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You'd be surprised what you can make with leftover ham! My easy Leftover Ham Recipes will transform your leftovers into fresh new meals your family will love. No more reheating all your holiday leftovers on one plate and leaving it at that!
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Ham is one of my favorite dinners to serve my family for Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving, but there are always leftovers. Needless to say, I've had plenty of practice coming up with how to use ham leftovers!
These are my favorite recipes using leftover ham, from super easy ham and cheese sliders to my amazing pink pasta recipe with ham mixed in. I guarantee you will find a new favorite leftover ham recipe to serve your family on this list!
Can you freeze cooked ham?
You can freeze cooked ham for up to 2 months. I recommend slicing the ham before freezing it so it's easier to store. Cut the ham into slices, store the slices in freezer-safe bags with the air squeezed out as much as possible, then label the bags with the freezing date. Store, and take out to thaw in the refrigerator overnight as needed. This makes it easy to portion out and save your ham leftovers to use with the recipes below.
Recipes for Leftover Ham
Tips for Cooking with Leftover Ham
- Cut your leftover ham into chunks of ham before working with it. It makes it so much easier and ready to use in all kinds of recipes.
- Save your ham bones to make ham bone broth. It is amazing for soups!
- You can keep the diced ham portioned in the freezer in freezer bags and use it as needed. After cooking, frozen ham leftovers are good for up to 2 months.
Storing Ham Leftovers
Store any leftover ham in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. When ready to use, slice thinly or dice into bite-size pieces to use according to the ham leftovers recipe you are making. See the top of the post for freezing instructions.
Ham Leftovers FAQ
Fully cooked hams (the most common variety you will buy at the store) that are plastic-wrapped or vacuum-packed will last up to 5-7 days in the refrigerator.
If you have leftover ham fat to use, use it as a base for soups like the ham soups above or split pea soup. It can also be used as the fat in a gravy made with a roux.
Ham Recipes
If you're planning on making a ham dinner and deciding on what to serve using the leftovers ahead of time, try one of my easy ham recipes:
- Air Fryer Ham
- Instant Pot Ham
- Smoked Ham Recipe
- Honey Glazed Ham
- Pineapple Ham
- Check out my favorite Ham Glaze Recipe
What to Serve with Leftover Ham Recipes
- Mexican Street Corn is a great pairing with ham recipes
- Creamed Corn Casserole is always delicious with ham
- Yorkshire Puddings are so yummy when paired with ham
- Irish Mashed Potatoes are a classic pairing with leftover ham recipes
Have turkey leftovers, too? Try my Thanksgiving Leftovers Casserole!
Ham Leftover Recipes
It is so fun to come up with ideas for recipes using leftover ham, and over the years, I've discovered how versatile it is as an ingredient. You can use it to make just about any kind of meal. Which is your favorite leftover ham recipe? Let me know in the comments below!
Recipe
Leftover Ham Recipes
Equipment
- or Oven
Ingredients
- 1 package Hawaiian rolls (12 pack)
- 8-10 slices cheese your preference (Swiss, white cheddar, white American, or provolone work well)
- 4-6 slices leftover ham or about 12 slices of deli ham
- ½ cup garlic butter sauce
- ½ tablespoons honey
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine ½ cup garlic butter with ½ tablespoon honey. Mix well. Slice a 12 pack of Hawaiian rolls in half. Do not throw out the cardboard container! You will use it to bake the sliders. Spread the honey garlic butter mixture on the inside of the rolls. I use a basting brush to evenly brush it across.
- Top both sides of the rolls with 8-10 slices of cheese.
- Then, top one side with 4-6 slices of leftover ham (or about 12 slices of deli ham).
- Place the top layer of rolls back over the bottom layer, then evenly brush more of the honey garlic butter mixture over the top.
- Season the top of the rolls with salt and pepper to taste. Add the completed rolls back to the cardboard tray they came in. Pack it tightly against the rolls. Cover the cardboard tray with foil.
- Air fryer instructions: Preheat your air fryer to 350°F and cook for 8 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted.Oven instructions: Preheat your oven to 350°F and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted. Remove foil, cut, serve, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- The best part about making Hawaiian roll slider recipes is that you can use the cardboard tray they come in as a baking tray. This saves you from having to clean a baking dish!
- Because this recipe uses sliced leftover ham, I recommend cutting these little sandwiches before serving them rather than pulling them apart.
Kenzie says
Hello. This recipe looks delicious. I’m making it for my family tonight and I’m a little confused with the directions and recipe card having different measurements for the tablespoons of honey. Can you please clarify how much honey to use? Thank you so much for this recipe.
Isabel Laessig says
Hi Kenzie! It should be half a tablespoon. Not sure how that happened. Thank you and enjoy!