It’s not always easy to choose a ham at the grocery store. Find out everything you need to know before you shop so you’re ready to choose the right ham.
How to Choose a Ham
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At certain times of the year, the meat cases are full of hams of all different shapes, sizes, and labels. It can be hard to know what you need to look for when you’re shopping for a big holiday dinner. Here is everything you need to know about how to choose a ham.
How Much Ham Do You Need?
The first thing you need to know when you’re getting ready to choose a ham is how much ham you’ll need. If you are buying a bone-in ham (my recommendation, see below), you’ll need between 1/3 to 1/2 pound of ham per person. So if you’re planning on feeding 10 people, look for a ham that’s around 5 pounds.
If you are buying a boneless ham, you’ll want 1/4 to 1/3 pound of ham per person. For that same 10 person meal, you’ll only need about 3 pounds of ham.
Now… if you want leftovers (and who doesn’t want leftovers?) you’ll want to get extra ham. For the bone-in varieties, that usually isn’t a problem, it’s hard to find a ham that’s much less than 7 pounds! Boneless hams can come in smaller sizes, so be sure you check the label to see how much it weighs.
How Will You Cook the Ham?
The next thing to consider is how you are going to cook the ham. Make sure that the ham will fit in the pan you’re planning to use in the oven. (A roasting pan like this will fit your ham!) If you are going to cook a ham in your slow cooker (this is my favorite recipe for a slow cooker ham!), you need to make sure the ham fits inside the slow cooker! This can be a little trickier, so if you can, take a few measurements of the inside of your slow cooker, and take a tape measure to the grocery store. There is nothing worse than realizing – too late – that the ham won’t fit in your slow cooker! (A tape measure like this one is easy to toss in your purse and take with you.)
What Kind of Ham?
It probably looks like there are a bunch of different options at your grocery store. If you look closely at the labels, there are really only 3 main types of ham. Let’s check them out so you can decide which type you prefer.
Bone-In, Unsliced
The bone-in, unsliced ham is my favorite. This ham (as the name implies) still has the bone inside, and is not spiral-sliced. Spiral-sliced hams are a little easier to cut and serve, but they can get a little dry if you’re not careful during the cooking. Plus, with an unsliced ham, you can control the thickness of the slices! Do you want shaved slices for sandwiches? Get our your electric knife and shave super-thin slices. Do you want thick slices, or even chunks of ham for soup, a casserole, or a dip? Cut them as thick as you want!
Some people think bone-in hams have more flavor than boneless hams. That’s mostly your personal preference. Mine is to keep the bone in the ham.
Spiral-Sliced
A spiral-sliced ham will still have the bone in place. All you have to do to serve it is cut along the length of the bone and those beautiful, even slices will fall right off, ready for eating. Most spiral-sliced hams are pre-treated with a glaze, and many also come with a pre-packaged glaze included. While there is nothing wrong with these glazes, I usually want my own recipe, so I usually steer clear of spiral-sliced hams, or I buy one that has minimal “extra” stuff added. I usually also want to slice my ham a little thicker than the spiral slices.
The ham in the photo above is hickory smoked and did come with a glaze packet. Other spiral-sliced hams in my grocery store were “double-glazed” with brown sugar or honey. Again, nothing wrong with that, but I prefer my own recipes (like this easy Honey Mustard Baked Ham).
You may need to be a little more careful during cooking with a spiral-sliced ham than with an unsliced ham. All those slices are places where your ham can lose moisture during cooking, so they have a tendency to dry out, especially along the cut edges. You won’t have this problem as much with an unsliced ham.
Boneless
A boneless ham (obviously) had the bone removed before packaging. In order to still get a uniform-looking ham after removing the bone, the meat is pressed back together so there are no holes where the bone was. During the curing process, the proteins in the meat join together, so you can’t tell where the bone used to be.
Boneless hams may have a slightly texture than bone-in hams. Boneless hams also tend to be a bit less expensive per pound than bone-in hams, and you can usually find them in smaller sizes. If this is your preference, go for it! You can do a lot when you are cooking your ham to get similar flavors to a bone-in ham.
Canned Ham
Canned ham is similar to a boneless ham. While boneless hams are one or two large pieces of meat pressed back together, a canned ham can be made of multiple smaller pieces of meat. They are pressed together in the same way as the boneless hams, and they “stick” together while they cure. Canned hams definitely have a different texture than boneless or bone-in hams. Again, if that’s your preference, go for it and enjoy the canned ham. A canned ham does have a longer shelf life than a bone-in or boneless ham, so if you’re looking for some pantry staples, this can be a good fit.
What other questions do you have about ham? Leave me a comment, and I’ll answer below!
Free Printable – How to Choose a Ham
Do you need a cheat sheet to take to the grocery store? Download and print your free kitchen printable here!
3 Ways to Take the Fear Out of This Recipe
If you need even more information about cooking ham, check out this great summary from my friends at Recipes That Crock with recommended cooking times for different types of ham.
3 Recipes to Try
And when you’re looking for something to do with those leftovers, I’ve got you covered with these 20 Leftover Ham Recipes.
Now go, cook ham!
More Information About Ham
If you want even more information about ham, read this information from the USDA about Ham & Food Safety.
please tell me the difference in a shank and butt bone in ham. And which do you prefer ? Thanks a million
Dottie
Hi Dottie! The ham comes from the back leg of the pig. The shank cut is from the bottom half of the ham, and the butt cut is from the top half of the ham. The shank only has one long, straight bone in the middle; while the butt has more bones. They are cooked the same, and taste the same. The butt cut is harder to carve, because it has more bones. I prefer the shank, but only because it’s easier to carve and serve. If you are talented with your carving knife, pick whichever one you want!