This slow cooker ham with pineapple is the easiest and most delicious way to prepare tender, mouthwatering ham! It’s perfect for a holiday meal and will free up oven space for all your side dishes. You’ll need just a handful of simple ingredients and your favourite slow cooker for this delicious crock pot pineapple ham!
Table of Contents
Easy Slow Cooker Ham Holiday Dinner
This slow cooker ham with pineapple simmers in the most aromatic spices and seasonings, but the maple and honey mustard glaze is the crowning glory.
It’s the perfect holiday ham recipe for a special occasion like Easter or Christmas dinner, yet it’s easy enough for a weeknight meal.
With all of the mouthwatering flavours, this slow cooker spiral ham is a definite crowd-pleaser any time of the year!
For more delicious holiday mains, check out this Slow Cooker Turkey Roast and Christmas Roast too!
Why We Love This Slow Cooker Pineapple Glazed Ham
- Minimal effort: Since the spiral cut ham is precooked and your crockpot is doing the work, this slow cooker ham with pineapple slices is the simplest way to prepare your holiday dinner.
- Loaded with flavour: This slow cooker ham recipe has layers of flavour, from the delicious ham to the tangy orange juice, sweet maple syrup and honey, and fragrant allspice.
- Free from refined sugar: Unlike most spiral hams made with brown sugar glaze, this recipe uses maple syrup, honey, freshly squeezed orange juice and pineapple slices to incorporate some natural sweetness.
- Plenty of leftovers: This crockpot ham with pineapple recipe makes 6-8 servings and tastes great the next day in a sandwich or breakfast scramble!
Ingredient Notes
- Spiral ham: I used a 4-6 lb fully cooked ham. The slow cooker brings it up to temperature and infuses it with tons of flavour.
- Orange juice & zest: These add a bright flavour, contrasting the sweet, rich ham.
- Honey & maple syrup: Combined, these two natural sweeteners make a delicious glaze that tastes just like your favourite brown sugar pineapple ham.
- Dijon mustard: Mustard marries the orange and honey flavours together perfectly without tasting too sweet.
- Ground allspice: I love how allspice tastes like a mixture of spices, like ground cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg, without the fuss of hunting down all those jars in your spice cupboard.
- Fresh thyme: This adds a pop of colour and a fresh counterpoint to all the sweet, spiced flavours in this flavourful ham.
- Pineapple rings: These are used for garnish on top of the ham and in between the slices for a show stopping presentation.
How to Cook Ham in Slow Cooker – Step-by-Step Instructions
- Place the ham in the slow cooker, cut side down if it will fit that way.
- In a small bowl mix together the zest, juice, honey, maple syrup, dijon, and allspice.
- Pour half of this mixture over the ham, and top with thyme sprigs and pineapple slices.
- Cover, cooking on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 6-8 hours, or until heated through with an internal temperature of at least 145℉.
- Place the remaining glaze into a small saucepan and heat on the stove over medium heat until mixture becomes thicker and more concentrated, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Remove the ham to a wire baking rack lined sheet pan and baste the ham with the glaze just before serving. For extra crispy and sticky glaze, turn ham onto its side, place ham under the broiler of your oven on low, watching closely until the glaze starts to bubble and brown on the edges of the ham.
- Serve ham warm, or at room temperature, with any remaining glaze.
How to Cut a Spiral Ham
Depending on your cut of ham, there are two main ways to cut this slow cooker pineapple glazed ham. You’ll want a long, sharp blade for easy carving and a sturdy cutting board for boneless or bone-in hams.
Boneless ham: Place the ham with its thickest side down for safe cutting. Use your knife to help the ham fall apart at the natural breaks from the spiral cut. Trim any large pieces down to size.
Bone-in ham: Carefully run a thin knife, like a filet knife, all along the bone. Some of the pieces will naturally fall apart. Move those pieces to your serving tray. Cut large slices into smaller pieces for easy serving.
Keep scrolling to the recipe card below for the full printable spiral ham recipe!
Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Ham
- This spiral ham glaze recipe would also work on a regular or country ham.
- Crushed pineapple could also work for this recipe, just add up to ½ cup lightly drained crushed pineapple to the cooking/glaze mixture in step 2.
- It’s important to cook down the second half of the glaze to get it thick enough to stick to the ham. If you skip this step, the sauce will be too runny.
- For extra sticky glaze, add in 2 tablespoons brown sugar.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, this ham could also be cooked in a large roasting pan in the oven. Just cover with foil and cook at 275℉ -300℉. for 3-4 hours or until it is heated through.
For a small slow cooker pineapple glazed ham, you’ll want to cook it on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
Although you’re probably using fully-cooked ham, it’s essential to thaw your ham completely to maintain good food safety practices. There’s something called the Temperature Danger Zone, which is when foods are between 41 to 135 degrees F. In this temperature range, bacteria grow faster than in cooler or hotter temperatures.
The goal is to get your chilled, thawed ham through this temperature range as quickly as possible, ideally within 2 hours. If you cook a frozen ham, the centre of your ham will stay in this danger zone for much longer than is considered safe. You’ll know the ham is fully cooked when it reaches 145 degrees F in the thickest portion.
Storage Guidelines
This crock pot ham can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or can be frozen for up to 3 months.
To reheat: If you have leftovers from Easter dinner, you have several options to reheat them. An easy way is to microwave the slices you want to serve for about 1-2 minutes. You can also griddle ham slices for caramelization on each side.
If you’re reheating a large amount, you can place the slices in a baking dish with a bit of extra orange juice. Bake at 350 F until the pieces are warm all the way through.
Serving Suggestions
This holiday ham recipe tastes impressive with these healthier versions of your favourite side dishes.
- Crockpot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
- Kale Beet Salad
- Greek Yogurt Mashed Potatoes
- Fresh Green Beans with Bacon
- Cinnamon Orange Cranberry Sauce
- Christmas Fruit Salad
What to Do with Leftover Ham
There are lots of ways to put any leftover ham to good use! Leftovers are great in sandwiches, soups, pasta or egg dishes.
Try any of the following ideas:
- Breakfast scramble
- Ham sandwiches
- Add to mini egg bites
- Crustless mini quiche
- Spinach zucchini frittata
- High protein French toast (Eggs Benedict style!)
- 5-Ingredient mac and cheese
Recipe Variations
- Switch up the spices and herbs: Other spices and herbs that would be a nice addition include clove, ginger or rosemary.
- Add some bourbon: The alcohol will cook off in the slow cooker but will add a delicious aromatic flavour.
- Use more pineapple: If you want more of a pineapple glaze, replace the orange juice with pineapple juice.
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Green Beans with Cranberries and Almonds
- Healthy Roasted Potatoes
- Oven Roasted Broccoli with Lemon and Parmesan
- Healthy Carrot Pineapple Muffins
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Slow Cooker Ham with Pineapple
Ingredients
- 4-6 pound small spiral ham
- Zest of 1 orange
- Juice of 2 oranges
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 4 sprigs of fresh thyme
- Pineapple rings for garnish
Instructions
- Place the ham in the slow cooker, cut side down if it will fit that way.
- In a small bowl mix together the zest, juice, honey, maple syrup, dijon, and allspice.
- Pour half of this mixture over the ham, and top with thyme sprigs and pineapple slices.
- Cover, cooking on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 6-8 hours, or until heated through with an internal temperature of at least 145℉.
- Place the remaining glaze into a small saucepan and heat on the stove over medium heat until mixture becomes thicker and more concentrated, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Remove the ham to a wire baking rack lined sheet pan and baste the ham with the glaze just before serving. For extra crispy and sticky glaze, turn ham onto it’s side, place ham under the broiler of your oven on low, watching closely until the glaze starts to bubble and brown on the edges of the ham.
- Serve ham warm, or at room temperature, with any remaining glaze.
Notes
- This spiral ham glaze recipe would also work on a regular or country ham.
- Crushed pineapple could also work for this recipe, just add up to ½ cup lightly drained crushed pineapple to the cooking/glaze mixture in step 2.
- It’s important to cook down the second half of the glaze to get it thick enough to stick to the ham. If you skip this step, the sauce will be too runny.
- For extra sticky glaze, add in 2 tablespoons brown sugar.
- Leftovers are great in sandwiches, soups, pasta or egg dishes.
Leave A Review: