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Old Fashioned Ham Salad Spread – A Great Leftover Ham Recipe

Ham salad spread is one of my absolute favorite leftover ham recipes. Not only is it easy to make, but it is versatile as well.

It is most often served as the filling for a sandwich. Whether you choose to serve it on a soft roll, bun or as a tea sandwich, this spread makes for the perfect quick and easy snack, appetizer or meal.

In fact it is one of my favorite appetizers to serve at a bridal shower, baby shower, or a Spring or Summer potluck. Add in tuna fish salad, chicken salad, and egg salad sandwiches and you have the start of a complete spread.

However, don’t limit yourselves to serving this only as a sandwich. It also makes for a great spread to serve with crackers. Simply spread it on the top of a cracker and you have the perfect game day or t.v. watch party snack.

ham salad spread

And if you are keeping it low-carb, opt for spreading it on top of celery sticks. You get all the flavor without all the carbohydrates.

How to Make Ham Salad Spread

Ingredients

  • Cooked ham chunks
  • Hard-boiled egg
  • Onion
  • Celery, diced
  • Sweet pickle relish
  • Mayonnaise
  • Mustard
  • Salt and pepper
leftover ham

Equipment Required

Large food processor or High Speed Blender We love our large 12 cup capacity Hamilton Beach Food Processor. It is the perfect size to get the ham processed into minced meat. However, you can also use a high speed blender like the Ace Instant Pot Blender or if you make a lot of blender recipes, a Vitamix Blender is a good choice.

Large Mixing Bowl or Storage Container You will need to store the Ham Salad Spread in a large mixing bowl or plastic container. You can also freeze some in a freezer safe container if you prefer.

Silicone Spatula I can’t express how much I love my silicone spatulas. It makes cleaning out the food processor a breeze! And if you use a blender, be sure to use a skinny silicone spatula that will make clean up a breeze!

Instructions

In order to make ham salad spread first decide if you want to use a food processor or high powered blender.

Then add the ham, egg, onion, celery and sweet pickle relish to the bowl and pulse 15-20 times to mince the ham. Be sure to use that silicone spatula to scrape down the sides as necessary.

food processor with ham

Do not allow the blender or food processor to go on low or high speed. You want to slowly pulse the mixture so that it turns into small crumbles and not pureed.

Once the mixture is ground into mince meat, add it to a mixing bowl or storage container. Then stir in the mayonnaise and mustard until well incorporated.

Cover the bowl or container and chill for at least 3 hours before serving. The longer that the flavors have time to meld together, the more delicious the ham salad spread will become.

Serve as an appetizer or snack on crackers or on small buns or bread for a sandwich.

Storing Recommendations

Refrigerate for up to 4 days. You can also freeze the mixture for later use in an air-tight container.

ham mayo mustard

Possible Recipe Variations

  • Allergic to Eggs? No worries, simply omit the hard-boiled egg and use a plant based mayonnaise substitute.
  • Not a Relish Fan? Relish is optional. You can leave it out of the ham salad spread recipe or use diced pickles instead. We also like to use our homemade canned zucchini relish instead of traditional sweet pickle relish.
  • Mustard Variations Although the recipe calls for standard yellow mustard, don’t be shy about using Dijon or Stone Ground Mustard for additional flavor.
  • Kick It Up A Notch? If you like a little more heat to your recipes add in some diced, pickled jalapeños, red pepper flakes, or even Sriracha sauce!
  • Use Leftover Turkey or Chicken Instead of Ham This may sound silly since the recipe is called Ham Salad Spread, but you can also use leftover turkey or chicken for this recipe as well. However, you may need to add additional salt because ham is naturally salty and turkey and chicken typically are not.
ham salad spread

Other Leftover Ham Recipes

Enjoy!

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Yield: 10

Old Fashioned Ham Salad Spread

ham salad spread

Use your leftover ham to make this delicious ham salad spread which is the perfect filling for a sandwich or use it as a spread on crackers for an appetizer or snack.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds boneless cooked ham, diced into 1 inch chunks
  • 1 hard-boiled egg, diced
  • 2 teaspoons diced onion
  • 2 stalks of celery, diced
  • 2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish
  • ¾ cup mayonnaise
  • 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. In a large food processor or high powered blender, add the ham, egg, onion, celery and sweet pickle relish and pulse 15-20 times to mince. Do not allow the blender or food processor to go on low or high speed. Scrap down the sides as necessary.
  2. Once the mixture is ground into mince meat, add the mixture to a mixing bowl and add the mayonnaise and mustard. Stir until well incorporated.
  3. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours before serving, but overnight is even better!
    Serve as an appetizer or snack on crackers or on small buns or bread for a sandwich.
  4. Refrigerate for up to 4 days. You can also freeze the mixture for later use.

Notes

Recipe provided by Make Your Meals

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

10

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 219Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 69mgSodium: 837mgCarbohydrates: 2gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 16g

Nutritional Information is to be used as a general guideline only . Nutritional calculations will vary from the types and brands of the products used.

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