Cooked Ham: 12 Meal Ideas

Whether you are trying to find something to do with leftover ham from a holiday dinner or if you are trying to figure out whether cooking a whole or half ham is a good idea, you’ll be happy to know that there are many ways to use cooked ham to create tasty meals for your family.

Here are several ideas for working cooked ham into meals beyond simply serving slices of the flavorful meat as a main dish.

12 Ham Meal Ideas

After you’ve served slices of ham with vegetable sides for a few meals, you’ll probably be ready to look for different options to use up the rest of the meat. Here are a few options you may want to try!

1. Bean Soup: Use your supply of cooked ham to make White Bean Soup, Split Pea Soup or another type of bean soup. If you don’t want to make soup from scratch, spice up canned soup with diced ham.
2. Broccoli Casserole: Add large chunks of cooked ham to your favorite broccoli casserole to convert it from a side dish to a tasty main dish.
3. Ham Biscuits: Place slices of ham on store-bought or homemade biscuits for a delicious treat.
4. Cheese Grits and Ham: Stir diced cooked ham into prepared cheese grits for a tasty breakfast meal or side dish.
5. Chicken Cordon Bleu: Lay slices of ham and cheese between two flattened boneless chicken breasts, season and bake.
6. Grilled Cheese and Ham Sandwiches: Take grilled cheese sandwiches to the next level by placing thin slices of ham on top of the cheese before grilling.
7. Ham and Egg Salad: Stir diced cooked ham into your favorite egg salad recipe.
8. Omelet: Use chopped cook ham in your favorite omelet recipe; consider combining ham with cheddar cheese and your favorite chopped fresh vegetables.
9. Jambalaya: Used chunks of cooked ham in your favorite Jambalaya recipe or packaged mix (like Zatarain’s Jambalaya mix).
10. Macaroni & Cheese with Ham: Convert your favorite macaroni and cheese recipe to a main dish by stirring chunks of cooked ham into it prior to serving.
11. Main Dish Salad: Top your favorite green salad with chunks of cooked chopped ham to convert it to a main dish rather than a side salad.
12. Seasoned Green Beans: Spice up your favorite green bean recipe by adding diced ham at the beginning of the cooking process.

These are just a few of the many dishes you can make with cooked ham. What are some of your favorites? Share your suggestions in the comments section below!