Pressure cooking a gammon joint or ham in your Instant Pot is easy and so tasty. Of course, you can also apply this method to bacon joints and ham hocks.
New and improved post with a handy calculator further down to make it easier for you to work out how long YOUR gammon joint will need pressure cooking.
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What is the difference between gammon and ham?
The main difference between gammon and ham is that ham is bought already cooked and gammon needs cooking.
Gammon can be bought as a joint (which can come in very different sizes) or as steaks. In this post I explain how to pressure cook a gammon joint and give you instructions for your Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker.
Once cooked, a gammon joint can be glazed just like with ham and, if you have an Instant Pot Duo Crisp, it's super easy, make sure you take a look at my Cranberry-Glazed Gammon. But it can also be glazed in the oven or the air fryer.
Gammon is cured in the same way as bacon and can be bought smoked or unsmoked.
Smoked joints tend to need soaking first as they can be quite salty.
Unsmoked may or may not need soaking but there's an easy way of deciding this before cooking, I give you my trick further down in the FAQ.
Why pressure cook Gammon
It's easy, gammon joints pressure cook beautifully.
They are juicy and if you have an electric pressure cooker like the Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi, you can leave it unattended, no need to babysit it and, do not fret, there is no rattling and no hissing. It's silent. It's sturdy. It's very safe. So pressure cooked gammon becomes a regular dish in many an instantpotter's household.
How to pressure cook a gammon joint / ham
Below are the photos to illustrate the two main methods to pressure cook a gammon joint or ham in your Instant Pot, which are:
Method 1. On the trivet with water underneath
Method 2. No trivet and tons of tasty gammon stock for other uses
FAQ
How to find out if the gammon needs soaking
I tend to use unsmoked gammon joints. If yours is smoked, you can soak it but it might not be necessary.
One way to tell if a smoked gammon needs soaking is by cutting a small bit off and quickly frying it until cooked, then tasting it, if it's not too salty, no need to soak. If it's only slightly salty, you can just boil it in fresh water, discard that water. Otherwise soak it.
Can you pressure cook gammon in Coke or Cider?
Go for it, same timings as below. Super easy!
Should you remove the plastic sleeve?
Supermarket gammon joints tend to come in shrink wrapped plastic film and then have a plastic sleeve too. Remove both. I'm yet to have one fall apart from it staying.
If your joint is wrapped in cooking string, then it's up to you, I still remove it as it's a pain to remove while the joint is hot and who can't wait to get into their joint while warm and juicy? Yum!
Can you pressure cook two or more joints at the same time?
Yes, you can cook more than one joint at a time as long as they fit nicely, not too cramped. Calculate the cooking time based on the heaviest of the joints.
I have been known to cook THREE 700 g joints in 18 minutes (mainly because Ocado tends to have 700 g gammon joints on offer). Increase the time for bigger joints.
Can you pressure cook a frozen Gammon Joint?
No. Gammon joints are dense pieces of meat. The heat needs time to get safely to the centre and it won't have time. We recommend that defrost a frozen gammon joint before pressure cooking.
How to achieve shreddable gammon
If you want a shreddable ham or pulled gammon, increase the time even more so that it falls apart. And pull it apart with two forks while still warm, best done in a bit of the cooking juices / stock so that it's both easy to shred but also so that it remains juicy.
Will this recipe work with my pressure cooker?
This recipe works with any pressure cooker. From electric like the Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi to stove-top pressure cookers.
How to glaze your pressure cooked gammon or ham
If you want to glaze the ham. Coat it in the glaze of your choice and pop it into a hot oven for about 10 minutes, or in your air fryer.
Check out our Cranberry-Glazed Gammon if you have an air fryer lid.
You can also spread the coating of your choice all over it and let it stand without popping it in the oven. One of my favourite glazes to use is this chilli jam (as recommended by Lucy, who also gave me a jar one year).
What can I cook with Gammon Leftovers
My Instant Pot Ham and Cabbage Soup is a delicious way of using up the ham stock and gammon leftovers. Any of our soups are a great way to use up the leftovers and the stock.
As is my Instant Pot Gammon Rice, a dish that has become super popular, particularly handy if you have the Instant Pot Duo Crisp or the air fryer lid. My Gammon Rice is very similar to a risotto.
The stock and some of the gammon leftovers are also great in my Lentejas (Spanish Lentil Soup) recipe.
Dice the leftover gammon and use it in these awesome air fried Tortilla Pizzas.
And it's fantastic instead of the chorizo in this Instant Pot Chorizo Frittata. Also added to this Instant Pot Duo Crisp Crustless Quiche.
Can I pressure cook more roast dinner dishes?
Yes you can. From Instant Pot Zero Minute Chicken to Roast Parsnips to Brussels Sprouts. And, if it's Christmas dinner, make sure you pressure cook your Cranberry Sauce too. In your air fryer (for which we also have recipes), do the stuffing either with our method using Paxo or our homemade Sage and Onion stuffing from scratch.
Right, over to the recipe. Who fancies Ham, Egg and Chips then? As long as you don't forget that having cooked ham in your fridge is handy for adding to risottos and rice dishes and pasta dishes (as is the gammon stock). Delicious on pizzas, our loaded Yorkshire Puddings or even just to snack on!
📖 Recipe
How to pressure cook a Gammon Joint
Equipment
- 1 Pressure Cooker either electric like an Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi or stove-top
Ingredients
Method 1. On the trivet
- 1 gammon joint your choice of weight (make sure it fits in your pressure cooker)
- 250 ml water
Method 2. No trivet and tons of tasty stock for other use
- 1 onion
- 3-4 cloves garlic unpeeled, whacked with the fist
- 4-5 black peppercorns really nice with the Szechuan ones as well
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 carrot
Optional
- any veggies you may have going off
Instructions
Method 1. On the trivet
- Add 250 ml of water to the inner pot, place trivet / steam rack and then the gammon joint on top.
- Check the sealing ring is properly in place. Lock the lid in. Steam release Sealed.
- Pressure cook, high pressure, to the right time bearing in mind the rule of 11 minutes per 500 g of gammon joint, followed by a natural pressure release (i.e. do nothing until the float valve pops back down and the lid is safe to open). Unsure how to do the maths for our joint, let our calculator work it out for you.
- Tips: You can replace some of the water with cider, coke, beer, wine, juice... You can also save the cooking liquid for adding to tasty risottos and soups.
Method 2. No trivet and tons of tasty stock for other use
- Place gammon joint in inner pot (no trivet).
- Add a peeled onion, 3-4 garlic cloves (unpeeled, whacked with the fist), 4-5 black peppercorns (really nice with the Szechuan ones as well), one bay leaf, one carrot and any veggies you may have going off.
- Cover with water, always being mindful of the two thirds mark as you're going to use the pressure cooking function (only ever fill a pressure cooker, conventional or electric, two thirds maximum).
- Check the sealing ring is properly in place. Lock in the lid. Steam release Sealed.
- Pressure cook, high pressure, 11 minutes per 500 g, natural pressure release. Calculate your time with our handy calculator. As above, increase the time for bigger joints or if you want it falling apart. Want to pressure cook two joints of roughly the same weight? Calculate the time based on the heaviest joint.
Video
Notes
Our calculator makes it easy to work out how long to pressure cook your gammon joint.
Calculate how long to pressure cook your Gammon Joint
Step 1. Choose timing:
Step 2: Enter weight of your Gammon Joint:
Use natural pressure release, do not quick release gammon. Check recipe for full details.
feistytapas.com
Disclaimer: this calculator has been tested by us and we believe it to work well so we put it out there in good faith in the hope that it will help you out but it relies on you entering the details correctly still and reading the recipe card
The logic behind how long to pressure cook your gammon joint
This post has more of a decade of research behind it and many, a lot of trial and error and the feedback of a large community. It is awesome, even if we say so ourselves.
So here's how it all started and how we reached the conclusion of the best timings:
Catherine Phipps' rule of thumb is to allow 10 minutes at high pressure per 500g for a sliceable ham, as the Instant Pot works at a lower psi, we started by adding a few minutes to the time, making it more like 11 minutes per 500g, and we've always recommended that, if you wanted to be on the safe side, you could increase it to 15 minutes (Marie, regular of the Feisty Tapas communities, reckons 15 minutes per lb, one lb is about 453 g).
And, if you want a shreddable ham, increase the time even more.
There's also a lot of talk about 8 minutes per 500 g which doesn't work too well with huge joints, my almost-3-kg Christmas gammon wasn't fully cooked through at 8 minutes per 500 g so I had to give it a bit longer. It works great for smaller joints though, I have tried it with a 1.3 kg joint from Aldi. I'm leaving this here as feedback, if you ever think your gammon is not as juicy as it should be. However, I will be sticking to longer cooking times than 8 minutes per 500 g personally.
I cook my 700 g gammon joints for 18 minutes. I know this is longer than the times stated above but it works for me every time as I tend to buy the same size joint. You can do more than one joint at the same time, I tend to do three 700 g joints in 18 minutes (mainly because Ocado tends to have 700 g gammon joints on offer). Increase the time for bigger joints.
If you haven't got Catherine Phipps' book, The Pressure Cooker Book, it really is worth buying. All recipes have familiar ingredients and measurements for UK Instant Pot users. Check out also her Modern Pressure Cooking and watch her talk about that book in particular in this video. You can also see her in action in the Christmas Pudding video. There's now a newer book called Everyday Pressure Cooking.
Join our Pressure Cooking community on Facebook
Have you joined my Pressure Cooking UK with Feisty Tapas Facebook group?
Chris Dean says
This is the BEST! Worth getting an instant pot just for this!
Debbie says
Love this in my Instant Pot, gammon is so easy and tasty. Lots of brilliant recipes here. Thank you.👍
Verity says
Thank you so much. Lovely to have a UK instant pot site to go to. Can’t wait to try this!
MARK says
Brilliant
All I wanted was cooking time for a raw bacon joint (not ham)
I will cook bacon joint as i do a chicken. Put smaller cut vegetables cut herbs and spices under the trivet and bacon on top. (Easy to get joint out)
Now to experiment with cooking times now have a guide to go by.
Thanks
Maghie says
Wow I done it with the trivet and just water. Cant believe how delicious it turned out. I normally add carrot, onion, peppercorns and bay leaf. Not anymore. This is the way to go. Thankyou
Maria says
So glad it worked well for you Maggie!
Robbo says
Very grateful for the advice here. I am new to pressure cooking and My gammon came out perfectly. Thanks
Wendy says
I never cook gammon any other way since trying this method. Absolutely superb results, every single time!! It’s a real family favourite!!
Lily says
The pressure cooker has 3 option. Low normal or high. I am guessing the normal is right?
Maria says
Low, normal or high are just time presets. They give you preset times. High and low are actual pressure settings but Low, Normal and High are not. In the case of the Sauté and Yoghurt settings however, Less Normal and More are heat settings (less heat, more heat, etc)
Steve says
Will you be publishing your Christmas Gammon recipe for the Instant Pot? looking for a good one to try this year.
Maria says
Hi Steve, I've published my Christmas Gammon here, I can't wait to make it again next week, Maria
Kerry Hague says
I’m completely new to this way of cooking and I’ve just bought the Tefal multi-cooker. I followed your advice and cooked my gammon on a trivet with water in the bottom and 18 minutes later I had a perfectly cooked gammon. So much easier than boiling it in a pan for 90 minutes and having to keep checking it.
Mick says
Hi, regarding timings can this be used with the PKP?
Thanks
Mick
Maria says
Yes, absolutely, same timings
Norma Heyburgh says
Hi, when the gammon has reached it's time do I do slow release pressure or let it steam straight away?
Maria says
As mentioned in the post, once pressure cooking time is over, you need to do a natural pressure release, i.e. do nothing and let the float valve go back down on its own. If it's been longer than 15 minutes, you can let the rest of the steam out but I prefer it to do a full natural pressure release when I have the time
Sue says
Looking forward to trying this tomorrow for our Christmas Eve meal, then having some leftovers for later in the week.
Maria says
I can highly recommend my Instant Pot Gammon Rice recipe for your leftovers Sue https://www.feistytapas.com/2020/07/instant-pot-gammon-rice/
Nadine Finnegan says
This is brilliant! New to the instant pot world and i wanted to know how to just cook raw gammon/ham joint all others i was finding were precooked! With regards to the natural release is that once its finished cooking and i just leave the pot alone it will do it itself after a period of time? I dont need to set anything? Sorry if thats a silly question!
Maria says
Yes, natural pressure release is just leaving the pot alone at the end while you have your feet up enjoying life 😉 The steam trapped inside then dissipates on its own, this allows the meat to rest and doesn't toughen it. Also, the contents keep cooking during this time.
On the other hand, quick pressure release is setting the steam release to Venting to let out the steam trapped inside manually, very handy for things that need a short cooking time like vegetable.
Hope that helps,
Maria
Caroline says
Hi, I have tried this several times (the no trivet version) and I love it!! Tomorrow I'd like to try with 2 joints. Can you put one on top of the other or do they need to be separate side by side?
Thank you, Caroline
Maria says
Hi Caroline, I would do them side by side as you have to be mindful of the filling rules. The timings should remain the same as if it was one joint. Details on the filling rules here https://www.feistytapas.com/2020/04/instant-pot-filling-rules/
Viv O’Connor says
I always use this method for cooking gammon ham. I recently went camping with friends and took sliced ham for our lunches which they loved. I have been instructed to work out how I can post it to them 😂 it’s all thanks to your fantastic receptor and instructions thank you
Carla says
Hi,
Can you cook the joint from frozen? How would this effect the timings?
Thank you.
Maria says
Hi Carla, I don't like to cook joints from frozen as they are solid and the heat needs to get to the centre quickly for it to be safe. I recommend defrosting it first,
Maria
David Oldale says
Hi Maria , I just have to agree that this is the only way to cook a gammon/ham joint. I use my instant pot(s) every day but by far the most use is for the proofing of my bread dough, it's so easy and so accurate. I just oil or grease with lard the inner pot, put the dough in, glass lid on and set dough proofing, time and temperature usually 25C. It does the job perfectly! Then there's steak, you know what's it like if it's not fillet it's tough! I instant pot a piece of rump or sirloin (cheap) from Aldi or Lidl for 40 mins quick release then a very quick fry or grill and it's as soft and tender as fillet but with much more flavour! So you can see that my instant pot is not just a marvel but a life-saver!
Jude says
So excited to try this. Do you think it would work to replace water with flat ginger beer or cola and do the no trivet method?
Maria says
Yes, definitely!
Rachel says
just remembered I promised a gammon joint to my son as they’re having me over tor Xmas dinner (it’s Xmas eve) ! Instant pot and this recipe to the rescue, I’m going to go and put a conditioning hair mask on while it works its magic! Thank you 😊
Kathryn Poidomani says
Thank you for your very informative and helpful info. I had five large pieces of uncured, unsmoked ham in the freezer that I need to use. Our a/c went out & its HOT in Texas this summer even hotter than usual. So Instant Pot is the way to go. I searched until 2:00 am & didn't find anything that described what I needed to know. It was all smoked whole hams or a few raw ham roasts (interesting!). So I looked again & found your post. It's perfect for what I need to do. So I'm going for 18 or maybe 20 minutes with natural release and maybe a few add-in's. We'll have ham salad tonight - no more cooking to add to the already hot house! The rest will go back in the freezer for soups, beans etc. Thanks you SO very much!
Sue Walters says
Thank you Maria for this recipe. This is my go to, never fail way of cooking Gammon now. It's so quick and easy compared to the hours of boiling with a steamed up kitchen and you can leave it safe in the knowledge that it won't boil dry. Gammon is such a cheap and versatile joint of meat. I use it a a roast for day 1, day 2 is with onions, carrots dumplings, pease pudding and potatoes with sprouts and the stock thickened into a gravy, day 4 sliced with bubble and squeak and salad or ham, egg and chips, little scraps go into sandwiches, risotto or an omelette. It used to be just for Christmas but now we have it at least once a month.
Thank you 😊