Skillet Ham Steak with Maple Red-Eye Gravy
A bone-in ham steak browned in bacon fat, then a quick pan gravy of broth, maple syrup and espresso powder, swirled with butter: the Southern country breakfast classic as a 30 minute dinner.
Edited by JP Lambiase
Change the estimate
Swaps change the price only: cook any meat to its own safe temperature. Where these numbers come from
Red-eye gravy is a thin Southern sauce served with country ham, made from ham drippings and black coffee; Wikipedia says the name comes from how it looks, the coffee sinking and the fat floating on top so a round bowl looks like a red eye. It also goes by poor man's gravy, bird-eye gravy and red ham gravy. The best-known origin story is that Andrew Jackson asked his cook, who had been drinking the night before, for ham with gravy as red as his eyes; Wikipedia calls this a folk legend, along with the idea that the coffee keeps you awake. America's Test Kitchen turned it into a fast dinner with a supermarket ham steak and calls it a Southern classic.
🇺🇸 This one is American
A bone-in ham steak browned in bacon fat, then a quick pan gravy of broth, maple syrup and espresso powder, swirled with butter: the Southern country breakfast classic as a 30 minute dinner.
🇺🇸 The original
The old American ham is the salt-cured country ham: soaked, simmered and sliced thin, a Virginia tradition older than the country. See the Virginia Country Ham, Soaked and Simmered recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
Espresso powder, not brewed coffee
ATK found that coffee boiled in a gravy turns bitter, so the instant espresso goes in off the heat, for coffee flavor without the bitterness, and a spoonful of maple balances it.
Bacon fat for a lean steak
Ham steaks have almost no fat, so the bacon gives the pan enough fat to brown the ham and a smoky base for the gravy.
🧰 You'll need 6 items
Everything the steps call for. Tick off what you have before you start.
Pans and pots
Tools
Supplies
Step by step
- Step 1
Pat the ham steak dry and season it with pepper. Cook the bacon in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Lift out the bacon (save it for another use), leaving the fat.
- Step 2
Add the ham steak and cook about 5 minutes, until well browned underneath. Turn and cook about 2 minutes more, until the center reads 140°F. Move it to a platter and tent loosely with foil.
✓ What it should look like - Step 3
Add the onion to the skillet and cook about 1 minute, until just starting to brown. Stir in the flour and cook 15 seconds.
- Step 4
Whisk in the broth and maple syrup, scraping up the browned bits. Simmer 5 to 7 minutes, until reduced to about 3/4 cup and slightly thickened.
✓ What it should look like - Step 5
Take the skillet off the heat and whisk in the butter and espresso powder. Season with pepper.
- Step 6
Pour off any juices on the platter, cut the ham into 4 pieces and pour the gravy over.
Skillet Ham Steak with Maple Red-Eye Gravy
Serves 4 · 1 ham steak, cut in 4, with about 3/4 cup gravy · 30 min total
Ham
- 1 bone-in ham steak (about 1 1/4 lb), patted dry
- Black pepper
- 2 slices bacon
Red-eye gravy
- 2 tbsp finely chopped onion
- 1 tsp all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tsp instant espresso powder
- 3 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into 3 pieces
Equipment: 12-inch skillet, Instant-read thermometer, Chef's knife and cutting board, Measuring cups and spoons, Whisk, Aluminum foil
Method
- Pat the ham steak dry and season it with pepper. Cook the bacon in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Lift out the bacon (save it for another use), leaving the fat.
- Add the ham steak and cook about 5 minutes, until well browned underneath. Turn and cook about 2 minutes more, until the center reads 140°F. Move it to a platter and tent loosely with foil.
- Add the onion to the skillet and cook about 1 minute, until just starting to brown. Stir in the flour and cook 15 seconds.
- Whisk in the broth and maple syrup, scraping up the browned bits. Simmer 5 to 7 minutes, until reduced to about 3/4 cup and slightly thickened.
- Take the skillet off the heat and whisk in the butter and espresso powder. Season with pepper.
- Pour off any juices on the platter, cut the ham into 4 pieces and pour the gravy over.
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen (Cook's Country), "Ham Steak with Red-Eye Gravy" by Diane Unger (June 24, 2013), as written for 4. ATK lists 35 minutes in all; our 30 assumes the bacon goes in while you chop the onion. Ham steaks are fully cooked; we heat them through to 140°F, the FSIS reheating temperature for plant-packed cooked ham. America's Test Kitchen. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (2)
Tips
- Throw away the juices that collect on the platter; ATK says they make the gravy too salty.
- Serve with grits, biscuits or a fried egg.
- Leftover holiday ham works too: brown 1/2-inch slices for 2 minutes a side and heat to 165°F (FSIS, for leftover ham).
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Andrew Jackson named red-eye gravy. Folklore: Wikipedia calls the cook's bloodshot-eyes story a folk legend.
- The name comes from the "eye" of fat on the coffee. Documented as Wikipedia's explanation of the name; the article itself is tagged as needing more citations.
- Red-eye gravy must be made with brewed coffee. Disputed: the traditional method deglazes with black coffee (Wikipedia); ATK uses instant espresso powder to avoid bitterness; some old recipes use water.
- It only goes with country ham. Folklore: country ham is traditional, but ATK and many cooks use city ham steaks.
Every other ham
Brown Sugar and Mustard Glazed Spiral Ham
The American holiday centerpiece: a fully cooked spiral ham heated gently under foil, then brushed twice with a glaze of dark brown sugar, grainy mustard, cider vinegar and fresh orange until it is sticky and glossy.
Virginia Country Ham, Soaked and Simmered
A dry-cured, aged country ham scrubbed, soaked overnight, held just below a simmer until tender, then rubbed with brown sugar and dry mustard and glazed in a hot oven, for paper-thin slices on biscuits.
Slow-Roasted Fresh Ham
The leg before it becomes ham: an uncured, bone-in fresh ham salted overnight with brown sugar, rosemary and thyme, roasted slowly in an oven bag and finished with a maple, molasses and mustard glaze.
Pineapple and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham
The mid-century "Hawaiian" ham: a spiral ham pinned all over with canned pineapple rings, wrapped tight and baked low, then roasted hot with a brown sugar, pineapple juice and two-mustard glaze until sticky and golden.
Crackly Honey-Glazed Spiral Ham (Copycat)
A spiral ham heated under foil with honey, then coated in a spiced sugar and melted with a kitchen torch or the broiler into a thin, crackly shell. Inspired by the HoneyBaked Ham Company's famous store ham; not official.
Senate Navy Bean Soup with the Leftover Ham Bone
The soup the US Senate restaurant has served for more than a century: dried navy beans simmered three hours with a meaty leftover ham bone, finished with diced ham and onion browned in butter.
Swedish Christmas Ham with Mustard Crust (Julskinka)
Sweden's Christmas ham: a cured ham simmered gently until 158°F, cooled, then spread with egg, two mustards and sugar, dusted with breadcrumbs and baked hot into a golden crust, served cold on the julbord with the broth saved for dipping bread.
Galician Cured Pork Shoulder with Turnip Greens (Lacón con Grelos)
Galicia's Carnival feast: a whole salt-cured pork foreleg soaked for two days, boiled until it falls from the bone, and served with chorizo, potatoes and turnip greens cooked in the same broth.
Ham Baked in Bread Dough (Schinken im Brotteig)
The Viennese Easter ham: a cured ham simmered with caraway, fennel and coriander, wrapped in a rye and wheat bread dough with a braided top, and baked until the crust is dark and the ham inside is steaming.
Filipino Christmas Ham with Pineapple Glaze (Hamon)
The Noche Buena ham: a bone-in ham poached for an hour in pineapple juice and brown sugar, scored, spread thickly with pineapple jam and baked hot until dark and glossy.
British Gammon Simmered in Cola with Treacle and Mustard Glaze
A mild-cure gammon joint simmered for over two hours in cola with an onion, then skinned, studded with cloves, painted with black treacle, patted with mustard powder and demerara sugar and blasted in a very hot oven.
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