Try these glazed ham loaves as an elegant dinner party recipe for confident entertainers. They contain ground beef instead of ground pork. The result is richer, more flavorful, and perfect for your next gathering.
Everyone gets their own brown sugar-glazed top. Plus, they look impressive on the plate. I've included a 3-day game plan that eliminates hosting stress so you can sip wine and hang out with your guests.
Ham loaves have a nostalgic Midwest history amongst our grandmothers. This recipe is from my mother-in-law and has been passed down from generation to generation.
I started making these ham loaves for three reasons:
- They taste significantly better with ground beef.
- They're make-ahead friendly for entertaining.
- My kids genuinely request them. My son even asks, "When are you going to show me how to make ham loaves?" That's how you know a recipe has staying power.
You can make them for a dinner party or save them in the freezer to bake for a weeknight meal with brown rice and steamed broccoli. These individual glazed ham loaves are approachable, forgiving, and genuinely delicious.
Serve these ham loaves with a creamy side dish to balance the sweet and smoky flavors, like potatoes au gratin or mashed potato casserole. Then finish the pairing with the texture of a fresh green vegetable like pan-seared asparagus or oven-roasted Brussels sprouts. Check out my main dish recipes for other Sunday supper meals like these popular Italian meatballs.
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What Is Ham Loaf?
Similar to meatloaf in preparation, ham loaf combines ground ham with another ground meat, traditionally pork. Though this recipe uses beef for a more flavorful and savory flavor.
The mixture is bound with eggs and breadcrumbs, shaped into loaves, and baked with a tangy brown sugar glaze. Individual portions make serving easy and ensure everyone gets plenty of that prized glazed top.
Why You Will Love Ham Loaves For Entertaining
They have all the traditions of the vintage recipe, with modern technique improvements. Here are the upgrades:
- A food processor replaces the meat grinder to grind your own ham at home, making the mixing process so easy.
- Temperature control with a meat thermometer prevents drying out (many old recipes overbake).
- Ground beef upgrade creates deeper, more satisfying flavor than traditional pork versions.
- Individual portions bake faster than one large loaf, and no slicing at the table. Just plate and serve. Each guest gets their own perfectly glazed loaf.
- Make-ahead friendly recipe lets you shape the loaves a day before your gathering or freeze unbaked loaves weeks ahead. On party day, you're just baking and glazing with minimal stress.
- You control the portion sizes, such as making them into smaller loaves for a multicourse meal or ping pong-sized ham balls for appetizers.
Troubleshooting Tips
There are some occasional problems you may see when making ham loaves. Here are some things to observe and how to correct them if you see it:
- Your loaf might crack slightly. That's normal and doesn't affect the taste.
- Ham loaf mix falls apart. There's not enough liquid, and it appears to be dry. Add ¼ cup more milk and mix.
- The mix is too sticky. There is not enough binding. Add more breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons at a time, and mix to soak up the extra moisture.
- Your glaze is turning into caramel. It's over-reducing, making it difficult to baste. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of water into the glaze in the cookie sheet, use a fork to loosen up the glaze, and return to the oven to finish cooking.
- Too salty. Taste your hams available in your market to check the salt content to make sure it's not overly salty. You can pan-fry a tiny ham loaf hamburger until cooked to taste before proceeding. If it's too salty, add ½ pound more ground beef or ground pork. Try a different brand of ham next time.
- Too dry. The ham loaf is either overbaked or there was not enough fat in the mix. Use ground beef that contains 10-15% fat.
Ingredients
Here are the simple ingredients needed to make glazed ham loaves!
For The Ham Loaf Mix:
- Smoked Ham: I recommend buying a boneless, unsliced, smoked, and cooked ham, making it easiest for you to chop and grind at home with a food processor. Ham steaks also work, just trim the fat from the ham. Try to use ham that is not glazed with sugar, or cut the sugar crust off before grinding. Leftover spiral-sliced ham is another option; however, I find it has more fat rendered in the pan after cooking the loaves. Do not use ground pork for ground ham.
- Ground Beef: For a richer, more savory loaf compared to the traditional pork version. Try to use ground beef with around 10% fat, like ground sirloin or ground round. If you use 80/20 or ground chuck, you will notice fat in the pan and glaze after cooking.
- Breadcrumbs: Dry, plain store-bought breadcrumbs are recommended. Homemade breadcrumbs are great. too.
- Milk: Milk is needed to add moisture to the relatively lean ground ham and beef. It also helps the mix stick together to form the shape you want. You can use whatever milk is in your fridge, from skim to whole milk.
- Egg: To help bind or hold the ground meats together.
- Season with black pepper. Salt is not necessary because of the salt from the ham.
For The Glaze
- Cider Vinegar: Cider vinegar is preferred because it has a little more complexity to the flavor and darker color versus plain white vinegar.
- Brown Sugar: Use light or dark brown sugar as the sweetener. I prefer dark brown sugar because of the molasses-like, deeper flavor it has.
- Dry Mustard: To provide a little bit of heat to the sweet and spicy glaze.
- Water will be added to the glaze to prevent over-reducing during baking.
See the recipe card below for ingredient measurements.
Variations & Substitutions
Here are some ideas for how to modify this recipe to better suit you and your dinner guests.
- Ham Balls: Make these into fun-sized appetizers by forming the mix into 2-inch balls. Shorten the cook time to around 30 minutes.
- Herbs: add 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves and 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped Italian parsley before mixing the ham loaf ingredients together.
- Extra Glaze: Double the glaze for more sauce to serve with the loaves.
- Breadcrumb Alternatives: I have substituted equal parts crushed saltines or instant oats for breadcrumbs.
Equipment
A food processor makes grinding ham a breeze. Alternatively, you can invest in a meat grinder attachment for a Kitchen Aid stand mixer.
18 x 13 x 1-inch rimmed cookie sheet
Step-by-Step Instructions
Grind Your Own Ground Ham
If you don't have a food processor or a meat grinder, ask your butcher to grind boneless smoked ham for you.
Step 1: Cut the ham into 1 inch chunks and add to the bowl of a food processor.
Step 2: Pulse the food processor 10-12 times for 1 second until the ham is finely ground.
Prepare The Ham Loaves
Step 3: Preheat the oven to 350℉.
Combine the ground ham, ground beef, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, and pepper in a bowl.
Step 4: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Using your hands, form the ham mixture into 8 individual loaves. Place the loaves on the lined baking sheet.
Step 5: To make the glaze, combine the brown sugar, dry mustard, cider vinegar, and water in a Pyrex measuring cup.
Pour the glaze over the ham loaves. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165℉. Baste the ham loaves with the glaze using a spoon once or twice during cooking.
Step 6: Remove the ham loaves from the oven. Turn the loaves with tongs to coat them in the surrounding hot glaze. Let them rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Multi-Day Make Ahead Instructions
3-Day Ham Loaf Game Plan:
- Day 1: Grind ham, mix the glaze, store separately, covered in the refrigerator.
- Day 2: Mix the loaves, shape, and refrigerate covered.
- Day 3: Add the glaze, bake, and serve. Start 1 hour 15 minutes before your scheduled serving time.
Total active time: 30 minutes spread across 3 days
Storage Information
Refrigerator: Store leftovers covered for up to 4 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven or in the microwave until warmed through.
Freezer (up to 3 months):
- Uncooked Ham Loaves: Freeze on a sheet pan without glaze, then transfer to a freezer bag. Thaw in the fridge for 1 day and add the glaze before baking in the oven.
- Cooked With Glaze: Freeze in an airtight container. Thaw in fridge 1 day before reheating in the oven until warmed through, about 20 minutes.
FAQ
Not everyone has a trusty meat thermometer. Many old recipes overbake them.
You'll know it's ready when the ham loaves start to brown on the edges, and the glaze is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, like a barbecue sauce consistency.
Individual loaves bake faster and give everyone their own glazed top, but a single ham loaf works if you prefer. It will take longer to bake, at around 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes.
Yes, substitute 1 pound of ground pork for the ground beef for a traditional version.
Did you try any of these tips? Leave a comment below to let us know how it turned out! Thanks for visiting!
📖 Recipe
Glazed Ham Loaves Recipe
Equipment
- food processor
- 18x13x1-inch rimmed baking sheet
Ingredients
Ham Loaves
- 2 pounds smoked ham
- 1 pound ground beef (ground round or ground sirloin)
- ¾ cup dry breadcrumbs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg, large
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Glaze
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dry mustard
- 2 ounces cider vinegar
- 3 ounces water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉
Make The Ham Loaves
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
- Cut the ham into 1 inch chunks and add to the bowl of a food processor.
- Pulse the food processor 10-12 times for 1 second until the ham is finely ground.
- Combine the ground ham, ground beef, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, and pepper in a bowl.
- Using your hands, form the ham mixture into 8 individual loaves. Place the loaves on a lined baking sheet.
For The Glaze
- Combine the brown sugar, dry mustard, cider vinegar, and water in a Pyrex measuring cup.
- Pour the glaze over the ham loaves. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165℉. Baste the tops of the ham loaves with the glaze once or twice during cooking.
To Finish
- Remove the ham loaves from the oven. Turn the loaves with tongs to coat them in the surrounding glaze. Let them rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Day 1: Grind ham, mix the glaze, store separately, covered in the refrigerator.
- Day 2: Mix the loaves, shape, and refrigerate covered.
- Day 3: Add the glaze, bake, and serve. Start 1 hour 15 minutes before your scheduled serving time.
- Uncooked Ham Loaves: Freeze on a sheet pan without glaze, then transfer to a freezer bag. Thaw in the fridge for 1 day and add the glaze before baking in the oven.
- Cooked With Glaze: Freeze in an airtight container. Thaw in fridge 1 day before reheating in the oven until warmed through, about 20 minutes.
- For dinner party (with sides): 1 loaf per person
- For potluck: Make 16 smaller loaves for smaller portions. The recipe serves 10-12 as part of a larger spread.
- For Ham Balls: Form into ping pong-sized (2-ounce) balls and bake for about 30 minutes.
Nutrition
The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
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