Pressure Cooker Gammon – Quick & Easy Gammon Joint Recipe
Pressure cooker gammon is one of my favourite ways to cook a gammon joint when I don’t have hours to wait for the slow cooker. A 750g gammon joint takes around 30 minutes at pressure in my electric pressure cooker and comes out tender and ready to slice.
Before we bought our pressure cooker, I always cooked gammon in the slow cooker. It tastes delicious that way, but when you want dinner on the table quickly, pressure cooking is so much more convenient.
I’ve now made gammon this way plenty of times and it has become one of our easy family dinners. I add onion, carrots and a few peppercorns to the pot, cover the gammon with water and let the pressure cooker do the rest.
We serve it with everything from mash or chips to new potatoes and salad, and any leftovers are perfect for sandwiches the following day.
How long do you cook gammon in a pressure cooker?
For the 750g gammon joint I use in this recipe, I cook it for 30 minutes at pressure in my electric pressure cooker.
The exact cooking time will depend on the size and thickness of your gammon joint and your pressure cooker, so always check that the meat is properly cooked before serving.
As a rough guide from the joints I’ve cooked:
- 750g gammon joint: around 30 minutes
- 1kg gammon joint: around 30 minutes
- 2kg gammon joint: around 60 minutes
I find 750g is a good size for our family, especially if I want enough gammon left for sandwiches or another meal.
What you need to make pressure cooker gammon
This is a really simple recipe and you only need a handful of ingredients.
- 750g gammon joint – this is the size I usually use and the cooking time below is based on a joint around this size.
- 2 carrots – peeled and roughly chopped.
- 1 onion – peeled and quartered.
- A few peppercorns – for a little extra flavour.
- Water – enough for your pressure cooker to safely come to pressure and cook the gammon according to your appliance instructions.
You can add other flavourings if you like, but I usually keep pressure cooker gammon simple because it makes the cooked meat much more versatile for leftovers.
Easy Pressure Cooker Gammon
Ingredients
- 1 x approximately 750g gammon joint
- 2 Carrots – peeled and chopped
- 1 Onion – peeled and quartered
- A few peppercorns
- Cold water – enough to cover the gammon (The amount of water will change depending on the size of the ham joint. Just use enough to cover the top of the ham)
Instructions
- Peel and roughly chop the carrots, then peel and quarter the onion.
- Place the gammon joint, carrots, onion and peppercorns into the pressure cooker.
- Add the amount of water required for your pressure cooker, making sure you stay within the manufacturer's minimum and maximum liquid/fill guidance.
- Close and seal the pressure cooker according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- Cook a 750g gammon joint at high pressure for approximately 30 minutes. I use the meat setting on my electric pressure cooker and manually set the cooking time to 30 minutes.
- Once cooking has finished, release the pressure according to your pressure cooker's instructions. Take care when releasing pressure as the steam will be extremely hot.
- Carefully remove the gammon and allow it to rest briefly before slicing and serving.
What to serve with pressure cooker gammon
One of the reasons I cook gammon so often is that you can serve it in so many different ways.
Some of our favourites are:
- Gammon, egg and chips
- Gammon with mashed potatoes and vegetables
- New potatoes and salad
- Gammon rolls with piccalilli
- Sliced gammon as part of a roast dinner
If we’ve got leftovers, they usually end up in sandwiches the following day. You can also use leftover gammon in soups, pasta dishes, omelettes and salads.
Tips for cooking gammon in a pressure cooker
Always check that the pressure release valve is in the correct position before you start cooking. I’ve made the mistake of leaving mine open before and then wondered why the pressure cooker wasn’t coming up to pressure!
Your pressure cooker may work differently from mine, so follow the instructions for your particular model when sealing and releasing the pressure.
Be especially careful when releasing pressure after cooking. The steam is extremely hot, so keep your hands and face away from the valve.
Once the gammon is out of the pressure cooker, I like to leave it to rest for a few minutes before carving.
Pressure cooker vs slow cooker gammon
I’ve cooked gammon in both the pressure cooker and slow cooker and I don’t think one method is necessarily better – it depends on how much time you have.
I use the pressure cooker when I want gammon quickly. A 750g joint takes around 30 minutes at pressure, so it’s much easier to fit into a busy evening.
The slow cooker is better when I want to put dinner on earlier in the day and leave it cooking while I get on with everything else.
If you prefer that method, try my slow cooker cola gammon recipe, which gives you a completely different way to cook a gammon joint.
More ways to cook gammon
If your family enjoys gammon as much as ours does, I’ve got a couple of other cooking methods you can try.
For a hands-off dinner, try my slow cooker cola gammon recipe.
Or, if you’ve got an air fryer, my honey and mustard air fryer gammon is another quick and easy way to cook a gammon joint.
Between the pressure cooker, slow cooker and air fryer, you can choose whichever method works best for the amount of time you have.
We do gammon Sunday dinner and Monday pulled pork with the left overs
After cooking in instapot, how long do you wait to take it out?
My pressure cooker has a quick release valve so I usually use that and take it out in a couple of minutes. Leave it on the side to rest for a few minutes as it will be piping hot and then carve to serve.