This 10-minute ham gravy recipe is rich and creamy with leftover ham drippings and heavy cream (or milk). With just 4 ingredients, learn how to make it velvety smooth and lump-free for your holiday ham dinner. I’ll also show you a simple, budget-friendly ingredient swap to use if you don’t have any drippings.
This is the ham gravy recipe we choose to make every single Christmas and Easter with our home baked honey glazed ham. It’s delicious, last minute, and brings back memories of that last minute rush to get dinner on the table at Grandma’s every Thanksgiving.
To make ham gravy from scratch, you’ll need all-purpose flour, heavy cream, ham drippings, and water. Keep in mind that the flavor of your gravy comes directly from the ham and its glaze. If you bake a ham with a sweet brown sugar or pineapple glaze, those sweet flavors will naturally carry over into your drippings.
Need a gluten-free option? Make ham gravy with cornstarch, instead.
Why You’ll Love My Ham Gravy Recipe
- No Roux: Uses a cold slurry made from whisking the flour into heavy cream. This is a foolproof way to thicken gravy without making it lumpy.
- 10-Minute Cook Time: Whisk all the ingredients together right on the stovetop while your ham rests.
- Rich & Creamy: Made with heavy cream for a velvety smooth gravy that’s never watery.
- 4 Ingredients: Uses basic kitchen staples and ham drippings you’d otherwise throw away.
- No Drippings Option: Make this recipe with ham bouillon if you don’t have any drippings.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
- All-Purpose Flour – By whisking the flour into the cream, you’ll make a smooth slurry that’s perfect for thickening the ham drippings.
- Heavy Cream – If you don’t have any heavy whipping cream, you can use milk, half-and-half, or even evaporated milk instead. Just keep in mind that you may have to whisk in a little extra flour to thicken it up properly.
- Ham Drippings – Most of the time, a whole, 8 to 10-pound spiral-cut or bone-in ham will produce 1-2 cups of drippings. Boneless hams tend to produce a little less. If you don’t quite have the 2 cups needed for a full batch of gravy, you can easily stretch it out by adding ham broth (from ham bouillon), chicken broth, or even plain water until it reaches the 2-cup mark on your measuring glass.
- Water – With most hams, the drippings will be pretty salty. This is why I add a little extra water to tame it down.
Never cooked a ham? Read my beginner’s guide on how to bake a ham in the oven.
How to Make Ham Gravy With Drippings
Before getting started, scoop your ham drippings into a 9-inch skillet over low heat on the stovetop. While the drippings are warming up, you’ll start on the thickening slurry.
Making the Gravy
- Whisk together the flour and heavy whipping cream in a small bowl or glass measuring cup.
- Add your slurry to the pan drippings. Take it slow, gradually pouring the slurry in and whisking it into the drippings as you go. Turn it up to medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Pour in the 1 cup of water, continuing to whisk the gravy slowly but constantly.
- Whisk the gravy until it thickens. It needs to approach a rolling boil, and then it will gradually thicken up.
Ham gravy is thickened enough when it coats the back of a spoon, but then leaves a trail when you drag the edge of your spatula through it. If it still won’t thicken even after boiling for a couple minutes, whisk 1 tablespoon of flour with 1 tablespoon of water, and then whisk into the gravy; give it a couple minutes for the starch to activate, and then add more only if it still doesn’t work.
Serving Ham Gravy
Pour the gravy into a gravy boat, and serve it with a glazed ham, mashed potatoes, and all the fixin’s! If you have any gravy leftover, serve it as a topping for a mashed potato bar or baked potato bar.
How to Make Ham Gravy Without Drippings
Don’t have ham drippings? Just like chicken gravy from bouillon, you can easily build a rich, savory base from scratch with ham bouillon. The label on the package calls for about 1 teaspoon of dried bouillon per cup of water, so for 2 cups of water, you’ll mix in 2 teaspoons of ham bouillon; then use your new ham broth solution in place of the ham drippings for this recipe.
Ham bouillon can be tricky to find in some grocery stores, so I recommend ordering it ahead of time. If you can’t find ham bouillon anywhere, chicken broth makes a pretty good 1:1 substitute in a pinch. I have also heard of some people using bacon grease, but I’ve not tried that myself.
Recipe FAQs
A good rule of thumb is to plan on about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of gravy per person. Gravy usually reduces by about 25 to 50% once it thickens, so this recipe will yield about 3 cups of finished gravy, or 8 to 10 servings.
Store leftover ham gravy in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. You can re-heat gravy by heating it in a microwave-safe dish in the microwave for a few minutes, stirring every 30 seconds until heated through. You can also heat it back up over low to medium heat in a saucepan, stirring it constantly so it doesn’t scorch.
Yes, you can freeze gravy. Just be sure to put it in a freezer-friendly airtight container, so it doesn’t get freezer burn. It should keep for 4 to 6 months in the freezer. Just give it a good stir when you reheat it to reincorporate any cream that separated when it thawed out.
More Side Dish Recipes for Your Ham Dinner
- Homemade Cranberry Sauce
- Instant Pot Southern Green Beans
- Honey Glazed Carrots
- Jiffy Corn Casserole with Cream Cheese and Bacon
If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. And subscribe to my email list too!
Ham Gravy Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream*
- 2 cups ham drippings*
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour and heavy whipping cream in a small bowl or glass measuring cup.
- Add your slurry to the pan drippings. Take it slow, gradually pouring the slurry in and whisking it into the drippings as you go. Turn it up to medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Pour in the 1 cup of water, continuing to whisk the gravy slowly but constantly.
- Whisk the gravy until it thickens. It needs to approach a rolling boil, and then it will gradually thicken up. When it's ready, it should coat the back of a spoon, but then leave a trail when you drag the edge of your spatula through it.
- Pour the gravy into a gravy boat, and serve it with a glazed ham, mashed potatoes, and all the fixin’s!
Video
What if you do t have any of the ham drippings or any drippings at all from anything. What would I do?
You can always make gravy using bouillon. In fact, I have a recipe for doing so here on this website. You can also just make a plain pepper gravy with flour, butter, salt & pepper. Hope this helps!
Would this be drippings from like a picnic ham or a country ham? Or does that even matter? I do a country ham every Thanksgiving and Christmas and only know how to make red eye gravy with the ham drippings. Having a thick n’ creamy gravy for those two holidays would be so incredible!
Any ham drippings will work, Brenda!
What if I don’t have heavy whipping cream or milk? I have half n half and evaporated milk.
Nissa, you can use either milk or half & half. Just keep in mind that since they are thinner, you may have to whisk in a little extra flour towards the end, ’til it starts to thicken. But it shouldn’t be an issue. I hope this helps!
Very smooth and easy to make. Don’t have to worry about making a roux . Just keep the heavy cream to flour 2:1 and you can adjust to how much drippings you have
I’m so glad you liked it, Mike! Thanks for the great feedback.
Thank you for this recipe! I have a ton of dripping that I saved from about 15 pounds of ham. Here’s my question. They are refrigerated. So I need to reheat the drippings before I start?
-Sharon C. (Not to be confused with the Sharon above. :). )
Yes, it would be best to warm the drippings back up, especially if they have solidified in the refrigerator. I hope this helps!
Sounds good, but I’m making a small ham for 3 people. What if I don’t have 2 cups of ham drippings? Also, can I make a slurry with corn starch?
Natalie, how many cups of drippings you get depends on the weight of the ham. How much does it weigh?
Also wondering?
So easy and absolutely delicious! My family loved it! Made me promise I’d add it to our holiday meals.
That’s great to hear, Robin! I’m glad you liked the recipe.
Thank You For A Simple ,Easy And Delicious Recipe
Thank You for the kind review, Ashna!
Way to much crap to even find the recipe. We don’t need a 20 minute explanation.
Sharon, there is a “Jump to Recipe” button at the top of the post if you wish to skip the story.
Simple recipe which properly stresses the whisk
Thank You, Patrick!