Ham Balls
These Ham Balls are a vintage recipe passed down through my family! With a handful of easy ingredients, they are prepped in 15 minutes and ready to bake. It’s a delicious way to use up leftover ham after a holiday meal.
Have you ever heard of Ham Balls? They are a popular, old fashioned recipe in the South and Midwest and for good reason, they’re comforting and rich with every bite. They’ve been a tradition in my family to make the day after Easter or Christmas for a little twist on a holiday ham.
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I bake mine for ease in a rich tomato sauce that has a hint of sweetness, thanks to a spoonful of brown sugar. Serve them over mashed potatoes or rice for the most heart-warming meal!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love this recipe
- Great recipe for leftover ham. I love to make these ham balls the day after a holiday meal for a new twist on the flavors.
- Easy to prep in 15 minutes. When I’m in a pinch, these make a great appetizer for a party or weeknight dinner.
- A vintage classic that’s a family favorite. It’s a recipe that my grandma used to make and now I make for my kids with any leftover ham.
ingredients
Scroll Down for Ingredient Amounts Listed in the Recipe Card Below
- Cubed ham: They key ingredient, smoky and salty in each bite.
- Ground beef or pork: Makes the ham balls rich and meaty in flavor.
- Large egg: Binds the ham balls together.
- Milk: Adds creaminess.
- Graham cracker crumbs: Another ingredient used for binding the ham balls together.
- Tomato soup: The sweet tomato-based sauce for the ham balls.
- Brown sugar: Adds a touch of sweetness to balance the tomato soup base.
- Apple cider vinegar: A little tang helps all of the flavors to pop!
- Yellow mustard: Another acid that helps to emulsify.
Tools You’ll Need
- Liquid Measuring Cups
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Cookie Scoop (optional)
- Mixing Bowls
- 13″x9″ Baking Dish
- Food Processor
how to make ham balls
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13×9 baking dish with butter or nonstick spray.
- Grind ham in a food processor until it’s the texture of ground beef.
- In a bowl, combine ground ham, ground beef, graham cracker, egg, milk, and seasoning salt or salt and black pepper.
- Shape into balls (about golf ball size) and place in the baking dish.
- In another bowl, whisk together tomato soup, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, mustard, and seasoning salt or salt and black pepper.
- Pour the sauce evenly over the ham balls. Ensure they’re fully glazed.
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour, spooning sauce over the top every 20 minutes.
- Serve hot with the glaze spooned over the top.
What to serve with Ham Balls
There are so many options whether you are serving these as an appetizer or main course. Here are some of my favorite recommendations:
- Cheesy Rice Recipe
- Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes
- Italian Roasted Potatoes
- Brown Sugar Baked Carrots
- Crockpot Cornbread Pudding
expert tips
- Baste the ham balls every 20 minutes. This helps them get that delicious and shiny glaze.
- Bake them uncovered as well. Another key technique to help the sauce to reduce and thicken, plus also to caramelize on the ham balls.
- Swap the ground beef or pork for ground chicken or turkey. If you want a lighter ham ball, no worries, you can easily swap the meat.
- Don’t skip pulsing the ham in the food processor. It needs to be the consistency of ground meat so that it can bind easily into the shape of a ball.
- If your ham mixture seems wet, add a tablespoon of flour or graham crackers to help bind.
storage
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave for a few seconds until warmed through.
You can easily freeze ham balls for up to 2 months in an airtight container. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then reheat again according to the instructions above.
It’s also a wonderful recipe to make in advance. You can prepare the ham balls and keep them warm in the oven or on the stove until guests arrive or dinner is served.
Frequently Asked Questions
They are said to originate in Iowa as well as Nebraska, but are also found in other states in the Midwest and Southern United States.
Cook them at 350ºF until they register 160 to 165ºF on a meat thermometer.
Yes you can, and keep them loosely covered in the fridge. Then bake when you are ready to prepare dinner.
more easy ham recipes
Ham Balls
Ingredients
- 2 cups cubed ham
- 1 pound ground beef or pork
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt or salt and black pepper
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 10.5 ounce can tomato soup
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13×9 baking dish with butter or nonstick spray.
- Grind ham in a food processor until it's the texture of ground beef.
- In a bowl, combine ground ham, ground beef, graham cracker crumbs, egg, milk, and seasoning salt or salt and black pepper.
- Shape into balls (about golf ball size) and place in the baking dish.
- In another bowl, whisk together tomato soup, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, and mustard. Pour the sauce evenly over the ham balls. Ensure they're fully glazed.
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour, spooning sauce over the top every 20 minutes.
- Serve hot with the glaze spooned over the top.
Notes
Tips
- Baste the ham balls every 20 minutes. This helps them get that delicious and shiny glaze.
- Bake them uncovered as well. Another key technique to help the sauce to reduce and thicken, plus also to caramelize on the ham balls.
- Swap the ground beef or pork for ground chicken or turkey. If you want a lighter ham ball, no worries, you can easily swap the meat.
- Don’t skip pulsing the ham in the food processor. It needs to be the consistency of ground meat so that it can bind easily into the shape of a ball.
- If your ham mixture seems wet, add a tablespoon of flour or graham crackers to help bind.
Storage
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave for a few seconds until warmed through. You can easily freeze ham balls for up to 2 months in an airtight container. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then reheat again according to the instructions above. It’s also a wonderful recipe to make in advance. You can prepare the ham balls and keep them warm in the oven or on the stove until guests arrive or dinner is served.Nutrition
About Laura
Taught by some of the best, cooking and entertaining has always been my favorite hobby. Food is my love language! The conception of Dinner in 321 came from my family talks that sharing our dinners would help others learn new skills, tasty recipes, and make cooking fun! Read more…
How many ham balls are considered as a “serving”?
Plan is to serve 50 ladies at a lunch buffet with quiche, fruit, chicken salad croissants, etc!
Will have birthday cupcakes. What else would you suggest?
I’d like a warm dish . Thank you for your inspiration, help and expertise!
Aww!🥹You’re so sweet! Thank you SO much!!!🥰 Your kindness and support means so much to me! For this recipe, I used a 3 tbsp scoop and it made 20. You could double the recipe and measure them a scant less than 3 tbsp (or a 2tbsp scoop) and probably get 50 out of it. Just lower the time a bit since they’d be smaller 🙂