This Hairy Bikers Gammon Honey Mustard is a succulent and flavorful recipe, which uses gammon joint and English mustard. It’s a classic, foolproof recipe, ready in about 1 hour 35 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes, plus resting time.
Jump to RecipeHairy Bikers Gammon Honey Mustard Ingredients
For cooking the gammon:
- 2kg/4lb 8oz unsmoked boneless gammon joint, tied
- 2 onions, halved
- 2 carrots, unpeeled, cut into 5cm/2in pieces
- 2 celery stalks, cut into 5cm/2in pieces
- 4 bay leaves
- 12 black peppercorns
- Small handful cloves
For the glaze:
- 4 tbsp runny honey
- 4 tbsp English mustard
How To Make Hairy Bikers Gammon Honey Mustard
- First boil of gammon: Place the gammon joint into a large lidded saucepan. Cover it with cold water and bring it to a boil over a high heat.
- Second boil with aromatics: Drain the water from the saucepan. Add fresh cold water, the halved onions, cut carrots, cut celery stalks, bay leaves, and black peppercorns. Bring to a boil once more.
- Simmer gammon: Reduce the heat, cover with a lid, and gently simmer the gammon and vegetables for 20 minutes per 500g/1lb 2oz of gammon (for a 2kg joint, this would be approximately 1 hour 20 minutes). If your pan isn’t large enough to fully cover the joint, turn the gammon over halfway through the cooking time.
- Cool gammon: Remove the cooked gammon from the water and set it aside to cool for 15 minutes. (The cooking liquid can be strained and reserved for making soup at another time.)
- Preheat oven and prepare tin: Preheat your oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Line a large roasting tin with kitchen foil.
- Score and stud gammon: Use a small knife to carefully remove the rind from the gammon joint, ensuring you leave as much of the fat intact as possible. Score the fat in a diamond pattern, and press a whole clove into the center of each ‘X’ in the diamond pattern.
- Prepare for roasting: Place the prepared gammon into the foil-lined roasting tray. Make sure the sides of the foil come halfway up the joint to help contain any roasting juices.
- Apply first glaze: For the glaze, mix the runny honey and English mustard together in a small bowl. Brush half of this glaze evenly over the top of the gammon, including one side of the joint.
- First roast: Roast in the center of the oven for 10 minutes.
- Apply second glaze: Take the gammon out of the oven and brush the top and the remaining unglazed side with the rest of the honey mustard glaze.
- Final roast and rest: Return the gammon to the oven for a further 10–15 minutes, rotating the tin so the opposite side of the gammon faces the back of the oven. The gammon is ready when the fat on top is glossy and golden brown. If the top starts to look too brown, cover loosely with foil. Remove the gammon from the oven and set aside to rest for 15 minutes before carving.
- Warm juices and serve: Pour any juices that have collected in the kitchen foil into a small pan, and warm through gently. Carve the gammon, serve on a large platter, and spoon over the warmed juices.

Recipe Tips
- Don’t over-boil: The initial boil-and-drain step helps to remove excess salt from the gammon, resulting in a less salty and more balanced flavor.
- Keep fat intact: When removing the rind, try to leave as much of the fat layer on the gammon as possible. This fat renders down, contributing to a moist joint and a delicious crackling/glaze.
- Scoring for crispiness: Scoring the fat in a diamond pattern not only looks good but also helps the fat render more evenly and allows the glaze to penetrate for maximum flavor and a crispy finish.
- Contain juices: Lining the roasting tin with foil and bringing the sides up helps to catch all the flavorful juices that render from the gammon, which can then be served with the meat.
- Resting is crucial: Allowing the gammon to rest for 15 minutes after roasting helps the juices redistribute throughout the meat, resulting in a more tender and flavorful carve.
What To Serve With Gammon Honey Mustard
This sweet and savory gammon is versatile and pairs well with a variety of side dishes.
- Creamy mashed potatoes
- Roasted root vegetables (e.g., carrots, parsnips, roast potatoes)
- Steamed green beans or broccoli
- Coleslaw or a crisp green salad
- Cauliflower cheese
How To Store Gammon Honey Mustard
- Refrigerate: Store leftover cooked gammon in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
- Freeze: Cooked gammon can be sliced or diced and frozen in airtight freezer bags or containers for up to 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. The glaze might lose some of its crispness upon reheating from frozen.
FAQs
- Can I use smoked gammon for this recipe? This recipe specifies unsmoked gammon. If using smoked gammon, you might want to skip the initial boil-and-drain step or extend it slightly to reduce saltiness, as smoked gammon is typically saltier.
- What if I don’t have fresh cloves? While whole cloves add a lovely aromatic touch, you can omit them if you don’t have any. The glaze will still be delicious.
- Can I prepare the glaze in advance? Yes, the honey and mustard glaze can be mixed a day or two in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- My glaze is burning, what should I do? If the glaze starts to brown too quickly, loosely tent the gammon with foil to prevent further burning while the fat continues to crisp.
- How do I carve gammon? Carve gammon against the grain for the most tender slices. For a large joint, you can slice it directly off the joint, or carve larger sections first and then slice those for serving.
Try More Recipes:
- Hairy Bikers Fish Pie Recipe
- Hairy Bikers Slow Cooker Rabbit Stew Recipe
- Hairy Bikers Slow Cooker Pork Goulash Recipe
Hairy Bikers Gammon Honey Mustard Recipe
Course: DinnerCuisine: British4
servings15
minutes1
hour40
minutes350
kcalA succulent unsmoked gammon joint, gently simmered with aromatics, then roasted to perfection with a glossy, sweet, and tangy honey mustard glaze.
Ingredients
- For cooking the gammon:
2kg/4lb 8oz unsmoked boneless gammon joint, tied
2 onions, halved
2 carrots, unpeeled, cut into 5cm/2in pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 5cm/2in pieces
4 bay leaves
12 black peppercorns
Small handful cloves
- For the glaze:
4 tbsp runny honey
4 tbsp English mustard
Directions
- First boil: Place gammon in large lidded saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to boil over high heat.
- Second boil with aromatics: Drain water. Add fresh cold water, onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Bring to boil again.
- Simmer gammon: Reduce heat, cover, simmer gently for 20 minutes per 500g (approx. 1 hour 20 minutes for 2kg). Turn gammon halfway if not fully submerged.
- Cool gammon: Remove gammon from water, set aside to cool 15 minutes. (Reserve liquid for soup if desired.)
- Preheat oven & prepare tin: Preheat oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Line large roasting tin with foil.
- Score & stud: Remove rind from gammon, leaving fat. Score fat in diamond pattern. Push a clove into center of each ‘X’.
- Place for roasting: Place gammon in foil-lined tin, ensuring foil sides come halfway up joint.
- First glaze: Mix honey and mustard for glaze. Brush half evenly over gammon, including one side.
- First roast: Roast in center of oven for 10 minutes.
- Second glaze: Remove gammon. Brush top and remaining side with rest of glaze.
- Final roast & rest: Return to oven for 10-15 minutes, rotating tin. Roast until fat is glossy and golden. Cover loosely with foil if browning too quickly. Remove from oven, rest 15 minutes before carving.
- Warm juices & serve: Pour juices from foil into small pan, warm gently. Carve gammon, serve on platter, spoon over warmed juices.