Slow Cooker Gammon In Cider

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The ultimate slow cooker gammon in cider recipe. A gammon joint is loaded into the slow cooker, cooked in cider with potatoes and vegetables, until perfectly cooked. Then the gammon is sliced and served with potatoes, veggies, and a homemade mustard gravy.

This slow cooker gammon joint recipe is perfect for Christmas, cold winter days or for a low effort Sunday dinner.  

Gammon In Cider

I love gammon, but isn’t it salty? Its always a case of don’t add salt to the gammon because the salt will overpower you.

Then you find out, that for perfect gammon you must soak it in water overnight to get rid of the overly salty flavour.

But what is there was an easier way to cook gammon in the slow cooker?

Where you could dump in the ingredients and come back later to perfectly tender slow cooker gammon with all the sides ready to go?~

Well, let me introduce you to gammon in cider.

You choose your favourite cider, add your gammon joint to the slow cooker and pour the cider over the gammon.

The gammon then loses its oversalty taste, you have moist gammon because of the cider, the gammon is flavoursome because of the cider, and you have the base for a great creamy gammon gravy.

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Can I Cook Gammon In Cider?

Yes, you can cook gammon in cider and its absolutely delicious. Its another one of those drinks that you can add to gammon to bring out its delicious flavour and reduce the salty taste.

You can use any cider you want, though I prefer a medium dry cider.

Its also not a strong cider taste once the gammon is cooked, so don’t be afraid to feed it to your kids.

Can You Slow Cook Gammon In Cider?

Yes, you can. In fact, for cooking gammon in cider, I recommend the slow cooker for the best results.

Even though, I have also done gammon in cider in the instant pot, I have found that the slow cooker gives the best flavour.

Also, if you are new to this type of slow cooker gammon, then I recommend you also check out slow cooker gammon in fanta and slow cooker gammon in coke.

Should I Put Gammon In Water Before Cooking?

There is no need to if you are cooking the gammon joint in cider. The cider will get rid of the overly salty taste on the gammon as it slow cooks.

You can dump the gammon joint into the slow cooker at the same time as the cider and it will cook perfectly.

Can I Leave Gammon In Slow Cooker Overnight?

Yes, you can leave the slow cooker gammon overnight. BUT for perfectly sliced gammon the cook time is 4 hours on high or 7 hours on low. To leave it overnight you will have to put it on just as you go to bed and have it off 7 hours later, so it depends how much sleep you like!

However, if you want pulled gammon in cider in the slow cooker, then you can increase this to 9 hours on low.

Do You Leave The Plastic On Gammon In Slow Cooker?

No, you don’t. You need to remove the plastic from the gammon before you place it in the slow cooker.

Then the gammon will get a wonderful flavour to it from the cider and the other ingredients and be the best gammon in cider you have ever tasted!

Is This Cider Ham?

Yes, it is. Gammon is the same as Virginia ham. Gammon is uncooked ham that has been cured and carries a very salty taste, unless cooked correctly.

And you can swap classic UK gammon for Virginia ham and then use this is exact same recipe.

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Slow Cooker Gammon Cider Ingredients

Gammon – I recommend you use unsmoked gammon rather than smoked as it gives a better depth of flavour with the cider and the other veggies.

Cider – You can use any cider for this gammon cooked in cider recipe. But I prefer a medium/dry cider. I also love the products of M&S and used M&S cider. You will need a litre of cider so aim for 3 cans in this recipe.

Veggies – You want to include veggies that will be great for making a nice gammon gravy with but will also be good for serving with your gammon once cooked. Therefore, avoid fast cooking veggies such as peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, courgette etc. Instead go for root vegetables such as swede, carrots, leeks etc.

Potatoes – Gammon is delicious served with potatoes and veggies. But potatoes also play an extra role in this gammon with cider and that is as a natural thickener for your gravy.

Seasoning – To compliment your gammon and cider I recommend black pepper, oregano, garlic, parsley and then mustard for making the gravy with.

Then for the kitchen gadgets that we have used in this slow cooker gammon in cider recipe it has just been our Crockpot Slow Cooker. We have this one and its wonderful for many types of meats and we have used it many times for gammon.

Plus, we recommend you head over to our slow cooker recipes category as we have more than 100 tried and tested slow cooker recipes and have been using slow cookers for 18 years.

How To Slow Cook Gammon In Cider?

• Load. Remove the packaging from your gammon joint and place into the centre of your slow cooker.
• Prep. Next peel and dice your potatoes and vegetables, season them and dump them into the slow cooker, around the sides of the gammon.
• Pour. Open your cider and pour the cider over the gammon and the vegetables, I recommend about 1 litre/just over 4 cups of cider to almost cover the gammon and to create a flavoured liquid for the veggies and potatoes.
• Cook. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7 hours.
• Gravy. To make the gravy add a couple of gammon slices (ends work best) into a blender with a handful of veggies and potatoes and 2 cups/480ml of the gammon liquid and a little mustard. Blend until smooth.  
• Veggies. Drain the leftover veggies and potatoes and place in a microwave serving dish. Add a little margarine or butter, along with extra salt, pepper and oregano and microwave for 90 seconds.
• Serve. Slice the gammon and serve the gammon with the veggies and the gravy.

And I am sure you can see why this gammon in cider recipe is a true favourite of mine.

What To Add To Gammon In Slow Cooker?

I recommend that you add to the gammon, leeks, carrots, and baby potatoes. You might have your own favourite, but those work best, especially for making a creamy gravy with too.

You can also swap it for some other vegetables too such as swede, turnips, or parsnips.

Cider Sauce For Gammon

To make my cider sauce for gammon, I have followed the same concept that I do in many slow cooker recipes.

I am a HATER of stock cubes and gravy granules and much prefer to create something from the flavours of the dish and to add hidden veggies.

Both potatoes and carrots make an exceptionally good cider sauce and then you can add the cider and gammon juices, along with a little spare gammon and make the best sauce ever.

Even better, I made more than I needed and have extra gammon gravy for the freezer to use in another slow cooker recipe.

Gammon In Cider Slow Cooker Tips & Tricks

• I recommend that you allow your gammon to cool before slicing. It slices better this way, and you can use this time to prep your cider gravy.

• Add more potatoes than you plan to eat. The extra potatoes can then be the thickener for your gravy.

• If you would like an extra potato dish, I recommend you serve it alongside our instant pot no drain mashed potatoes.

Interesting Slow Cooker Trick – Always buy a slow cooker like this Crockpot one that we own. It can go on the stovetop to brown meat and go in the oven.

Can you make ahead your gammon recipe? Yes, you can. I often do this to save on time. You can also reheat your gammon in the slow cooker by cooking it on low for two hours.

Can you freeze leftover gammon? Yes, you sure can. Simply load into foil or Ziploc bags and freeze once cool.

Listen To Slow Cooker Gammon In Cider

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More Slow Cooker Roasts

• Slow Cooker Pork Leg Joint
• Slow Cooker Roast Lamb
• Slow Cooker Whole Chicken & Potatoes
• Slow Cooker Brisket & Gravy
• Slow Cooker Topside Beef
• Slow Cooker Gammon In Water

All the above are amazing slow cooker recipes. Though if I could choose just one, the slow cooker brisket and gravy is hands down the absolute BEST.

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