The Best Ham Salad
The best ham salad recipe only requires leftover ham, mayonnaise, celery, onion and perfectly combined seasonings! My most requested recipe!
A TRIED AND TRUE HAM SALAD RECIPE
I’ve been making this salad for over 25 years. You just can’t top perfection. I actually tweaked this recipe based off a recipe I got from my very first Betty Crocker Cookbook. If you love my Potato Salad, then you’ll know that those old Betty Crocker recipes can’t be beat! I’ve only adjusted them slightly over the years to adjust to my taste and because I’m picky about my salad recipes! This recipe for ham salad all be the one you come back to over and over again!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
This recipe is perfect for leftover holiday ham. For this recipe, I used a small boneless cooked ham. Thick ham steaks would also work well.
No. You could certainly cut this up by hand. It will take a bit of work though because you want it finely minced. You could also do this in a blender. Just mince a little at a time.
Give this ham salad a taste test before serving. I didn’t add any additional salt to mine because my ham was salty enough so additional salt would have been too much. Adjust to your taste.
Serve on rolls, biscuits, as Ham Salad Pinwheels, in a sandwich or as a spread for crackers!
Leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. It will last up to 4 or 5 days. I don’t recommend freezing ham salad. Sometimes the mayonnaise separates when it defrosts.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- boneless cooked ham – this recipe is perfect for leftover ham or you can purchase a small smoked ham.
- hard boiled egg – this adds more flavor than you realize and you don’t taste it as a separate ingredient but if you really hate eggs, just leave it out.
- celery and onion – adding layers of flavor here, use what you like and if you don’t like it then leave it out but I promise you, these ingredients are worth it.
- sweet pickle relish – relish is always controversial, I don’t know why but if you hate relish than leave it out – some folks like Dill Pickle Relish. Or even try making your own Homemade Sweet Pickle Relish.
- mayonnaise – I am a mayonnaise purist. It has to be Hellman’s or Duke’s (or JFG) for me. I do not like Miracle Whip at all but if it’s your thing – then go for it.
- mustard – some might think this is weird to add to ham salad but it adds a lovely bit of background flavor that you don’t taste as a separate ingredient.
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HAM SALAD:
Put the ham, egg, celery and onion into a blender or food processor (season with a bit of salt and black pepper). Pulse (short, quick pulses) 20-25 times to mince.
Combine remaining ingredients into a separate bowl (sweet pickle relish, mayonnaise, mustard.)
Then stir it into minced ham mixture. Cover and chill. I like to chill ham salad for several hours. It definitely gets better as it chills for a while.
Serve on rolls, in a sandwich or with crackers!
CRAVING MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES?
Originally published: January 2014
Updated photos and republished: March 2021
The Best Ham Salad (+Video)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless cooked ham, diced (leftover or purchased thick slab, trimmed of fat)
- 1 hard-boiled egg
- 1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped onion
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon prepared mustard
- salt and pepper (to taste)
- assorted crackers and/or soft rolls (for serving)
Instructions
- Put 1 1/2 pounds boneless cooked ham, diced, 1 hard-boiled egg, 1 stalk celery, roughly chopped and 2 teaspoons finely chopped onion into a blender or food processor (season with a bit of fresh black pepper)
- Pulse (short, quick pulses) 20-25 times to mince. Scrape down the sides of the food processor to make sure it all gets combined evenly.
- Combine 3/4 cup mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish, 1 Tablespoon prepared mustard, and salt and pepper (to taste) into a separate large bowl.
- Then stir in minced ham mixture.
- Cover and chill. I prefer to chill it for several hours. It definitely gets better as it chills for a while.
- Serve with assorted crackers and/or soft rolls.
Video
Notes
- This ham salad is perfect for that leftover holiday ham. I set about making my own version of a ham salad that combines all of my favorite flavors. I used a small boneless cooked ham.
- Ham steaks also work for this recipe
- You should end up with 3 cups ground ham after it is blended in the food processor or blender.
- Give this ham salad a taste test before serving. I didn’t add any additional salt to mine because my ham was salty enough so additional salt would have been too much. Adjust to your taste.
- Serve on rolls, biscuits or as a spread for crackers!
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Updated to add: The original post had a giveaway. That giveaway has now ended.
Just made this out of leftover ham, used my Ninja to shred the ham, this recipe had the right balance of ingredients, will make it again, highly recommend
Just the way I remember it from 50 years ago when a local grocery store made it. Thank you for the recipe and the memories.
Love this, makes good sandwiches also great to serve as a dip with crackers, or spread onto celery.
I made this with leftover smoked ham. I subbed honey mustard for the regular mustard in the recipe. It was very delicious, especially on toasted rye bread! Thank you!
I made this with leftover smoked ham and subbed honey mustard for the regular mustard. Delicious on toasted rye bread!!
This recipe is exactly how my now 86 yr old mom, made for my brother and I. He was a super picky eater, and there were a few adolescent years that all he ate was ham salad sandwiches, plain pizza or spaghetti with ragu. lol. I always eat everything. But this is a familiar old family favorite
excellent
Excellent recipe, fantastic instructions and everyone commented on how much they loved it!
Thank you for the recipe. It is delicious. I did use two stalks of celery and three teaspoons of relish, for a bit extra crunch. I love mustard, but next time I am going to try without, and use three celery stalks, 4 teaspoons relish, and a bit extra mayonnaise. SOLID recipe. Thank you again.
Just the best Brandi, and on Hawaiian rolls yummy Thanks
best ham salad recipe. Will save for future use.
I always look forward to having leftover ham! This is my go-to recipe. I’ve made it MANY times!
This is perfect. Again, thank you!
I added Sweet Hot Mustard and put it on King’s Hawaiian rolls. It was amazing
This is delicious!
Excellent recipe. I haven’t made this in years ( don’t know why) but, I decided to give this recipe a try today. My husband absolutely loved it. I used dill relish since he is keto and it tasted great. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Excellent recipe. Have made it a few times. I like to add parsley with it which is a nice, but unneeded addition. I have also played with adding lemon juice, but I found that it intensifies the natural saltiness of the ham a bit much for my wife’s taste.
I usually prefer dill relish in most things but I decided to make two versions, one with dill and one with sweet and everyone overwhelmingly picked the sweet even though we all usually prefer dill lol. It just works so well here.
can you add cheese to the bologna salad
I don’t see why not 🙂
This was as good as she promised. Took me back to my childhood when I’d have ham salad at Grandma’s house. I’m not sure why it took me so long to learn to make it – this recipe was sooooo easy. This will be in my rotation anytime there’s leftover ham (or I have a yen for ham salad)
This makes me so happy to read! Love when it brings back those special memories!
Best ham salad! Wouldn’t change anything
Wanted something different with my ham and this was just delicious. My husband and my daughter loved it.
The best ham salad recipe out there! You are my go to!!
Loved your version. My mom made this with bologna, sweet gherkins, onions and Miracle Whip when I was a kid in the “60s” We made it in a meat grinder. Yours is so delicious!
Perfect. Just what I was craving. Made it exactly as written and we loved it, even my son who is “particular.” Lol
Only ingredient I may add at some point is some fresh parsley as the herby freshness might enhance the other flavors.
This is an excellent recipe. I have made it numerous times to take to people as a gift, or church social. I double the recipe so I can keep some for myself! People rave about it.
I have found for my taste I have to add extra everything even though I make the batch based on a doubling recipe, except for the egg. Sometime I will try adding two eggs. I think the egg makes the recipe. In the past my recipe was as this one, but w/out the boiled egg. The egg makes it light and fluffy, or something.
I avoid salt because I purchase the pre-bagged cubed ham which also has water and salt added so I usually let the ham sit overnight wrapped in paper towels to remove excess H20. I still use the food processor, the pre-cubed ham makes the whirling easier for better balance so I don’t over do it.
Excellent – will definitely make again!
This was delicious. I did leave out the relish, but added a few drops of liquid smoke. I did not mix the dressing separately, just added mayonnaise, etc. to the food processor.
Instead of leftover ham, I used a can of spam. I diced the canned meat then mashed it with a fork. I also used half measures of the other ingredients.
Simple and delicious.
This IS the best ham salad. I’ve tried a bunch of recipes because my dedicated carnivore partner reaches for ham salad often at the deli. He really loved this version. l’ve always had a take it or leave it attitude towards this dish even though I like ham. The stuff is generally so ho-hum. Maybe I just paid more attention this time? I think the hard boiled egg really makes it. I like a higher ratio of onions, celery, etc. in any kind of salad like this so I used the published recipe proportions of the veg with an 8oz ham steak. I reduced the mustard and mayo to tsps and kept adding and adjusted to taste. I chopped up bread and butter pickles instead of relish, which I usually do when a recipe calls for sweet relish. My big food processor is in storage so I chopped everything finely by hand. Then I used the mini “chopper” blade and bowl for my blender to blend half to a finer consistency and folded back in. 100% will make again! Thank you!
We’ve made this half a dozen times and it’s really delicious. I personally like more eggs and celery in the salad, and I use onion powder in place of onions, but outside of my changes, even with the original recipe, it’s fantastic. This is a great base recipe to follow if you’re just getting started learning how to make ham salad, and it’s easily customizable. I highly recommend it. 🙂
So tasty and reminds me of my Mothers ham salad, so I will try and make it as your great recipe has influenced me.
Nothing like Moms 🙂 Glad it brings you happy memories!
pretty good, made a lot wonder if we could freeze it?