This old-fashioned ham salad recipe is a classic in the American south but serves as an amazing snack, side, or main dish no matter where you’re from. Ready in five minutes, it’s a savory spread the whole family will enjoy.
You probably have heard of chicken salad and egg salad, but what about ham salad?
I'd like to introduce you to this classic recipe! It's made made with finely chopped ham, hard-boiled eggs, sweet pickle relish, celery, and mayonnaise.
The ham gives it a smoky and salty flavor, while the eggs add a creamy richness, and the pickle relish and celery add a nice crunch and tangy sweetness.
When you mix it all together with a dollop of mayo, you get a delicious and satisfying salad that's perfect for sandwiches, crackers, or even just on its own.
This old-fashioned recipe is a crowd pleaser. It’s a sandwich spread, a side at a picnic, or both. It’s a quick bite to eat or a complete filling meal, and I can switch out the egg and relish or add other vegetables as I want.
Why I Love This Recipe
There are three reasons why I love this ham spread!
Fast and simple – I mean, it doesn’t get much faster than 5 minutes of prep time! You don’t even have to turn on a stove or microwave. It's also the perfect recipe to use up leftover holiday ham.
Familiar ingredients – have you ever found a new recipe you knew your family would love…but it had a few expensive ingredients? Or worse, ingredients you didn’t even know how to find? That’s not this old-fashioned ham salad recipe at all.
Versatile – there are plenty of ingredients you can switch around to your preference, so it’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser no matter what. You can also eat it by itself, on crackers, or as a sandwich.
Ingredients
Everything to make this ham spread recipe is right at your fingertips – either at home already or at the grocery store.
- Cooked ham – finely chopped by hand or with a food processor or blender. You may also be able to find ground ham at the supermarket or (more likely, at least in my experience) at a butcher shop.
- Hard boiled egg – you can leave this out of the salad if you’d like, but you’ll probably want more mayonnaise to make up for it. You can easily make hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot and make them into deviled eggs, too!
- Celery rib – as in all salads like this one, celery provides a delicious crunch!
- Sweet pickle relish – you can also use regular dill relish or chopped dill pickles if that’s your preference.
- Mayonnaise – this is your salad “dressing” and ties it all together. If you’ve had any kind of “picnic salad” before, you’re familiar with it. Duke's or Blue Plate?? I bet you have your favorite!
- Salt and black pepper – to taste.
How To Make Ham Salad
This recipe is as simple as mixing all your ingredients together.
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Step 1: Chop your ingredients. Place the ham, egg, and celery into the bowl of your food processor and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.
Step 2: Combine your ingredients and enjoy. Combine the ham mixture, mayonnaise, relish, salt, and pepper in a medium mixing bowl.
What to serve with ham salad
Saltine crackers or ritz crackers are probably my favorite cracker pairing. Otherwise, you can go crazy with breads...from plain white bread to a whole grain bread with a little crunch.
Recipe Variations
Want to experiment with this ham spread? You can try adding…
- Parsley as a garnish
- A squeeze of lemon juice or a dash of mustard to bring out the rest of the flavors
- Other veggies, like onion or cucumber
- Nuts for crunch, like cashews or almonds
Check out more sandwich spreads here →
FAQS
This should make enough for four servings. If you’re looking to serve the whole extended family at a picnic or something similar, you may want to double the recipe (or more)! Otherwise, this is perfect for a side or snack.
You can store this ham salad in your fridge for up to a week. Be sure to use an air-tight container.
If you have a good blender, that can also work. If you don’t have either, however, you can chop up the ingredients by hand until they’re very fine.
Other Salad Recipes You’ll Enjoy
Broccoli Salad Recipe with Craisins
Recipe
Old Fashioned Ham Salad Recipe
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Ingredients
- 1 pound cooked ham cut into 1-2 inch cubes
- 1 hard boiled egg peeled
- 1 celery rib chopped
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoon sweet pickle relish
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Serving suggestions are in notes below
Instructions
- Place the ham, egg, and celery into the bowl of your food processor and give several quick pulses until the mixture is finely chopped.
- Remove the mixture from the food processor and transfer to a medium sized mixing bowl.
- Add the mayonnaise and relish and stir to mix. Taste for seasoning and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
Serve on bread, croissants or with crackers.
Notes
- Parsley as a garnish
- A squeeze of lemon juice or a dash of mustard to bring out the rest of the flavors
- Other veggies, like onion or cucumber
- Nuts for crunch, like cashews or almonds
Nutrition
This Farm Girl Cooks is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. Calories and other nutritional values vary depending on which brands were used.
