can you buy ham bones from honey baked ham

Can You Buy Ham Bones from Honey Baked Ham? Everything You Need to Know

By Sarah Lee

A lot of people love Honey Baked Ham because they serve warm spiral-cut hams that are glazed with honey. But did you know that Honey Baked Ham stores sell ham bones too?

These ham bones make for a delicious addition to soups, beans, greens, and more – all for a budget-friendly price Read on to learn everything you need to know about buying ham bones from this classic delicatessen brand

What are Honey Baked Ham Bones?

Honey Baked Ham bones are the femur bones of pigs that have been used to make the chain’s signature hams. After the majority of the meat is spiral sliced off the bone for Honey Baked Ham’s hot ham products, the remaining meat and cartilage is trimmed away.

This leaves the bare ham bone, which still has a lot of tasty ham flavor but not a lot of meat on it. Honey Baked Ham then vacuum-packs these bones and sells them in their stores.

A Typical Honey Baked Ham Bone Contains:

• The femur bone from the leg/hindquarter of the pig

• Small shreds and bits of ham meat still attached to bone

• Cartilage, fat, and connective tissue on and around bone

• Rich ham and honey essence infused into the bone

• Weight ranges from 1-2 lbs per bone

Even after being spiral cut for ham, these bones offer savory ham bone broth and flavor that makes them perfect for soups, beans, potatoes, cabbage, and more.

Benefits of Cooking with Honey Baked Ham Bones

There are many benefits to cooking with ham bones from Honey Baked Ham:

• Imparts rich, smoky ham flavor with a touch of honey sweetness

• Ham bone broth makes an amazing cooking liquid for soups, beans, grains

• Excellent source of minerals from the bones like calcium, phosphorus, magnesium

• Contains collagen for bone, skin, and joint health

• More affordable than buying a whole ham

• Helps reduce food waste by using bones that would otherwise be discarded

• Can find them year-round unlike holiday hams

• Provides tasty ham flavor without having to bake/cook a whole ham

Overall, Honey Baked Ham bones are an easy, budget-friendly way to infuse recipes with juicy ham goodness.

Where to Buy Honey Baked Ham Bones

The good news is Honey Baked Ham bones can be purchased directly from any Honey Baked Ham retail location. There are over 400 stores across the U.S.

Here are some tips for finding and buying Honey Baked Ham bones:

• Check the Honey Baked Ham website store locator to find a location near you.

• Call ahead to your local store and ask if they have ham bones available for purchase.

• Honey Baked Ham bones are sold refrigerated in vacuum-sealed packages by the pound.

• Most stores stock ham bones regularly. Larger locations may have more availability.

• Expect to pay $1.50 – $2.50 per pound based on your location.

• Purchase what you need for your recipe, usually 1-2 bones is plenty.

• Ham bones can be found in the refrigerated meat case near the hams.

• You can also ask an employee for assistance locating them.

Bring the ham bones home and pop them in the freezer until you are ready to use them.

How Much Meat is on Honey Baked Ham Bones?

Since the ham has already been spiral sliced, don’t expect to get large servings of meat off Honey Baked Ham bones. But here is an approximation:

• Around 1/4 pound of ham meat scraps per 1 pound of bone

• The meat is likely to be fattier, irregular pieces rather than slices

• Bones may have a leaner or meatier side depending on location

• Use your judgement – some bones will yield more meat than others

The real value is in the concentrated ham flavor the bones provide rather than the amount of meat attached. Remove what you can, then let the bone work its magic.

Cooking Times for Honey Baked Ham Bones

To extract the most flavor, ham bones need to be simmered for extended periods of time. Here are approximate simmer times:

• Soups: 45-60 minutes

• Beans: 1-2 hours

• Collard greens: 2-3 hours

• Stock: 4-5 hours

• Split pea soup: 6-8 hours

For maximum flavor extraction, simmer bones at least 45 minutes. But the longer the better for infusing that ham essence into your dish.

What to Make with Honey Baked Ham Bones

Honey Baked Ham bones add delicious smoky flavor to:

• Bean soup

• Collard greens

• Cabbage soup

• Navy bean soup

• Split pea soup

• Bean stew like cassoulet

• Lentil soup

• Potato soup

• Rice or barley stew

• Chicken noodle soup

• Vegetable soup

• Ham bone broth

Simmer the bones with aromatics like onions, garlic, celery, and herbs. Pick any remaining meat off the bones to add back to soups or salads. Discard bones after cooking.

Step-By-Step: Honey Baked Ham Bone Soup Recipe

Follow this easy recipe to make a smoky ham soup with Honey Baked Ham bones:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Honey Baked Ham bone
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp thyme
• 8 cups water or broth
• 2 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Place ham bone on a baking sheet and roast 20 minutes. This enhances flavor.

2. In a large soup pot, sauté onion, carrots and celery until soft, about 5 minutes.

3. Add in garlic, bay leaf, thyme and cook 1 minute more.

4. Add roasted ham bone, water/broth, potatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil.

5. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 45-60 minutes until potatoes are tender.

6. Remove bone and bay leaf. Pick any remaining meat off bone and add to soup.

7. Season soup with salt and pepper to taste. Can garnish with parsley.

Let the Honey Baked Ham bone infuse the soup with its savory ham essence. Freeze leftovers up to 3 months.

Can You Buy Other Bones from Honey Baked Ham?
Since Honey Baked Ham rotisserie roasts whole legs of ham, they don’t have other types of bones leftover besides the main femur ham bone.

You cannot buy things like:

• Ham hocks (part of the pig’s ankle)

• Pork neckbones

• Ham knuckles or ham feet

• Ham scapula or shoulder bones

Honey Baked Ham only sells their signature ham bones after spiral slicing. But these bones still provide incredible flavor!

Get the Most from Your Honey Baked Ham Bones
Honey Baked Ham bones are a smart way to impart delicious ham flavor into soups, greens, beans and more. Stop by a Honey Baked Ham near you to pick up a few bones for your next creation. Follow the cooking tips in this article to get the most out of the bones’ smoky flavor. Soon you’ll be hooked on cooking with Honey Baked Ham bones!