What To Do With Leftover Ham

Easter ham… If you’re like my extended family , we make a ham once a year and there always seems to be as much left over as we started with! But, over the years we have found that we actually enjoy and use leftover ham more than the original dinner. Ham is one of the most versatile meats around, kind of like chicken. You can use it in so many ways from morning to night that you can literally never get tired of using leftover ham or finding new ways to use leftover ham.

In general, you’ve got about a week to use your leftovers – that’s true for many of your Easter dishes like scalloped potatoes and glazed carrots. You’ve generally got a little longer with ham because it re-cooks so well. So if you tire of ham and eggs for breakfast, think about these other meals.

Here’s our week after Easter fill with recipes of what to do with ham leftovers. Try some of these now or next time you buy a ham.

Recipes for Leftover Ham

Grilled Ham Sandwiches:

Ham Leftovers

Start with sourdough bread and grill one side of each slice (use a flat pan heated and then sprayed with olive oil or butter). Grill the ham too if you like. Then spread on Kona Coast Hawaiian Style Honey Mustard (arguably the best mustard with ham), sliced ham and Havarti cheese between the grilled sides of the bread. Then grill each side of the sandwich. This grilled cheese is so good that you don’t even need the cheese!

Macaroni and Cheesy Ham:

Ham Leftovers

1) Cook Rigatoni until almost done.

2) Grate 4 oz. Mozzarella, 2 oz. Fontina, 2 oz. Provolone and 1 oz. Parmesan Cheeses.

3) In a saucepan melt 2 Tbs. Butter over low heat then stir in 2 Tbs. flour whisking until it bubbles then whisk in 2 cups of milk and stir and cook until boiling plus one minute. Then add chopped ham and the cheeses to the pan.

4) Mix the drained pasta with the cheese sauce and place in a buttered casserole dish and cover loosely with foil and bake in a pre-heated 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes.

5) Melt 1 Tbs. butter and add 1/4 cup bread crumbs till mixed and spread over the dish at the end then broil for about 5 minutes.

Ham, Mushroom and Pea Alfredo Pasta:

Cook your favorite pasta and in another pan put a little oil then add fresh mushrooms, diced ham and frozen peas till heated and then add Alfredo sauce (homemade or bottled) and pour it over the cooked pasta. Sprinkle with ground pepper and grated parmesan cheese.

Ham Bone Soup:

Ham Leftovers

This is a family favorite meal with crusty bread. Just get a package of mixed beans and follow the directions – the beans have to be soaked overnight and then the next day you add tomatoes, water, onions and carrots and just let it simmer with the ham bone (even in the crock pot if you like). This bean package even provides a flavor packet to add at the end. A super thick yummy soup awaits by dinnertime. Can’t show a picture of the soup yet because this is the last thing to do with your ham when it’s closer to it’s eat by date, but this package makes a great soup when you add your ham bone. This way, you’ve used every bit of your leftover ham so you no longer have to wonder what to do with leftover ham… until next Easter at least.

For Additional Information

Hope this gives you some ideas of what to do with leftover ham.

Be sure to use your ham before it spoils and check Eat By Date for answers to questions about all your other leftovers from Easter or any day of the year.

To find out how long other foods are good for, please visit the Dairy, Drinks, Fruits, Grains, Proteins, Vegetables and Other sections of Eat By Date or use the search function below.

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