Ham Salad is similar to chicken salad, but it uses chopped leftover ham. Celery, dill pickle and green onions add flavor and crunch! Serve it on crackers or enjoy it as a flavorful ham salad sandwich.
Why this recipe works:
Ham salad is just as great as a chicken salad or turkey salad, but at the same time tastes completely different.
- Perfect use of leftovers. Any time you have a big holiday dinner where you serve ham, you'll surely have leftovers. Ham salad is the perfect leftover recipe!
- Great ingredients. This recipe has everything needed to create the best flavor and texture.
- Easy to make. You can chop everything by hand or pulse it in a food processor for even quicker results.
- Alter according to your taste. This is one of those recipes where you can easily make substitutions, reduce or increase the ingredients listed in the recipe, or swap them out based on preferences.
Ingredients used to make this recipe:
- Ham. I used leftover ham but you can also buy thick cut slices from the deli.
- Celery. Adds a nice clean crunch.
- Dill pickle. I don't recommend using a different pickle like bread and butter or sweet pickles. Dill pickles add a great crunch and a ton of salty flavor.
- Mayonnaise. I always make my own homemade mayo which tastes amazing. Not a fan of mayonnaise? You can easily use Greek yogurt or sour cream instead.
- Mustard. I think yellow mustard works best in ham salad, but you can use Dijon or spicy yellow mustard if you wish.
How to make Ham Salad:
- Chop and measure. Dice the ham, veggies, and pickles using a knife and cutting board or pulse them in the food processor. I've seen some recipes where the ham is chopped so fine that it resembles a paste. That did not sound or look appealing to me. I prefer to dice the ingredients so that they are small enough to fit on a bite sized cracker but big enough to give texture.
- Mix. Stir together the mayo, mustard, and chopped ingredients. If you think more of any ingredient, add it!
- Serve: This recipe is great on some bread and a bed of lettuce as a ham salad sandwich or served in a bowl with crackers on the side.
Serving recommendations:
Ham salad sandwiches are always a hit. I think it also tastes great on top of toasted English muffins. The kids love to scoop it up with crackers or chips.
Storage: Tastes best if served right away. Store leftover ham salad in an air tight container in the refrigerator. The longer it is stored, the more liquid is released by the pickles, celery, and onions. Just be sure to stir well before serving.
Other leftover ham recipes:
If you still have leftover ham, here are some great recipe recommendations!
- Ham and Pea Pasta Carbonara
- Leftover Ham Bean Soup
- Hawaiian Ham Skewers
- Cheesy Ham & Broccoli Tater Tot Casserole
- Ham, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches
- Ham and Brussel Sprout Pasta
- Mississippi Sin Dip
Ham Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups ham (chopped small (about 20 ounces))
- 1 cup celery (diced)
- 1 cup dill pickle (diced)
- ½ cup green onion (diced (mostly white part of onion but with some green))
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to bowl and mix well.
- Serve on top of sliced bread, toast, or a cracker.
Gail Montero
Love that I can use my left-over ham for something so deliciously good. Love this!
Holly
What a perfect way to dress up leftovers. This is just how my grandmother use to make it!
Megan
Love this twist on the classic mayo salad. The pickles really set it off perfectly.