How To Make The Best Ham Salad
It's not Wickles Pickles or even Duke's, y'all. It's simply all about the ham.
We love ham for so many reasons. The traditional main course of Christmas and Easter dinner, we love our hams tender and sweet with crispy, salty fat, studded with aromatic cloves and drizzled with a golden, brown sugar glaze. Holiday hams leave us with another reason why we love them–leftovers we can use in quiches and breakfast casseroles. Making basic ham sandwiches is the typical approach to using up leftover ham, but we also like to whip up ham salad for our rolls and biscuits. We have a secret on what makes the best-ever ham salad, and that's quality ham.
Alison Miksch; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Torie Cox
Start With Quality Ham
Forget the gelatinous canned deviled ham of your childhood—a hearty and flavorful ham salad starts with, you guessed it, a good ham. Without a quality ham as the base for your salad, however, you may as well purchase the commercial brand.
A canned ham is either a whole piece of ham or, more usually, pieces pressed together to form a "solid" whole piece. Dry gelatin has been added to the can, the ham is sealed inside, and the can is cooked with steam. During this process juices from the ham mix with the gelatin and upon cooling form a salty opaque jelly, which provides a cushion for the ham during from shipping and handling. Sounds tasty, right? We acknowledge the important role that canned meats and other convenience products have played, and still play, in providing our society with necessary food and nutrition. But whenever possible, readers, use a smoked or baked ham instead of a canned ham for your salad. Your dish will actually taste like ham. The diced pieces of ham (unless you have ground them) won't crumble apart from too much liquid, as canned ham often does.
How To Make Classic Ham Salad
Our quick and easy Ham Salad Recipe calls for finely chopped smoked ham, and uses cream cheese instead of mayonnaise to bind all the ingredients together. Creole mustard, scallions, and pepper give this extra-rich recipe an extra punch. Spoon it into airy cheese puffs and serve it at brunch or bridal showers.
What Else Can You Put in Ham Salad?
Just like chicken or potato salads, we all have our favorite stir-ins: mayonnaise, mustard, pickles, or boiled eggs. You can use sweet relish or chopped bread-and-butter pickles for a sweeter take or Wickles for their boldness and heat. Those who like a little crunch can throw in chopped celery or even onion.
Ham salad is a nice switch from chicken or egg salad and can be used as a dip with crackers or baby vegetables. Or use it as a sandwich spread with your favorite bread, crispy lettuce and fresh tomatoes.
For more Southern Living news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on Southern Living.
