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This Crockpot Spiral Ham is the perfect holiday main dish when you need to free up oven space. Just four simple ingredients and tender, flavorful slices every time. It’s my favorite easy slow cooker ham for Christmas, Easter, or any special dinner.
Rave Reviews ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“This was so delicious and easy. Loved that it was cooked in the crockpot which saved room for other foods to go in oven. Family loved it.” – Crystal H.
“Oh my gosh! How can you go wrong with this ham… It’s even better than honey baked hams if I’m allowed to say that. Hee hee!! It’s the best recipe by far. Love it!!” – Tamara H.
“Great recipe for Sunday dinner! My husband and son gave it five stars because it is flavorful, moist and tasty. I always use this to avoid overheating the kitchen. A few simple sides make a complete and delicious dinner without hours of kitchen prep.” – Nancy
A Holiday Tradition
This Crockpot (or Crock-Pot®) Spiral Ham is delicious anytime, but especially around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Personally, I love making a big ham for the holidays knowing full well I am going to have lots of leftovers for soups and sandwiches. It’s the ham that keeps on giving.
There are a million different reasons why I love this recipe, but probably the biggest reason is that it’s just so easy. It keeps the kitchen calm and the ham tender every single time. I hope it becomes a tradition at your table too!
❤️ Erica
Why Make Spiral Ham in a Crockpot?
When preparing meals for a holiday dinner or even a big Sunday dinner, oven space becomes an issue. Heating the ham in the crockpot saves oven space for side dishes and rolls and allows the meat to simmer in the sweet sauce. Another benefit of using a crockpot is that it doesn’t dry out the ham. The ham stays tender and flavorful.
Ingredients
This Crockpot ham recipe couldn’t be easier! All you need is a spiral ham and three easy ingredients to make the tastiest ham you’ve ever had.
- Spiral-cut ham: Select an 8-10 pound ham that will fit in your crockpot.
- Brown sugar: You can use light or dark brown sugar.
- Maple syrup: Use real maple syrup, this makes the best glaze for the ham.
- Canned pineapple juice: Fresh or canned works great. You can also use apple cider or orange juice.
How to Make Spiral Ham in a Crockpot
- Place ham flat-side down in the slow cooker. If it doesn’t fit, ham can be placed on its side so the lid can close. Discard glaze packets.
- Generously rub brown sugar over the ham.
- Pour maple syrup and pineapple juice over the ham.
- Place the lid on the crockpot, making sure it fits securely. Cook on low for 2-3 hours or until warmed to 140-145°F.
- Remove lid and stir the juices at the bottom of the crockpot. Spoon the juices over the ham and cook an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove the ham from the crockpot and place it on a serving platter. Separate the slices for easy serving.
Recipe Tips
These helpful tips will give you the best crockpot spiral ham yet!
- Easy cleanup – Use a crockpot liner to make clean-up quick and easy.
- Baste before serving – Baste the ham with the juices from the bottom of the slow cooker 30 minutes before serving.
- Use the broiler for a glaze finish – To create a caramelized glaze on the ham’s surface, transfer it to a baking sheet and broil it in the oven for a few minutes after slow cooking.
- Let it rest – Allow the ham to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving. This lets the juices redistribute, resulting in a juicier spiral ham.
- Serve with extra glaze – Offer extra glaze on the side for those who want an extra drizzle of flavor. Thicken the glaze by placing it in a small saucepan on the stove and thickening it with a slurry of cornstarch and water.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are planning a Christmas or Easter dinner, this question is always at the top of the list. How big of a ham should you buy? For a spiral ham, plan on ½ pound per person. So, if you will be serving 12 people, make sure your ham is at least 6 pounds. If you do have leftovers, you can easily freeze leftover ham and use it later for soup, casseroles, or sandwiches.
Place the ham on its side. If it still doesn’t fit trim the ham or slice it into smaller pieces. If your ham still doesn’t fit and you’re unable to modify it, you may need to resort to oven cooking. Preheat your oven to the recommended temperature for your ham, place it in a roasting pan, and follow the cooking instructions provided with your ham.
Yes, if you don’t like pineapple, orange juice is also very good with ham. You can also use apple cider.
No, but real maple syrup adds a rich, maple flavor that is hard to beat. Of course, real maple syrup is quite expensive, so if you want to use your typical Mrs. Butterworth’s (or any regular breakfast maple syrup), that’s okay too. Don’t skimp on the syrup. If you feel like you need to add a little extra, do it! Follow your heart. If syrup isn’t your thing, you can also use honey.
No Crockpot? No Problem!
Don’t have a crockpot but still want to make a delicious spiral ham? Try our oven-baked Honey Baked Ham Recipe. This is the perfect solution if your ham is too big for your crockpot or you simply don’t have a crockpot to use. You can still use the brown sugar glaze found in this recipe or go all in and make it Honeybaked ham style.
Best Side Dishes to Serve with Ham
Want to make this slow cooker spiral ham but need some side dish ideas? You can never go wrong with a side of simple green beans, corn, carrots, and/or potatoes. We almost always serve this ham with our Cheesy Potato Casserole and a Green Bean Casserole, but it is also VERY good with Homemade Mashed Potatoes and our Christmas Salad.
We’d love to hear from you! If this recipe made your holiday dinner easier, please rate it and let us know what you served alongside it!
Crockpot Spiral Ham
Video
Ingredients
- 1 8-10 pound spiral-cut ham, (boneless ham or bone-in ham)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 cup pineapple juice
Instructions
- Remove ham from packaging and place in a large (7+ quart) slow cooker. Discard glaze packets (if any). Place ham flat-side down in the slow cooker, but if it doesn't fit, ham can be placed on its side so the lid can close.
- Generously rub with brown sugar all over the ham. Pour maple syrup and pineapple juice over the ham.
- Add lid and cook for 2-3 hours on low heat.
- Stir juices and spoon over the ham. Cook on low for an additional 30 minutes.
- Remove ham from slow cooker, place it on a serving platter, and serve!
Equipment
- Crockpot
Notes
- Heating the ham in the crockpot saves oven space for side dishes and rolls and allows the meat to simmer in the glorious sauce.
- Another benefit of using the Crockpot is that it doesn’t dry out the ham. The ham stays tender and flavorful.
- Not a fan of pineapple juice? Try apple cider or orange juice instead.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Leftover Ham Recipes
No matter how many guests I have, I always seem to have so much ham left over! Chop up leftover crockpot ham and use it in omelette in a bag, crock pot breakfast casserole, or ham, egg, and cheese croissants. So many possibilities! Here are a few of my favorites:
Ham and Bean Soup
Crockpot Split Pea Soup
Ham and Cheese Sliders
Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
Layered Cold Pasta Salad
Ham Salad
Classic Chef Salad
I love this recipe because I am an animal caregiver/ pet sittitter/ dog walker. I’m always working during the holidays so this recipe allows me to have the main dish cooking while I’m out working. U make sure to have my sides prepped so all I have to do is toss the scalloped potatoes in the oven and then steam the green beans! It is a time saver, saves my sanity and tastes great! I highly recommend it.
I love this recipe, because it’s easy and delicious.I love spiral ham cooked any way
This was so delicious and easy. Loved that it was cooked in the crockpot which saved room for other foods to go in oven. Family loved it
I love spiral ham. I will make this for Easter.
Very easy, let the pot do it for you
Just love sugar and pineapple on my ham.
Going to try this for the first time!
This recipe is absolutely wonderful
Delicious! Juicy, tender and everyone just raved about this ham. Will definitely do it again this way!
This is an awesome recipe for a great Ham for the Easter Holidays or anytime! So easy to make it this way and no heating up the kitchen with the hot oven! The whole family raved at how good it tasted and easy to keep in crockpot to put up in fridge if there were any leftovers. Easy recipe using items that most have on hand, or not too expensive to buy.
I haven’t tried this receipe, But it is definitely something I would make. Love the simplicity and I’m not a big fan of package sauces.
This is a good use of my Crockpot for delicious meal during Easter.
I’ve never cooked a ham in the crock pot before.