Pineapple brown sugar glaze for vegan ham

Guests are always drawn to well-worn recipes still in grandma’s handwriting, something from the old church cookbook, or a meal that includes standard dishes from another time.

If the holidays give you similar sentimental stirrings, jazz up a store-bought vegan ham with pineapple brown sugar glaze, broiled pineapple slices, and maraschino cherries for a retro look that the whole family will love.

When making a dish like this, people often cook the pineapple right on top of the ham. However, I’ve found that I get the best caramelization and color on the pineapple if I broil it separately.

Also by broiling the pineapple on its own, you don’t have to worry about the ham getting too done on the outside. And then you can caramelize all of the pineapple slices that are packed in the can, which means plenty of pineapple slices to go around for everyone at the table.

In this post:

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this recipe.

Vegan ham: For this recipe, I used a 2.5 pound ham from the Herbivorous Butcher. If you’re using a smaller ham, like a Tofurky ham roast, follow the cooking instructions on the package, and if you like, reduce the amount of glaze and pineapple by roughly half (or use two Tofurky hams).

Canned pineapple: I love fresh pineapple as much as the next person, but for this recipe, grab a 20-ounce can of pineapple rings instead. You’ll use both the rings and the juice inside.

Organic brown sugar: Not all brown sugar is vegan. However, organic brown sugar is guaranteed not to have used bone char for the refining. You can also look for a denotation on the bag of some brands.

Maraschino cherries: For the best flavor, use jarred cherries that are naturally colored and don’t use red food dye.

Here’s how to make this recipe at a glance. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.

1. Bake vegan ham.

2. While it’s baking, make the pineapple brown sugar glaze. In a medium-sized pot, combine one cup of pineapple juice with brown sugar.* Bring to a simmer on a medium heat, and allow the juice to reduce by about 75%. It will take approximately 20 minutes. Stir frequently.

FYI: One cup of pineapple juice is roughly the amount that’s in a 20-ounce can of pineapple rings.

3. Once it has reduced, set the glaze aside to cool. It will continue to thicken into a syrup.

4. About 15 minutes before the ham is done, coat it with the pineapple brown sugar glaze.

(You may not need all of it, and that’s okay. You can drizzle the extra on top of the pineapple slices or serve it separately with the ham.)

5. Return the ham to the oven and finish baking uncovered.

6. After the ham has finished baking, it’s time to broil the pineapple. Put pineapple rings on a non-stick baking sheet. (If you’re worried about it sticking, you can lightly oil the baking sheet first.)

7. Put the rings in the oven and broil until the rings are caramelized and blackened around the edges.

(It takes my pineapple rings about 8 minutes on the 5 setting of my broiler. However, timing can vary. It’s good to keep an eye on it.)

8. Remove from the oven and carefully put three of the pineapple slices on top of the ham, along with maraschino cherries. If needed, you can use toothpicks to secure them. Serve the remaining pineapple rings on the side.

Serve pineapple topped vegan ham with any of the following side dishes:

• Fall salad with apples & candied pecans
• Salad with persimmons & delicata squash
• Oven roasted Brussels sprouts with apples
• Mashed potatoes
• Air fryer asparagus
• Plant-based scalloped potatoes
• Sauteed kale with garlic
• Broccolini with garlic

If you have any ham leftover, use it in any of these tasty dishes:

• Vegan egg mcmuffin
• Vegan eggs benedict
• Pineapple fried rice
• Vegan pickle rollups
• Dice it, brown it, and serve it on top of vegan split pea soup
• Add it to a vegan ham and pineapple pizza – full-sized or on an air fryer bagel pizza

📖 Recipe

Vegan ham with pineapple brown sugar glaze

Author: Cadry Nelson

5 from 1 vote

Finish your vegan ham with this easy glaze. Then adorn it with broiled pineapple slices and maraschino cherries for maximum 1950's appeal.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 38 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 43 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 people

Course: Entree, Sauce

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: ham glaze, holiday recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 (2.5 pound) vegan ham
• ▢ 20 ounces pineapple rings + juice (About 1 cup juice)
• ▢ ¼ cup dark brown sugar packed
• ▢ 3 maraschino cherries Plus more if desired

Instructions

• ▢
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake ham in a covered casserole dish for an hour and 15 minutes.
• ▢
  While the ham is cooking, it’s time to make the pineapple brown sugar glaze. In a medium sized pot, combine one cup of pineapple juice with brown sugar.*

  Bring to a simmer on a medium heat, and allow the juice to reduce by about 75%. It will take approximately 20 minutes. Stir frequently. Once it has reduced, set aside the glaze to cool. It will continue to thicken into a syrup.
• ▢
  Remove the ham from the oven, and coat it with the pineapple brown sugar glaze. (You may not need all of it, and that’s okay. You can drizzle the extra on top of the pineapple slices or serve it separately with the ham.)
• ▢
  Cook the ham uncovered for an additional 15 minutes. Then remove from oven.
• ▢
  Now you can broil the pineapple. Put pineapple rings on a non-stick baking sheet. (If you’re worried about it sticking, you can lightly oil the baking sheet first.)

  Broil the pineapple slices until the rings are caramelized and blackened around the edges. (It took my pineapple rings about 8 minutes on the 5 setting of my broiler. But it’s good to keep an eye on it since timing can vary.)

  Remove pineapple from oven, and carefully put three of the pineapple slices on top of the ham, along with 3 maraschino cherries in the center of each pineapple ring. If needed, you can use toothpicks to secure them. Serve the remaining pineapple rings on the side.

Notes

*Not all brown sugar is vegan. However, if you buy organic brown sugar, you can rest assured it’s vegan, since certified USDA organic sugar cannot be filtered through bone char. I use Wholesome organic dark brown sugar.

Often people cook the pineapple right on top of the ham. However, I found that I got the best caramelization and color on the pineapple if I broiled it separately.

Also by broiling it on its own, I didn’t have to worry about the ham getting too done on the outside. Then you can caramelize all of the pineapple slices that are packed in the can, which means plenty of pineapple slices to go around for everyone at the table.

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Nutrition

Calories: 302kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1383mg | Potassium: 337mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 85IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 4mg

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