This slow cooker 3-ingredient Amish ham and sweet onions is the kind of vintage, hand-me-down dinner that feels almost too simple to be this good. It’s based on the old-fashioned Amish-style way of cooking ham low and slow with nothing more than onions and a touch of sweetness, letting time do all the work.
Slow cooker ham with sweet onions in a rustic serving dish
Slow cooker ham with sweet onions in a rustic serving dish
With only three ingredients, you end up with thick, rosy slices of ham nestled into a bed of deeply caramelized onions and rich pan juices—exactly the sort of unfussy, comforting meal a relative might quietly pass down as their “secret” weeknight staple.
Serve the ham slices with a generous spoonful of the sweet onions and juices over the top. This is wonderful alongside buttered egg noodles, mashed or roasted potatoes, or simple steamed green beans. A crisp green salad with a tangy vinaigrette balances the richness nicely. Leftovers are excellent tucked into warm rolls with the onions, or chopped and folded into scrambled eggs or a breakfast hash the next morning.
Slow Cooker 3-Ingredient Amish Ham and Sweet Onions
Servings: 6
Ingredients
3 to 4 pounds fully cooked boneless ham, cut into 3/4- to 1-inch-thick slices
3 large sweet yellow onions (such as Vidalia), thinly sliced
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
Three ingredient setup with ham onions and brown sugar
Three ingredient setup with ham onions and brown sugar
Directions
Prepare the onions: Peel the sweet yellow onions and slice them thinly from root to tip. Aim for even slices so they cook down at the same rate.
Layer the onions in the slow cooker: Scatter all of the sliced onions evenly over the bottom of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. This onion bed will keep the ham moist and turn into deeply caramelized, sweet-savory onions as it cooks.
Sliced onions layered in a slow cooker
Sliced onions layered in a slow cooker
Add the brown sugar: Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the onions, breaking up any clumps with your fingers so it distributes well. The sugar will melt into the onion juices and help them caramelize.
