Honeybaked Ham and Turkey is Indeed Gluten-Free

Are you wondering if HoneyBaked Ham is gluten-free? What about HoneyBaked turkeys? Here are the answers to gluten-free options at HoneyBaked Ham stores.

Like many of you, I grew up having Honeybaked ham for the holidays.  It is such an easy meal and one that is a real crowd pleaser, so it was disturbing to learn that even though the ham and the turkey are gluten free the glaze used on each contained gluten making it unsafe for those on the gluten-free diet.

Back in 2008 Honeybaked reformulated their glaze and removed gluten and soy, making the hams/turkeys safe for those on a gluten-free diet, but not every store had the gluten-free versions.  By 2009 all of the stores had the gluten-free version of the hams/turkeys, but there was still some confusion in the gluten-free community.  To clear things up, the home office personally contacted the different divisions to be sure everyone had adopted the allergen-friendly glazes and found that they had. (Their modified food starch is corn based and the caramel color doesn’t contain gluten). 

Note: Although the corporate office of HoneyBaked assured us that ALL glazes are now Gluten-Free, one of our readers found a ham that did not have the reformulated glaze.  We contacted their office regarding this issue, but advise our readers to read all of the ingredients in the glaze you are given with your ham or make your own glaze.

Now those of us on the gluten-free diet can have the ham/turkey from Honeybaked anytime of the year and we don't have to worry about eating it if it is offered at a work or social function.

The ingredients listed below come from the HoneyBaked nutrition page and do not contain wheat or gluten:

• Sliced and Glazed Turkey
  • Ingredients: Turkey Breast, Turkey Broth, Dextrose, Salt, Sodium Lactate, Sodium Phosphate, Sodium Diacetate. Glazed With Sugar, Gelatin, Paprika (Color), Maltodextrin, Food Starch – Modified, Dextrose, Refinery Syrup, Honey, Spices, Natural Flavoring, and Brown Sugar. Invert Sugar.
• Roasted and Smoked Turkey
  • Ingredients: Turkey Breast Meat, Turkey Broth, Potassium Lactate, Seasoning [Salt, Dextrose, Sugar, Natural Flavor, Artificial Maple Flavor (Sugar, Modified Food Starch, Caramel Color, Natural Flavors, Maltodextrin, Corn Syrup)], Salt, Sodium Phosphate, Sodium Diacetate, Sodium Nitrite. Glazed With Sugar, Gelatin, Paprika (Color), Maltodextrin, Food Starch – Modified, Dextrose, Refinery Syrup, Honey, Spices, Natural Flavoring, and Brown Sugar. Invert Sugar.
• Boneless Ham
  • Ingredients: Ham Cured With Water, Salt, Sodium Lactate, Sugar, Sodium Phosphate, Sodium Diacetate, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite. Glazed With Sugar, Gelatin, Paprika (Color), Maltodextrin, Food Starch – Modified, Dextrose, Refinery Syrup, Honey, Spices, Natural Flavoring, Brown Sugar. Invert Sugar.
• Honey Baked Ham
  • Ingredients: Ham Cured with Water, Salt, Contains 2% or less of Sugar, Sodium Lactate, Sodium Phosphate, Sodium Diacetate, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite. Glazed with Sugar, Gelatin, Paprika (Color), Maltodextrin, Food Starch – Modified, Dextrose, Refinery Syrup, Honey, Spices, Natural Flavoring, Brown Sugar, Invert Sugar

Article Courtesy:  Jennifer Harris

photo courtesy The HoneyBaked Ham Co.