to be able to turn it frequently then I recommend cooking in stock and then making the glaze on the hob and drizzling it over serving time.

Cooking a slow cooker gammon recipe:

You can use stock, water, or just about any liquid that you like to cook your slow cooker gammon.

Glaze ideas for slow cooker gammon:

You can cook your gammon in many different liquids, such as stock or just water. Alternatively you could add a can of coca cola, which would act like a glaze.

Using a honey mustard glaze is one of my favourites as honey glazed ham is full of flavour and always a crowd pleaser too. Combine 70g of honey, 20g of English mustard and 30g of brown sugar. Mix together and brush over the gammon and place in the slow cooker. Turn over every 1-2 hours if possible.

Bay leaves bring a nice flavour to this dish, so you could add a couple of those to the pot while cooking.

Honey and wholegrain mustard is a lovely idea too.

Any of the glazes could be poured over the gammon once it is cooked and then you could just air fry it for 10 minutes or pop it in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

How to cook a smoked gammon joint:

Personally I like to boil a smoked gammon joint for a little while before I put it in the slow cooker, as otherwise I find it can be a little salty. This is a great way to help start the cooking time before transferring to the slow cooker.

Can you cook a slow cooker gammon joint from frozen?

I would firmly NOT recommend this in the slow cooker. It can take quite a while for meat to heat up in the slow cooker and you could get sick!

You could cook a joint from frozen in the oven or air fryer, thanks to the faster cooking time, but for use in the slow cooker you should defrost in the fridge for 24 hours to ensure it is defrosted fully.

Using a fresh joint, or a thoroughly defrosted one, is the safe way to make a gammon in your slow cooker.

Can you cook a gammon joint overnight in the slow cooker?

Yes, absolutely. Read the manufacturers instructions for your slow cooker to see if it needs preheating beforehand. If so do this first. You can then cook the gammon on low, in the slow cooker, overnight for 8-12 hours.

What is the 750g gammon joint slow cooker time?

Slow cook for a minimum of 4 hours on the high setting or 8 hours on the low setting.

ALL of the slow cooker recipes on this website have been cooked using a Ninja Foodi OL750UK, or a previous Ninja multi-cooker model, but you can use ANY slow cooker, as timings should be very similar.

If you're wanting to try something different to dress your gammon with then check out this 3 Ingredient Ham Glaze.

Can you overcook this gammon?

Slow cooker gammon is hard to overcook, thanks to the low temperature and gentle cooking.

If you're worried I would check it at the 4 hour mark for cooking on high, and 7 hours cooking on low. I use a meat thermometer because that allows me to ensure the cooking temperature is safe before serving it up to my family.

Should you leave gammon to rest after cooking?

I like to leave this to rest for 15 minutes before I carve it. If you don't mind it being more shredded then you can go ahead and carve it right away while it's super hot.

Letting it rest gives the joint time to relax before carving, which makes for more even slices.

What to serve with a slow cooker gammon joint:

I have a ton of delicious recipes here. If you're going for a classic roast dinner then try my sage and onion stuffing, beef gravy, air fryer frozen yorkshire puddings, air fryer roast potatoes or rosemary and garlic roast potatoes, air fryer carrots and parsnips or air fryer tenderstem broccoli.

What I love about making this in the slow cooker is that it leaves the oven free for cooking the rest of the roast dinner trimmings. The prep time is really minimal too.

Air fryer mac and cheese or air fryer cauliflower cheese works very well with this. As does a nice batch of air fryer frozen french fries and a couple of fried eggs.

My slow cooker gammon joint, with balsamic and orange glaze, is a delicious meat that will work great as the basis of a stunning family meal. It has a great flavour that makes it perfect as a traditional Sunday roast but also it has a modern twist.

I love to use some of this gammon for sandwiches, for salads or just for ham and eggs and other simple dinners.

This dish is packed full of flavour, but it is also so simple to prepare. It takes just a few ingredients, my trusty slow cooker and then the gift of time to wait for an ordinary gammon joint to become a stunning gourmet creation.

I set a timer to remind me to turn the joint, and it only takes a few seconds. You could definitely turn it less during the cooking time.

The gammon joint is succulent, tender and has a lovely sweet yet tangy sauce. The orange gives a nice zesty punch of flavour and it is always a hit in my house.

I love how versatile this gammon is. Ideal for a platter when you're hosting guests and a great cold meat for Christmas time too. A Christmas ham is a great way to bulk out plates when you've got lots of people to feed.

Good food doesn't need to be complicated, as this recipe shows. It's full of flavour, has a luscious glaze and is super simple to prepare too.

How to make my slow cooker gammon joint with balsamic & orange glaze:

Fancy trying one of my other slow cooker recipes? Here are some of my favourites:

• Slow cooker chicken (whole)
• Chicken curry in the slow cooker
• Slow cooker beef keema curry
• Chicken nachos in the slow cooker
• Slow cooker cottage pie
• Slow cooker beef casserole – super lazy version!
• Slow cooker sausage casserole!

Note: All calorie information is for demonstration purposes only and is based on the specific uncooked ingredients that I used when creating the recipe.

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