What’s the best way to keep your ham until it’s time to cook it? What about the leftovers? Can you freeze a ham? Get all the tips on how to store a ham here.
How to Store a Fresh or Thawed Ham
{Referral links are used in this post.}
Most of the hams that you’ll find in your grocery store are not frozen. Usually, you would call that “fresh” – but when we’re talking about ham, “fresh” actually means something different. A “fresh” ham is one that has not been cured, smoked, or pre-cooked in any way. And that’s not usually what you’re getting. So we’ll just talk about these hams as refrigerated, instead of frozen.
(Confused? Check out this post for more information about labels on ham. And just remember that we are talking about ham that is not frozen.)
When you get your refrigerated (not frozen) ham home, it needs to stay refrigerated. That’s pretty common sense, right? The easiest place to store your ham until you’re ready to cook it is in the refrigerator. Your refrigerator should be set to 40 degrees or below. The best temperature for your refrigerator is 34-38 degrees F.
What if you don’t have enough space in your refrigerator, or the ham is just too big to fit in the refrigerator?
If you don’t have space in your refrigerator, you can keep the ham in a cooler with ice packs. Be sure to change out the ice packs regularly to keep the ham cool enough. It’s a good idea to stash a thermometer inside the cooler, so you can monitor the temperature. Consider a probe thermometer with an alarm like this one – the thermometer goes inside the cooler, and the monitor goes outside. You can set the alarm to go off if the temperature goes above 40 degrees F!
If you’re using a cooler for temporary ham storage, consider keeping this cooler separate for raw poultry and meat only. Bacteria found on raw poultry and meat could cause food poisoning. Having one cooler that is only used for raw poultry and meat is an easy way to practice food safety in your kitchen.
A whole ham can be kept in your refrigerator for up to 1 week before cooking. Be sure to check the date on the label, and use it before then.
How to Store a Frozen Ham
If you can find ham on sale, it’s always a good idea to stock up! Stash an extra ham in your freezer to keep it for up to 4 months in the original packaging. If the ham stays in your freezer for too long, the quality can start to decrease. It can get freezer burned, start to dry out, or absorb other flavors from the freezer.
Your freezer should be set to 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-17.7 degrees Celsius). At this low temperature, you can safely store your frozen ham for 3-4 months. Get more information about keeping foods in your freezer in this post.
Use the tips in this post to easily thaw your frozen ham.
How to Store Ham Leftovers
No matter how many people are eating dinner, there is always leftover ham! Leftovers should be refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking. Store them tightly wrapped, in your 34-38 degrees F refrigerator. Leftovers should be used up in 3 days. If you’re not sure that you’ll finish your leftovers before then, it’s a good idea to freeze them for later. Leftover cooked ham can be stored in the freezer for 1-2 months. Be sure to use good quality Ziplock freezer bags, and label them with the date and contents.
Follow these guidelines to store your ham and keep your meal fresh, flavorful, and safe!
Free Printable – How to Store Ham
Click here to download and print your free printable cheat sheet. Keep our tips on storing ham at your fingertips!
Enjoy!
Take the Fear Out of Ham
Do you want even more tips about ham? Check out these 3 Tips for an Easy Holiday Ham and these 3 More Tips for an Easy Holiday Ham and never be afraid of cooking ham again!
Recipes for Leftover Ham
If you’re looking for something to do with that leftover ham, you’ll find something everyone will love in this collection of 20 Leftover Ham Recipes!
3 Ways to Take the Fear Out of Your Kitchen
- How to Carve a Ham
- What Do the Labels on Ham Mean? – free printable!
- How to Choose a Ham – free printable!
3 Recipes to Try
Shared on:
[…] How to Store a Ham […]