This honey mustard sauce for ham is tangy, a little spicy, and not overly sweet. It's my go-to with Instant Pot Ham and Double Smoked Ham for Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas dinners, and it makes a great glaze for this Venison Meatloaf too.
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Unlike many ham sauce recipes made with pineapple juice, orange juice, and brown sugar, this one lets the honey balance the Dijon mustard and vinegar without turning it into dessert. I serve it with crockpot spiral ham at Easter and with smoked prime rib at Christmas. What can I say? I've never been a horseradish sauce kind of girl, that is, until I came up with this horseradish sauce recipe!
This honey mustard sauce takes about 10 minutes to prepare in one small saucepan, and it's surprisingly delicious with chicken and seafood too! Leave out the cayenne if you're serving it to kids. Cooking a gammon joint instead? It's just as good as a honey mustard sauce for gammon.
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🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Oil: If you aren't cooking a ham or don't have pan juices to add to the sauce, you can add olive oil instead. Avocado oil is another great option.
- Mustard: Don't have Dijon mustard? That's alright, just use plain yellow mustard. If you like horseradish, add a teaspoon to make the mustard spicier.
- Vinegar: Although I add red wine vinegar, you can substitute apple cider vinegar or white vinegar if you need to.
- Sage: Make sure to use rubbed sage in this recipe. You can usually find it in the spice aisle. Ground sage is a lot finer and usually tastes more bitter, so I don't recommend using it. If you do use it, try ½ teaspoon before adding more. You can also substitute a teaspoon of rosemary instead.
🍯 How to Make Honey Mustard Sauce
Step 1: Add ¼ cup of baked ham pan juices or olive oil to a small or medium saucepan. Stir in the remaining mustard sauce ingredients as you heat them over medium heat.
Step 2: Once mixed, whisk the sauce over low heat until it begins to boil, then simmer for a few minutes until it thickens.
🍖 Using It as a Ham or Gammon Glaze
This sauce doubles as a glaze. Make it with olive oil instead of pan juices, then brush a thin layer over your ham or gammon joint during the last 15 to 20 minutes of baking. It makes an easy honey mustard glaze for gammon that caramelizes beautifully in the oven. Set aside half the sauce in a separate bowl first, so you have clean sauce to serve at the table.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
Drizzle this honey mustard sauce over sliced ham or gammon for Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas dinner, or use it as a dipping sauce with shrimp and other seafood. It's also great with air fried frozen chicken wings and dove nuggets.
Don't forget the leftovers! Spread it on ham sandwiches or slather it on these yummy air fryer sliders. The possibilities are endless!
🫙 Make Ahead and Storage
- Make ahead: Busy holiday? Make the sauce with olive oil up to 3 days ahead and keep it in the fridge. It thickens as it cools, so warm it gently over low heat, whisking in a splash of water if it's too thick.
- Storage: Keep leftover sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. If you made it with pan juices, the fat may firm up on top. Just stir it back in as it warms.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Honey mustard sauce has a few ingredients that are always present. But there are other ingredients that are interchangeable.
Main Ingredients
Honey
Dijon Mustard
Yellow Mustard
Other Common Ingredients
Mayonnaise
Olive Oil
Herbs
Vinegar
Lemon Juice
Seasoning (salt, pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper)
There are many other ways to enjoy this recipe. Serve it as a dipping sauce with shrimp, chicken nuggets, and salmon. Drizzle over egg dishes, including quiche. Serve as a side with crab cakes (or lion's mane crabcakes). You can also mix it with seafood pasta salad!
Honey mustard sauce is one of the most popular sauces for gammon, and this recipe works perfectly. The tangy Dijon mustard and honey balance the saltiness of a gammon joint. You can also brush it over the gammon as a glaze during the last 15 to 20 minutes of cooking.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- One batch makes about 1 ⅓ cups, enough for 8 people. Double it for a large holiday ham or if you want extra for leftovers.
- Strain the pan juices before adding them so the sauce stays smooth.
- Keep whisking once the sauce starts to bubble, because the honey can scorch on the bottom of the pan.
- For a creamier dipping sauce, swap the pan juices for mayonnaise.
If you enjoy making your own homemade sauces, you may want to check out these other delicious sauces: Yogurt Shawarma Sauce, Pasta Cream Cheese Sauce, Cilantro Chimichurri Sauce, Lemon Dill Sauce, and Sriracha Aioli.
🍖 More Sauce Recipes
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📖 Recipe
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Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add ¼ cup of baked ham pan juices to a small saucepan, or substitute pan juices with olive oil. Stir in the remaining mustard sauce ingredients as you heat them over medium heat.
- Once mixed, whisk the sauce over low heat until it begins to boil, then simmer for a few minutes until it thickens.
- Serve mustard sauce with ham, or use as a dipping sauce with seafood or chicken.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
- Although I've found that using ¼ cup of the pan juices enhances the flavor of the mustard sauce, feel free to substitute the pan juices with mayonnaise.
- You can also substitute the pan juices with olive oil for a healthier alternative.
- Red wine vinegar or white wine vinegar can be used in the recipe.
- If you don't have Dijon mustard, substitute with plain mustard and a tablespoon or more of horseradish sauce.
- Try experimenting with other herbs and spices to see what you can come up with.
Brenda says
It is delicious! How long can the sauce be stored? Can I freeze it?
Hilda Sterner says
Thanks Brenda, This mustard sauce lasts for weeks in the fridge. Because it's made with oil, honey, and mustard is basically an emulsion, and freezing might break the emulsion. When you thaw it, you’ll likely see separation. It’s still safe to eat, just not as pretty or smooth.