Ham and Pea Salad is a perfect southern side dish meant for lazy summer days and lunch with friends. Quick to make and easy to serve up, you will adore the chunks of delicious cheese and ham that make this pea salad just a bit extra.
Ham and Pea Salad Recipe
Creamy pea salads are my favorite salads to eat. I love Amish Macaroni salad and of course awesome side dishes like 7 layer salads, but for me, nothing tops a delicious pea salad.
Now you can find my original cold pea salad recipe here, which is perfect for a picnic, but there are so many other variations so I wanted to share one of the ways I love eating up that last bit of winter ham.
This pea salad with ham is just a gorgeous flavor and works perfectly as a side salad to serve at a holiday meal, picnic or party.
Everyone will want this pea ham salad recipe!
Scroll to the bottom for a printable version of this post, including all measurements and instructions, so you can follow along in your kitchen without being on your phone.
Here is what you need to gather to get started:
- frozen peas
- cheddar cheese
- chopped ham
- mayonnaise
- salt and pepper
- red onion (optional)
- bacon: Optional
Can you use canned peas over frozen peas?
I would not use canned peas for this pea ham salad. Canned peas texture is different, much softer, and would not hold us as nicely as frozen peas.
Chopping Cheese for Salad
When it comes to chopping up your cheese, I love using a Crinkle cutter.
You can do the perfect bite sized pieces and the crinkle gives the salad a pretty look!
This cutter also is an amazingly effective tool to keep in your kitchen to help chopping, slicing, and cutting go quicker.
Just slice your blocks of cheese into strips and then chop again into chunks.
Ham and Pea Salad Recipe
Ham and pea salad is a great way to enjoy a hearty pea salad filled with proteins and healthy fats.
I love the creamy texture of the mayo (I only use Hellmann’s) and this salad is one of the few left overs I can eat and enjoy the second time around just as much as the first.
In fact, this ham and pea salad is hardly a “recipe” at all, which makes it one of my favorite go to’s! Simply mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
Ham and Pea Salad is best served cold and gives a chance for all the flavors to mingle, making every bite delicious.
Stir well before serving.
Pea Salad with Ham Variations
There are so many ways to enjoy this cold pea salad!
- Pea salad with bacon– everything is better with bacon. Use precooked bacon, chop, and mix right in your ham and cheese pea salad
- Macaroni pea salad – add some already boiled and cold macaroni pastas and a bit of extra may to compensate for the pasta
- Layered pea salad – Layer this between shredded lettuce!
- Black eyed peas salad – check out this black eyed pea salad
- Pea Salad with Boiled Eggs – simply add some chopped up boiled egg
- Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad with Peas – Different recipe with mini macaroni pastas, SO good.
Leftover Ham Recipes
Ham is one of the best meats to serve to a crowd but always have tons of left overs. I always feel like I end up throwing away so much ham from the holidays but this year I was determined to use every last bite!
If you have leftover ham and need some recipes to create before it sits in the fridge for 6 weeks, try one of these:
Ham and Cheese Roll – Great little crescent roll for any dinner with tiny bite sized pieces of ham for flavor
Funeral Potatoes– Hash brown potatoes with some added ham protein make this a great large crowd side dish
Scalloped Potatoes and Ham – Scalloped potatoes are a lovely side to serve in a casserole dish and smothered with ham and cheese make them extra delicious
Mashed Potatoes with Cream Cheese– Steak house potatoes that are so creamy and filled with bits of ham – your new favorite holiday potatoes for sure
Make sure you pin this recipe so you can save it and feel free to tag me on social #SaltySideDish or visit me on Pinterest, Instagram, or Facebook to share your thoughts.
I love connecting with you and hearing your variations.
Ham and Pea Salad
Ingredients
- 1 package 16 oz, frozen peas, thawed and drained of excess water
- 1 brick 8 oz, cheddar cheese, cut into small chunks
- 2 cups chopped ham
- 1 cup real mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup red onion optional but delicious
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
- Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
- Stir ham and pea salad well before serving.
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments & Reviews
Becky says
I thought that this recipe was delicious. I did modify it a bit but very good and a hit at the birthday party. I used 2-14oz bags of frozen sweet peas, 1-16oz box of Rotini pasta, 5 chopped boiled eggs and increased the mayo to 2 1/2-3 cups. Everything else was the same. Thanks so much for the recipe:-)
Trisha Haas says
Becky, Thanks for sharing your delicious changes! And Happy Birthday!
Trisha