Ham Casserole – A quick, effortless, and delicious wonder-filled casserole perfect for brunch or dinner. Fantastic, cheesy, and flavorful! The hearty cheddar cheese mixture complements the savory ham and tender party of veggies.
Don’t you love having recipes that take advantage of leftovers? Ham casserole is a perfect example of a holiday leftover that’s even better the second time around. Have fun with this amazing and super simple recipe.
Ham and veggies smothered in a rich, creamy cheese sauce is a classic soul food casserole. This deliciousness is sure to be a hit at your next cookout. And no one will know you didn’t spend hours putting it together.
Easy Cheesy Ham Casserole Recipe
Ham and cheese is already a winning pair. So featuring them together in a super easy noodle casserole is straight-up screaming comforting food. Ham, cheese, noodles, and your favorite veggies baked in a jiff for a crazy delicious meal. 😉
Recipe Ingredients
- Toppings – Crushed Ritz crackers, more butter, and parsley create an incredible buttery wow factor. Any crushed crackers, pretzels, or even breadcrumbs are a quick substitute.
- Egg Noodles – You can’t beat noodles for a substantial and filling casserole. But, hey, spaghetti or macaroni will also work.
- Ham – The star player in this delectable show is smokey, salty, and pure meaty heaven.
- Veggies – Onion, celery, garlic, carrots, and bell peppers turn this baby into a one-pot meal. But squash, green beans, and broccoli are also excellent additions.
- Seasonings – Thyme, Italian seasonings, and Worcestershire sauce certainly bring out the best flavors of this homemade casserole.
- Cheese Sauce – Flour, milk, cheddar, and cream cheese make a heavenly cream sauce.
How to Make Ham Casserole
- Toppings – Combine crushed crackers, melted butter, and parsley flakes in a small mixing bowl. Mix using a spatula until fully combined. Set aside. (Photo 1)
- Noodles – Cook your egg noodles according to the package instructions to al dente (It’s ok if they’re slightly underdone because they’ll cook again). Drain the noodles and set them aside until ready to assemble.
- Saute – Meanwhile, in a large cast iron skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat, then add olive oil. Add onion, celery, minced garlic, and thyme when the oil is slightly hot and the butter completely melts. Saute for 2-3 minutes or until the onion is translucent. (Photo 2)
- Add Veggies – Add the carrots, bell pepper, and Italian seasoning. Continue sauteing for 3-4 more minutes or until the vegetables are slightly cooked. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables, then stir until thoroughly combined and the flour dissolves. Cook for another minute or two to remove the raw flour taste. (Photos 3-4)
- Make Sauce – Reduce heat to low, then whisk the milk in and continue stirring until the mixture thickens just enough to coat the back of a spoon, 3-5 minutes. Then stir in the cheddar and cream cheese, leaving about a handful of the cheddar cheese for topping. Mix with a wooden spoon until the cheese completely melts. (Photos 5-7)
- Assemble – Add drained egg noodles, ham, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir well, then season with salt and pepper to taste. (Photos 8-9)
- Bake – Transfer the ham casserole into a prepared baking dish, then sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over the surface and top with the cracker mixture. Bake until bubbly and heated through (about 20-25 minutes). (Photos 10-12)
- Serve – When the casserole is heated through, remove the pan from the oven, sprinkle top with some chopped fresh parsley, and serve.
Recipe Variations
- Try it with cheddar-flavored crackers for extra cheesy delight.
- Replace the ham with any leftover meat (shredded chicken, turkey, beef, you name it).
- Crushed potato chips are a great topping added to or instead of the cracker topping.
- A gluten-free casserole is also delicious. Use diced potatoes instead of noodles, potato chips or gluten-free pretzels for the topping, and your favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour to thicken the sauce.
Tips and Tricks
- This casserole is terrific for using up leftover ham.
- If you want to make this ahead, add a little extra milk so the al dente noodles don’t soak up too much liquid and dry out your casserole.
- To help your veggies cook evenly, cut them close to the same size.
- Do cook the flour before adding the milk so you don’t get that raw flour taste in your finished casserole.
- Use an ovenproof pot to saute everything, and assemble everything in the same pot. Then put it in the oven for easy cleanup and a truly one-pot meal.
Make-Ahead and Storage Instructions
This is a great make-ahead casserole. Add a bit more milk to the sauce, assemble, cover, and refrigerate it until you’re ready to bake. Optionally, you can wait to add the cracker topping right before it goes into the oven.
Ham casserole will last 3-4 days in the fridge and 2-3 months in the freezer. Since all the ingredients are pre-cooked, you can put the frozen ham casserole in a cold oven and heat it to 350℉/177℃. Then bake for about an hour or until heated through. Or you can thaw it in the fridge overnight.
FAQs
Generally, almost any dish assembled in a deep and wide baking dish (usually a glass, ceramic, or enameled cast iron casserole dish), baked in the oven, and served in the same dish is a casserole. It’s an amazing one-pot meal you can usually make ahead. It typically includes a sauce or cheese (or both) to bind veggies, meats, and pasta or rice.
It’s all about the texture—firm but not dry, moist but not soupy. The ideal balance of liquids and thickeners with meat, veggies, and starch. Though some casseroles are just veggies. And, of course, cheese always makes everything taste fantabulous!
Material: Although heavy, cast iron does a great job retaining heat and evenly cooking your casserole. Ceramic would be my second choice, but Pyrex makes a good glass casserole dish. It all depends on your budget. While I don’t always cover it, having a lid just in case is nice.
Size: How many people are you cooking for? More people means a bigger dish to fit in all the ingredients. Less—a smaller one. It would be best to have it at least two inches deep, but 3-4 inches is better because you want room for your masterpiece to bubble without running over and messing up the oven.
What to Serve With Ham Casserole
Sauteed Brussels sprouts, glazed baby carrots, and garlic pull-apart rolls turn this incredible one-pot meal into a complete spread worthy of your favorite guests. But a salad might be nice too. A tossed or bacon broccoli salad sounds fabulous.
More Soul-Satisfying Casserole Recipes to Try
- Slow Cooker Green Bean Casserole
- Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole
- Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole
- Sweet Potato Casserole with Marshmallows
Conclusion
Any casserole recipe (especially ham) is comfort food in my book. What’s your favorite time-saving casserole? Let me know in the comments! 😍
Ham Casserole
Ingredients
Topping
- 1 cup Ritz crackers, crushed (any butter cracker will do)
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon parsley flakes
Ham Casserole
- 1 12-ounce package (340g) egg noodles
- 1½ pounds (680g) ham, cubed
- 2 tablespoons (30g) butter
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon (1g) fresh thyme, minced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 1 small green bell pepper, diced
- 1 tablespoon (5.5g) Italian seasoning
- ¼ cup (30g) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups (470ml) whole milk
- 1½ cups (350g) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 4 ounces (113g) cream cheese, softened
- 2 teaspoons (10ml) Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177℃. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish lightly with cooking oil spray. Set aside.
- Combine crushed crackers, melted butter, and parsley flakes in a small mixing bowl. Mix using a spatula until fully combined. Set aside.
- Cook egg noodles according to package instructions to al dente. When ready, drain the noodles, and set them aside until ready to assemble the casserole.
- Meanwhile, melt butter over medium-high heat in a large cast iron skillet, then add olive oil. Add onion, celery, minced garlic, and thyme when the oil is slightly hot and the butter melts. Saute for about 2-3 minutes until the onion is translucent.
- Then add carrots, bell pepper, and Italian seasoning. Continue to saute for 3-4 more minutes until vegetables are slightly cooked. Sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir until fully combined and the flour dissolves. Cook for another minute or two to remove the raw flour taste.
- Reduce heat to low, then whisk in milk and continue stirring until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of your spoon, about 3-5 minutes. Then stir in the cheddar and cream cheese, leaving about a handful of the cheddar cheese for the topping. Mix with a wooden spoon until completely melted.
- Add drained egg noodles, ham, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir well—season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Transfer the ham casserole into a prepared baking dish, then sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over the surface and top with the cracker mixture. Bake at 350℉/177℃ until heated through and bubbly, 20-25 minutes.
- As soon as the casserole is heated through, take it out of the oven, sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese and chopped fresh parsley over the top, and serve.
Tips & Notes:
- If you have leftover ham, that works great. But if not, packaged cubed ham from the grocery store will work.
- Use any of your fave vegetables for this recipe: broccoli, peas, mushroom, etc. but make sure to chop them into bite-sized pieces.
- If you don’t have egg noodle pasta, you can substitute it with another small pasta shape, such as penne or farfalle.
- Ritz crackers can be subbed with an equal amount of crushed potato chips, panko breadcrumbs, or other crackers.
- If you want to make this ahead, add a little extra milk so the al dente noodles don’t soak up too much liquid and dry out your casserole.
- Do cook the flour before adding the milk so you don’t get that raw flour taste in your finished casserole.
- Use an ovenproof pot to saute everything, and assemble everything in the same pot. Then put it in the oven for easy cleanup and a truly one-pot meal.
Sev says
I made this over the weekend and it was a huge hit with my family! Will definitely make this again.
Imma says
Oh great to hear that. Thank you so much!