Leftover Ham Casserole with noodles, ham, corn, creamy garlic sauce and crunchy panko topping, no cream of soup. Easy comfort food dinner for busy days!
If you have leftover holiday ham, this easy dish is the perfect way to use it. We also love the Instant Pot Ham and Bean Soup.
This is my go-to easy dinner to make with leftover ham. My whole family enjoys it! It's an easy and delicious comfort food meal you can make with ham or chicken. Serve it with a simple salad or roasted veggies. The creamy cheesy garlic sauce is made from scratch in just 10 minutes. No cream of soup or condensed soup needed! The crunchy topping made with melted butter and panko breadcrumbs is the perfect finishing touch for this creamy pasta dish.
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped ham
- wide egg noodles
- butter
- garlic
- half and half or whole milk
- cornstarch
- Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper
- shredded cheddar cheese
- shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 can whole kernel corn
- panko breadcrumbs or crushed Ritz crackers
How to make Ham Casserole?
Step 1: Make the sauce
- Saute garlic in melted butter.
- Add seasoning and saute for 1 minute, or until fragrant.
- Add cornstarch mixed with half and half. Stir well.
- Simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Add cheese and stir until melted.
Step 2: Noodles
- Cook noodles in salted water. Drain and rinse with cold water.
- Combine ham, corn and noodles with sauce.
Step 3: Bake
- Spread the noodle mixture in a casserole dish.
- Mix panko breadcrumbs with melted butter and sprinkle over the top.
What to serve with it?
I like to serve it with a simple salad, like my Perfect Caesar Salad, Sauteed Spinach or Easy Broccoli Salad. My kids also love it with roasted carrots or broccoli.
Can I make this dish ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the dish and store it in the fridge overnight and bake the next day. You can make the sauce a day ahead and assemble the dish before baking.
Can I freeze this dish?
Yes, this ham casserole can be easily frozen. Assemble the dish and do not add the panko topping. Cool it completely and wrap it with plastic wrap. Place in a freezer-safe dish and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge, then bring to room temperature before baking.
Expert tips
- use bite-size pasta: you can use wide egg noodles, penne, bow tie or macaroni.
- make the sauce ahead of time to save on prep OR use store-bought Alfredo sauce (roasted garlic kind, if possible)
- protein: you can use any cooked meat you like: ham, shredded or cubed chicken, bacon OR skip it and add white beans
More easy casseroles:
- Beef Noodle Casserole
- Tater Tot Casserole
- Instant Pot Chili Mac
- Sweet Corn Casserole
- Turkey Tetrazzini
If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out and leave a comment! 😀
Leftover Ham Casserole
Ingredients
for the sauce:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 3/4 cup half and half
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
for the casserole:
- 4 cups uncooked wide egg noodles
- 15 oz can whole kernel corn drained and rinsed
- 2 cups chopped leftover ham
for the topping:
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1/4 cup panko breading or crushed Ritz crackers
Instructions
- Cook noodles according to instructions on the packaging. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
- Add garlic and stir. Saute for 3 minutes, or until very fragrant.
- Add seasoning and stir in. Saute for 1 minute.
- Mix cornstarch with half and half. Slowly, pour it over garlic, stirring constantly.
- Simmer until the sauce thickens. Add cheese and stir until melted. Set aside.
- Butter a 9"x7" casserole dish.
- Combine noodles, ham, corn and the sauce and spread the mixture in a prepared baking dish.
- Combine melted butter and Panko breadcrumbs. Sprinkle over the noodle casserole.
- Bake casserole in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until it bubbles on the edges and the topping is toasty and golden.
- Remove from oven and cool before serving.
Notes
- Please note, that the nutrition value can vary depending on what product you use. The information below is an estimate. Always use calorie counter you are familiar with.
- You can use chopped cooked chicken in place of ham.
- Make it vegetarian and add 2 cups of cooked white beans.
- Use Ritz crackers instead of panko breading, or use more cheese and skip the crunchy topping.
Kathleen Ruppert says
Great meal for my picky eater and my hardy eater!!
Alison Pack says
It was nice to be able to put the last bits of ham to good use, but I'm sorry to say that we found this dish to lack a flavor zing.
Anna says
Thank you for giving my recipe a try, Alison!
Bob says
I added peas and carrots but forgot to add Parmesan cheese to the sauce. A little seasoned salt would have helped too.
Elise says
Hello, this was absolutely delicious! I have a quick question though…
Is the 1/2 cup of Parmesan shredded or is it the kind in the green container?
Am says
Made as written with exception of half and half frozen peas and carrots and a tsp of Better Than Boullion chicken stock to sauce mix. We loved the recipe.
Beth says
This was an awesome base for a ham and corn recipe! I had most of the ingredients on hand. Leftover ham and corn on the cob. Because I have a medical condition that causes me fatigue, I do a lot of dishes "hamburger helper" style to cut down on extra pots. So I threw everything into a large skillet and used dry milk and water bc we didn't have fresh on hand. Threw in maybe 2 handfuls of the dry milk and 1-2 cups water and then 1/2 bag of the noodles, ham and 3 ears of corn that I had made the night before and cut off the cob. I didn't even need corn starch... the corn and pasta thickened it all up. Last of all, threw panko breadcrumbs in the butter on top and put on low broiler for about 10 min. They didn't get brown but still crunchy and my husband and I thought it was awesome, thanks! I hope that this helps others who have medical conditions or are in a time crunch to think out of the box to make recipes even easier!
Beth says
not sure why 3 stars are showing, meant to give it 5
Anna says
Thank you, Beth! I am so glad the casserole was a hit! Adding fresh corn is perfect. Thank you for the comment!
Beth says
We had this tonite. Just as the recipe was written and it was a hit. Even with my picky great nieces. Everyone had seconds. This will be a recipe we use often. So glad I found this recipe.
Nina says
Thank you for posting this,,
We both really liked it and will make it again.
I used 3 cups of pasta instead of 4 so it would be creamier, I used cream corn instead of whole kernel for the extra creaminess as well, I mixed parts half & half and regular milk , I also used French fried onions on top instead of crumbs.
Michael says
This was amazing. Adjusted it to what we had in the house and it was gone in no time! Great recipe, thank you.
Thomas Manley says
I found this recipe in time when I decided to cook a ham shank for dinner with lots of leftovers. It appeared that I had some room to add carrots and celery to it and I have to admit, you have a winner of a recipe just as it is. The carrots and celery only were availble since I had some that needed to go somewhere soon. 🙂 Since the 9 lb. ham was for only two of us, you can see we are going to eat for some time from this. Let's see...Ham and bean soup...covered. then we have your recipe as well. Thank you so much for posting it!
Anna says
That's wonderful! It's my go-to when I have ham leftovers. Thank you, Thomas!
Amy says
This was a big hit with my family, thanks! I adjusted a bit... cooked onion, celery, and garlic, added seasonings and flour and cooked the flour a few minutes then added whole milk. Then proceeded as written. This is a great recipe to use leftover ham and other bits of veggies. Thanks!
Belinda says
Made this using leftover ham after Christmas, exactly how the recipe is written. My family LOVED it so much that I bought some ham steaks to dice up and am making it again! Thanks for the great recipe!
Anna says
Thank you so much, Belinda!
Sharon says
This is a great recipe. Easy to follow, and easy to make with ingredients I had on hand. My husband and I enjoyed it with a side dish of squash and zucchini. The sauce is very nice. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
William says
Went over wonderfully with both young and old diners.
I used a whole 12oz bag of extra wide noodles and thus used a with an added 1/4 cup of ham. Substituted 1 cup whole cream and 1/2 cup skim (its what I had) and used 4 Tbl of butter and a whole box of fried onions chopped up for the topping. (Again, its what I had).
Grated high quality sharp cheddar and store bought shredded parmesan.
This is great, filling the usage void between that big holiday ham dinner and making ham/bean soup with the remainders.
William says
Lost the 9x12 comment. sorry.
Marilyn LaCasse says
with lid or without?
Andrea says
This casserole has wonderful flavor. I would recommend using 3 cups instead of 4. It is a little to dry with the 4 cups.
Anna says
Thank you, Andrea!
Rebecca says
I would definitely agree! I did 4 cups of noodles. It was absolutely amazing but it would of been absolutely over the top with three to three and a half cups of noodles.
james melody says
I don't see baking directions. But it sounds good.
Linda says
Delish! Shared it with a neighbor and now she is trying the casserole.
Sara Welch says
All out of leftover ham, but this looks too good to pass up! Adding this to my dinner line up for the week!
Stephanie says
This was such a great way to use the leftovers and it turned out perfectly! The bread crumbs on top were perfection!
Nora says
This is such a delicious recipe, thank you for sharing! And thanks for the note about using small pasta, that was very helpful,
stephanie says
This was the perfect recipe for my leftover ham....thank you for sharing.
Anna says
Thank you, Stephanie!
stephanie says
This was the perfect recipe for my leftover ham.
Krissy Allori says
Yum! This recipe is both easy and tastes great. My family was getting tired of ham until I made this for them.
Anna says
That's wonderful, Krissy! Thank you!
Beth says
We had half a ham left from the holidays and was looking for some way to use the leftovers! This was perfect and tasted so good!
Anna says
Thank you, Beth!