How Many Pounds Of Ham Per Person For A Crowd

If you’re responsible for preparing cooked ham for a special occasion, it’s recommended that you buy one-third to half a pound of ham per person for boneless ham and three-quarters to one whole pound of bone-in ham per person.

Our Online Ham Quantity Calculator For a Crowd

You can also add other sides or other protein dishes you are serving – just enter how many side dishes into our calculator below and it will calculate how much ham to serve per person.

The rule of thumb is to give about one-third (half a pound if want to be sure that you have enough) of a pound of ham per person for boneless ham and three-quarters of a pound of ham per person for bone-in ham.

Other types of ham also have their own serving counts, which will be discussed in the next sections, along with our table of ham amounts for 1-100 people.

How Do You Calculate Ham Serving Per Person

Boneless Ham

Just like what the name implies, the bone is removed from the ham before it’s processed through curing and/or smoking and then packaged tightly. Boneless ham can be slightly dry but it’s nothing a decadent glaze won’t fix. It’s simple and easy to cook and serve.

Boneless Ham Exact Amounts

  • 1 person: one-third to one-half pounds
  • 4 people: about 1.5 to 2 pounds
  • 6 people: 2 to 3 pounds
  • 10 people: 3 to 4 pounds
  • 15 people: 5 to 7.5 pounds
  • 20 people: about 6.75 to 10 pounds
Ham Calculator For Party Serving Size
Ham Calculator For Party Serving Size

Bone-in Ham (Spiral Ham)

You’d be surprised that bone-in ham is actually everyone’s favorite type of ham. The bone just makes everything taste better since it keeps the flavor and moisture levels in check. However, they’re harder to work with since the bone could get in the way of slicing the ham.

Bone-in Spiral Ham Exact Amounts

  • 1 person: three-quarters to 1 pound
  • 4 people: 3 to 4 pounds
  • 6 people: 4.5 to 6 pounds
  • 10 people: 7.5 to 10 pounds
  • 15 people: 11.25 to 15 pounds
  • 20 people: 15 to 20 pounds
  • 100 people 80 – 100 pounds

Country Ham

Salt-cured and seasoned to perfection, country ham is artisan-made in Southern America but it’s also widely available in supermarkets and grocery stores. It’s preserved in a dry environment for months to lose moisture. The result is a rosy ham with a concentrated buttery and salty taste.

Country Ham Exact Amounts Table

  • 1 person: one-quarter to one-third pounds
  • 4 people: 1 to 1.5 pounds
  • 6 people: 1.5 to 2 pounds
  • 10 people: 2.5 to 3.5 pounds
  • 15 people: 3.75 to 5 pounds
  • 20 people: 5 to 6.75 pounds

Will People Need Seconds

It depends on the type of ham and the number of ham-eaters among your guests. The recommended ham serving per person is already enough. Usually, people wouldn’t want to go for second serving of country ham since it’s salty enough already.

Ham is more versatile than bacon.

Your guests will also definitely look forward to the other dishes in your menu plus some appetizers. If there would be any second servings, particularly for boneless and bone-in ham, they won’t have that much, so it’s not something you should worry about.

How Much Ham For Different Events And Occasions

Deciding how much ham to serve for various special events will come down to how grand or how intimate these events are and how many people would go for some cooked ham—which is why it’s important you conduct a quick survey beforehand.

Can You Freeze Ham and how long does it last

During Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year’s dinners, you would most likely invite only family members, some friends, and other close relatives. That would amount to about 10 to 15 people or 3 to 15 pounds of ham depending on the type of ham you plan to cook.

For celebrations with a long guest list containing about 20 or more people, don’t hesitate to go beyond the 20-pound maximum requirement since you have to cater to a rather large crowd.

See out catering for big groups.

What Ingredients Can You Cook With Ham

For baking ham, you can add any type of glaze or dressing you prefer. The most recommended glaze is the brown sugar glaze with honey and maple syrup. You can even add some dijon mustard and seasonings. You can also use a cherry bourbon glaze made up of honey, bourbon, cayenne, and cloves.

When you prefer to roast ham, you can add carrots, onions, bay leaves, peppercorns, and leeks during cooking then coat the ham with a brown sugar mixture and drizzle with honey all over. You can even roast it until there are some chars in it.

Grilling ham only needs a brown sugar and mustard mixture to glaze over the ham before grilling it. You can also make a pineapple glaze made out of butter, pineapple juice, ginger, black pepper, muscovado sugar, and white wine vinegar.

Best ham side dishes for a crowd.

Best Sauces To Serve With Cooked Ham

Don’t know what to serve as a companion to your cooked ham? For sauces, you can try a horseradish sour cream sauce (made of sour cream, dijon mustard, horseradish, and chopped chives) or a honey mustard sauce (made of olive oil, honey, sage, black pepper, cayenne, mustard, and vinegar).

Best Wines and Non- Alcoholic Drinks To Serve With Ham

If you want to pair cooked ham with an elegant wine, use fruity wines such as zinfandel, chenin blanc, riesling, moscato, and lambrusco. Keeping it simple, you can also go for beer or some non-alcoholic drinks such as sparkling cider, soda, or orange ginger ale.


Bone-in Ham (Spiral Ham) - Exact Table Of Quantities for 1 to 100 People
Bone-in Ham (Spiral Ham) – Exact Table Of Quantities for 1 to 100 People

Ham Is a Great Main Dish to Serve for A Large Group
Ham Is a Great Main Dish to Serve for A Large Group