My Grandmother’s Mustard Sauce (AKA: “The Ham Sauce”)
By Alexandra Stafford
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Last Updated: 08/24/2025
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
If you are baking a ham this holiday, you must make this mustard sauce, too. It is so delicious and so simple to prepare — it’s a matter of bringing a few ingredients to a boil and then passing the mixture through a strainer. It’s fantastic for leftover ham sandwiches.
In my family, this mustard sauce is as essential as the ham on the holiday table. It takes no time to whisk together, and it is so nice to have on hand for leftover ham sandwiches.
Serve it aside this baked ham with brown sugar glaze.
You can watch the video above, but here’s the visual play-by-play: Gather your ingredients: cream, ground mustard, vinegar, salt, sugar, egg yolks.
Combine them in a saucepan and whisk until smooth:
Bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking often. Do not walk away. As soon as it simmers, it’s done. Strain it.
Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week (or longer).
It is sooooo nice to have on hand for leftover ham sandwiches on …
My Grandmother’s Mustard Sauce
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 .5 cups 1x
Description
This mustard sauce is as essential as the ham on my family’s holiday table. It takes no time to whisk together, it is SO delicious, and it is so nice to have on hand for leftover ham sandwiches.
Not all dry mustards are created equally, and depending on the type you use, your sauce could taste unpleasantly strong. I don’t have a strong preference of brands here, but in recent years I use the Tone’s ground mustard, which I find at my local co-op. It’s not fancy — just the generic brand of spices my store carries.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (114 g) sugar
- 1/4 cup (70 g) white wine vinegar
- 4 tablespoons (24 g) ground mustard, see notes above
- 4 egg (60 g roughly) yolks
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) kosher salt
- 1 cup (240 g) heavy cream
Instructions
- Place a strainer over a medium-sized bowl (able to hold about 2 cups of liquid). Combine all ingredients in a saucepan, and whisk until smooth. Bring to a simmer while monitoring closely and stirring often. As soon as the mixture comes to boil, pour it through the strainer into the bowl. Let cool, then cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Condiment
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
144 Comments on “My Grandmother’s Mustard Sauce (AKA: “The Ham Sauce”)”
Not a lot of effort for a big impact! It is the one part of the meal that people will be talking about afterwards!
I just made this, again, for Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend. I made 1.5 x the recipe because I can quite literally drink this stuff and wanted extras. Thank you Ali, for a wonderful recipe. Onward to make your ham glaze and stuffing now!
So nice to read this, Barb! Thanks so much for writing and Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
It was a hit, brother asked for recipe!
Great to hear, Stephanie! Thanks for writing 🙂
Hey! Do you think it’s possible to make this advance and freeze it? I’m trying to prep as much as possible for Christmas Day!
Hi! I don’t think this sauce will freeze well — I’m worried it will break in the fridge. I do think you can make it as far as a week in advance, however. It keeps for a very long time!
Christmas would not be Christmas without this mustard. My family refers to this as their holiday crack. 🙂
I’m so happy to hear this! Christmas would not be Christmas in our house either without THE HAM SAUCE. Merry Christmas!!
Ham is not my preference, but my family insists on it for Christmas. This year, I made this to go with it, and I will never complain about ham again if i can use it as a vehicle for this sauce. I didn’t have a sieve at my grandma’s house, but I whisked it constantly as it heated and cooled and didn’t mind the texture at all!
Great to hear, Kallan! Ham is all about the ham sauce in my family 🙂 So glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for writing and sharing your equipment notes — great to know!
This was pretty awesome. On a scale of 1 to 10 this was a 12 or 14, especially the mustard sauce. I subbed apple cider vinegar for orange juice. Great choice! The glaze i would double the brown sugar and half the liquids. Too watery. but this was a spectacular ham.
I’m so happy to read this, Michael! Thanks so much for writing and sharing your notes — I like your thoughts about the glaze 🙂 Happy holidays!!
How long do you save the whites? Can it be frozen? Thanks for this great recipe
Hi Elise! Google is telling me that egg whites can last for 4 days in the fridge — I’ve definitely used them after a week, and they’ve been fine. And google is also telling me they can be frozen, which I have never done, but which seems to be a good solution for longer storage.