Wondering what to do with the leftover ham – other than make ham sandwiches yet again? Here’s over 30 recipes worthy of your precious glazed ham!
TOP TIP: Treat it like bacon, and don’t forget the bone!
It’s un-Australian to make a Glazed Ham that’s just big enough to serve the exact number you’re catering for. Have leftover ham is practically a Christmas ritual in itself.
On Day 1, it’s all exciting to use the leftover ham to make lunch rolls.
Day 2, it’s already starting to lose its appeal.
By Day 3, you start looking up how long the leftover ham will keep for, and how to freeze it. (Answer here)
Day 4, you decide you’ll have one last hurrah before you freeze it.
Oh wait, I believe that’s today??! 🤣 So I’m JUST in time!
So here you go – 30+ recipes to make using your leftover ham. (And PS, it will be good for at least a 7 – 9 days in the fridge if you store it correctly!)
What to do with Leftover Ham – 30+ recipes
1. RecipeTin Picks
Here are my personal picks for using the precious leftover ham:
Eggs Benedict – because it’s worthy;
In place of bacon in this Strata Cake – because it’s something different, simple to make, tastes like quiche and everybody loves it;
Ham & Cheese French Toast Roll Ups – because it’s FUN! (And crazy delicious);
Pea and Ham Soup – because it’s so good that you look beyond that incredibly unflattering colour;
Fried rice – because you don’t need much, and it’s good for using scraps. Make a meal out of it – add it to Chicken Fried Rice;
Mini quiche – another one good for scraps, and I love telling people it’s made with Christmas ham; and
Macaroni Salad – I just add a good couple of handfuls of chopped ham into the Macaroni Salad for extra pops of tasty goodness.
2. Leftover Ham recipes
Actual recipes calling for ham! I have more than I realised – I even had to break it down into groups!
Brunch / brekki type things
Eggs Benedict – as noted above, WORTHY!
Crustless Ham and Cheese Quiche – smells like Quiche Lorraine as it cooks, but a whole lot easier to make! And a lot less calories too 😇;
Ham Egg & Cheese Pockets – grab and go!
Ham and Cheese Puffs – OK, this is more of an app, but I WANT to eat it for breakfast!
No Washing Up Hot Ham and Cheese Bread Bowls – emphasis on the words NO WASHING UP!
Monte Cristo (French Toast Ham Cheese Sandwich) – literally, the BEST ham and cheese sandwich in the world…
Ham and Cheese French Toast Roll Ups – cute to look at and divine to eat!
Meals using ham
Ham, Potato & Corn Chowder – a creamy chowder loves salty little pops of ham;
Pizza – Hawaiian, BBQ Meat Lovers, Capricciosa or of course, make your own up!
Chicken Cordon Bleu – the best stuffed chicken ever!
Fried rice – my base recipe calls for bacon, but actually, many Chinese restaurants use ham! Make a meal out of it – try Chicken Fried Rice;
Muffletta! (Italian Christmas Leftovers Bread Bowl) – anything goes here. But most especially HAM!
Cheese and Ham Pancakes – Mashed potatoes cakes studded with ham, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. YES!
4. Ham bone recipes
Pea and Ham Soup – dump it all into a slow cooker, then come home to the most incredible smell wafting out of your kitchen. Very little effort, huge returns!
Next Level Ham Bone Soup with Beans – it sounds and looks rustic, but the flavour is off the charts exceptional!
Chinese Ham Bone Rice Soup – Congee (3 ingredients!!) – this is actually a Chinese dish, not just something I made up. It’s unbelievably good, and yes it really does only call for 3 ingredients.
5. Anything calling for bacon
Did you know you can use ham in virtually any recipe calling for bacon? It adds the same salty pops, and you can even fry it up until golden, just like bacon!
Sprinkle it onto a Chicken Salad in place of bacon. Or cook it like you would bacon to form a savoury base for things like Minestrone Soup or Southern Baked Beans.
Click here to see all recipes using bacon. Here are some suggestions – nice variety of recipes here!
PRO TIP: The only time you cannot substitute ham for bacon is where the bacon is mixed in raw form into something, such as Doner Kebab meat or Sausage Rolls. Need the bacon fat.
6. Add in!
There are so many options for things you can add ham into, whether it’s to add protein, tasty little salty pops or just generally to make it even tastier! Here are some ideas:
Lunches & meals
Breakfast & brunch
Hope that gives your leftover ham a new lease on life! Make the most of it – for most of us, it’s another 12 months before we make another! – Nagi x
Life of Dozer
Dozer would like to put another suggestion on the list for what to do with your leftover ham:
Hi, Nagi,
Thanks so much for all the ham recipes! I was wondering what I would do with all of it, since the smallest one I could find was 8-1/2 lbs and there are only two of us!!
I do have a question. Your description of the cheese and ham pancakes indicated mashed potato cakes, but the recipe had no potato in it.
LOVED the Christmas photos!
Happy, HEALTHY New Year to you, Dozer, and the whole Recipe Tin family!
Love that Dozer & love your site. My Valentine had the same ‘recipe’ for us.
like your recipe ideas
your recipes are amazing. so very easy to do and follow, practical. my favorite website to go to for inspiration .
Yay, Thank you! We received a southern style “smoked ham” it’s huge (like 16 lbs or 7.3 kg) so I really needed this post.
Stay positive and test negative!!
We love this Monte Cristo recipe! Also, the selfies are so perfect! Happy New Year to you both!!
My go to recipe for leftover ham is split pea soup. I didn’t cook a ham this year, but I think I’ll buy one so I can try some of these recipes!
Hi Nagi, I just love getting your recipes. they are sooooo amazing and most so easy. I love going thru AOL to see if you have sent me anything. We too had a Golden for 17 years Her name was Ginger. Both she and my husband are gone now so I love reading about Dozer. Have a Happy New Year and keep those recipes coming. xoxo Nancy Nataloni
Thanks nagi for all the great recipes that you provide we are in lockdown here in scotland so appreciate your messages and love the pictures of dozer I have a black lab wishing you and all of us have a better new year take care and be safe
THANK YOU BOTH FOR ANOTHER YEAR OF GREAT RECIPES. HAPPY NEW YEAR.
Hi Nagi, we made your “eggs Benedict “. It was so good. We transferred raw egg to water in the strainer, no tea cup! Save a step!
Hi Nagi and Dozer. I just want to wish you both a very Happy New Year and stay safe and healthy.
Love your blog, and Dozer. I’m going to use some of my leftover ham to make pastitsio, a Greekish version of frittata. Happy New Year to you and The Doze.
Wonderful funny and delicious looking life you portray in your food and life. Happy holidays from San Francisco
Merry Christmas to you Nagi. We are also in the “northern northern beaches” we have just spent the last 12 days in iso due to a possible exposure at the Avalon gym (always knew gyms were bad for you) and were so looking forward to belatedly celebrating Christmas after iso, then found out that we have to remain in lockdown until 9th January. I have missed my mother’s 86th birthday on December 23, Christmas with family and now new year celebrations. I miss my daughter, my mum, my sister and my brother. My thoughts are with you. You have been a shining light to us all this year, this challenging year. Hopefully 2021 will bring happier times.
I love this Nagi, please keep it going!
Hello.
Am already on your list. However, would send me the 3 free electronic recipe books please? Thanks many times
Which leftover ham, Nagi – you told us to make salmon and I had prawns and calamari and a little would not have gone astray ! Hmm: shall file the recipes ! Meanwhile, congratulations and felicitations for getting ALL those recipes into goodfood.au ‘best of 50’ list: instead of working have been sending the IG post all over the world . . . and I swear I am not going to keyboard ‘Nagi Maehashi’ one more time tonight 🙂 !!! Sorry you and the Big Boy are in the red zone – at the rate we seem to be reinfecting one another ’tis going to be a big red zone all over ! So best to you and huge thanks for being Teacher all year . . . bestest to your Mom and family and let’s wait patiently . . . whatever will be will be . . .
Made your Thai red curry fried rice with leftover ham instead of chicken – delish! Next up, your savoury muffins with added ham. Then sadly, no more ham xx
Hi Nagi. I hope I can say from everyone here in Victoria we so appreciated you making the effort to send us kind thoughts and great recipes. You’re all going though it now to a lesser degree and soon we’ll all be safe again. All the best for the New Year.