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How to Cook Ham Steak

by · Last modified: · 10 Comments

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Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ham Steak makes a delicious dinner for two or more. Add the optional brown sugar-mustard glaze for the exceptional taste of grilled ham steak.

This ham steak recipe only takes about 5 minutes to prep and 10 minutes to cook on a grill, stovetop, or under a broiler.

🐖Ingredients

Ham steak—precooked ¾ to 1 inch thick
Butter or oil
Optional Brown Sugar-Mustard Glaze—brown sugar, mustard, butter, and apple cider vinegar. Optional additions: ground cloves (suggested) and ground cinnamon. Honey may be substituted for brown sugar.

grilled ham steak on a sandwich.
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Ham steak is perfect for a smaller meal—think of it as a thick slice of ham. It is the right size, can be scaled up or down, and is easy to prepare. Leftovers are versatile and easy to store. It is economical and readily available in most grocery store deli or meat departments.

I've always loved honey-baked ham for holidays, but I was never happy with that great-tasting stuff on the fat layer. My solution is to brush it on the meat and cook it.

Check out some other ham recipes, like Smaller Crock Pot Honey Glazed Ham, Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, and What to Do With Leftover Ham

👨‍🍳How to Cook Ham Steak

clean and oil grill crates.

For Grill—reheat the grill to medium with a surface temperature of 400° to 450°. Clean and oil grates very well. For the stovetop—use a large skillet with butter over medium heat. For the broiler—use an oiled broiling pan or a pan lined with foil with a rack.

slice of ham trimmed of fat on a white board.

Rinse the ham under running water. Pat dry with a paper towel and trim any trimmable fat. Cut the steak into serving-size pieces for easier handling.

mixing glaze in small orange bowl.

Optional glaze —Mix brown sugar, butter, dry ground mustard, cider vinegar, and optionally add ground cinnamon or cloves. Microwave and stirring every 10 seconds until liquid.

brushing the ham with the glaze on a white board.

Brush the ham with the optional the glaze or vegetable oil.

glazed ham on the grill grates.

Cook on a 400° grill, large skillet with butter over medium heat or under a broiler. You are cooking to a good color and heated through—about 4-5 minutes per side. Be sure to cook to 145° if the ham steak is not labeled as fully precooked.

grilled ham steak on a sandwich.

Serve in a sandwich, on a salad, or on a plate with side dishes for a great meal.

For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.

✔️Tips and options to make it right every time

  • Choose a ham steak that is about ¾ to 1 inch thick. Trim and cut into serving size to make handling easier during cooking.
  • If the ham is over 1 inch thick, cook for a few minutes on each side before applying the optional glaze.
  • If you don't want the glaze, skip it, bush with oil, and cook to add some taste from a Maillard reaction.
  • Use honey to replace the brown sugar, if you want, using about ¾ of the volume of brown sugar.
  • Replace the dry mustard with prepared mustard (like yellow or Dijon mustard). The ration is for 1 teaspoon of dry mustard, then use 3 teaspoons of prepared mustard.
  • Do not try to "cook faster" by using high heat—the ham can quickly dry, and the sugar will burn if using glaze.
  • Use a generous amount of oil to prevent the sticking of the sugar as it browns.
  • Using butter on the stovetop is an excellent flavor enhancement.
  • Buy vacuum-sealed ham steak with a long expiration date to keep in the refrigerator for a quick meal.

Ham Steak Safety

Ham steak may be precooked, which means all you are doing is adding flavor with the cooking. If they say "smoked" or "cured" but do not say precooked, they should be cooked to 145° for safety.

I suggest only buying precooked for safety.

What to serve with glazed ham steak

You can serve glazed ham steak on a plate with side dishes or on a sandwich. I like it in a sandwich with tomato and mayo. Side dishes like Crock Pot Cheesy Potatoes, Roasted Asparagus, Green Beans with Almonds, and Corn on the Cob.

How to store leftover glazed ham?

Store leftovers in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 4 days or freeze for 3 days.

Use leftovers in a sandwich, on a salad, a main dish, or with eggs in an omelet with cheese.

FAQs

What is Ham Steak?

A "ham steak" is just a thick slice of ham. It is through the center and frequently includes a round section of bone, although some packers remove it. The thickness is usually ¾ to 1 inch thick, weighing about a pound.

They are generally about a pound of ham that is vacuum-sealed. That makes it an excellent meat to have in your refrigerator for a quick meal and a great size for two servings.

See the discussion in the safety section about precooked, smoked, and cured ham steak.

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Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.

📖 Recipe

grilled ham steak on a sandwich

How to Cook Ham Steak

From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Ham Steak makes a delicious dinner for two or more. Add the optional brown sugar-mustard glaze for the exceptional taste of grilled ham steak. Or cook on the stovetop or under the broiler.
4.60 from 52 votes
Rating is now in the comments.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings #/Adjust if desired 2

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Ingredients

US Customary - Convert to Metric
  • 1 pound ham steak - ¾ to 1-inch thick
  • vegetable oil or butter

Optional Glaze

  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • ½ teaspoon dry ground mustard
  • ½ teaspoon cider vinegar
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves and cinnamon - optional

Instructions

  1. For Grill—reheat the grill to medium with a surface temperature of 400° to 450°. Clean and oil grates very well. For the stovetop—use a large skillet with butter over medium heat. For the broiler—use an oiled broiling pan or a pan lined with foil with a rack.
    clean and oil grill crates
  2. Rinse the ham under running water. Pat dry with a paper towel and trim any trimmable fat. Cut the steak into serving-size pieces for easier handling.
    slice of ham trimmed of fat on a white board
  3. Optional glaze —Mix brown sugar, butter, dry ground mustard, cider vinegar, and optionally add ground cinnamon or cloves. Microwave and stirring every 10 seconds until liquid.
    mixing glaze in small orange bowl
  4. Brush the ham with the optional the glaze or vegetable oil.
    brushing the ham with the glaze on a white board
  5. Cook on a 400° grill, large skillet with butter over medium heat or under a broiler. You are cooking to a good color and heated through—about 4-5 minutes per side. Be sure to cook to 145° if the ham steak is not labeled as fully precooked.
    glazed ham on the grill grates

Recipe Notes

Pro Tips

  1. If you are worried about burning the sugar, you can brush it on the last few minutes.
  2. Most ham steaks are about ¾ inch thick.
  3. You can replace the brown sugar with honey and the dry mustard with prepared mustard—as discussed in the post.
  4. Great served straight up or like a BLT.

Your Own Private Notes

Click here to save your own private notes only you will see. These will print and be saved for your next visit.
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Do you have a question?Leave a comment to ask or check the recipe post above for most common questions and variations.
Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print. Otherwise step-by-step photos are in the post.

To adjust the recipe size:

You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.

Nutrition Estimate

Calories : 381 kcal (19%)Carbohydrates : 17 g (6%)Protein : 41 g (82%)Fat : 18 g (28%)Saturated Fat : 8 g (40%)Polyunsaturated Fat : 0.2 gMonounsaturated Fat : 2 gCholesterol : 152 mg (51%)Sodium : 2411 mg (100%)Potassium : 56 mg (2%)Fiber : 0.1 gSugar : 17 g (19%)Vitamin A : 200 IU (4%)Vitamin C : 0.3 mgCalcium : 10 mg (1%)Iron : 2.2 mg (12%)
Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
Course : Main Course
Cuisine : American

© 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.

Editor's Note: Originally published September 3, 2010. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.

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  1. Diane says

    We left dry mustard out & I was still delicious! We didn’t have that on hand. The ground cloves was a nice addition! We doubled the recipe of the glaze & served on baked. sweet potatoes. Great pairing with a white wine too. 😊

    Reply

  2. Angie says

    By ground mustard do you mean dry mustard or like the stone ground liquid mustard?

    Reply

    • Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says

      Hi Angie,
      Welcome to the blog.
      That is dry ground mustard. I updated the ingredient list to be more specific.
      Dan

    • Angie says

      Thanks!

  3. Betsy Beecher says

    I used this glaze a few weeks ago but neglected to print it so just spent 1/2 hour desperately trying to find it again. I loved the glaze as did everybody else. We concluded it's the ground clove that gives it the great flavor. Am making it again tonight and will use a little more than 1/8 tsp. .

    Reply

    • DrDan says

      Thanks for the note. This was one of my first just dive in and do it recipe.
      DrDan

  4. Andi says

    I just made this ham steak sauce and we both loved it. It was easy to make and very tasty a keeper for sure Thanks Andi

    Reply

    • DrDan says

      Thanks for the comment
      DrDan

  5. Smokingmeat says

    I use Dizzy Dust on my Ham Steaks..and they come out excellent!!

    Reply

  6. Dr Dan says

    Thanks, I though it add a nice taste simply.
    The rating system something I would like to see on most cooking blogs. All recipes can't be wonderful.

    Reply