One of my favorite things to have on hand during a busy week is a ham steak. You can find these pre-cooked thick slices of boneless ham in your supermarket, usually right next to the bacon.
They usually come in 8 ounce portions, which I find perfect for chopping up and throwing into everything from my favorite 15 minute ham and potato soup to a Monte Cristo bread pudding.
And in this case, ham is one of the stars of this delectable cornbread supper salad!
What is cornbread salad?
Traditional cornbread salad is classic Southern side dish that features crumbled up cornbread tossed with beans, corn, sometimes tomatoes, sometimes bacon, and dressed with a ranch-stye dressing.
If you are looking for a great traditional cornbread salad recipe, this one from Spicy Southern Kitchen is a great one to try!
Over here in the Carolina Dream House, we are not the biggest fan of beans (hangs head) but I figured I could turn this into a main dish by swapping them out for, yep, some chopped ham.
I kept the tomatoes and corn and the creamy, dreamy dressing, but I left out the cheese and the bacon (I know, WHO AM I?) just to lighten things up a tiny bit.
As for the cornbread, I went to my old stand-by, that dependable box of Jiffy cornbread mix. If you have some extra time and want to make your own, you can’t go wrong with this homemade version.
And if you are short on time, you go ahead and pick up some premade cornbread at your supermarket. It’s all going to be good once it ends up in this salad!
How to make Southern Cornbread Ham Salad!
Make a quick ranch-type dressing by combining a quarter cup each of mayonnaise, sour cream and milk along with some fresh chopped parsley and a pinch each of garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Stir it up and set aside.
Bake an 8 inch square pan of cornbread – we love Jiffy! – according to package directions. Or use a pre-made one.
Let the cornbread cool, and then crumble into bite sized pieces. Watch out for cornbread pilferers.
Put the cornbread crumbles into a serving bowl and add a cup each of corn kernels and chopped fresh tomatoes and 8 ounces of cubed cooked ham and toss gently.
Add the dressing in spoonfuls, tasting as you go, until it is dressed to your liking.
More tips for making Southern cornbread ham salad!
If you are making this in fresh corn season, cut them off of a couple of ears of corn! Spread a dishtowel out on your counter (this is to catch the runaway kernels that like to bounce away), put a shallow bowl on the cloth and firmly hold the top of the ear of corn in one hand in the center of the bowl – it doesn’t matter which end. Use a paring knife in a zig-zag motion to cut the kernels off in strips until you have gotten all the kernels off. If you aren’t in fresh corn season, you can use frozen corn – make sure it is fully defrosted first.
Of course you can! Although I gotta tell you that the homemade version is so so so much better, and takes about 5 minutes to whip up.
Yes, although if you can add the dressing right before you serve it that will ensure that your cornbread crumbles don’t get too soggy before your lucky diners dig in.
Divide among plates and serve it up!
Yum, yum, and yum again. Happy cornbread salad, my friends!
OTHER EASY HAM RECIPES WE LOVE!
Southern Cornbread Ham Salad
This recipe for Southern cornbread ham salad is a perfect hearty supper salad, and is a great way to use up leftover ham!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cooling Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American Southern
Ingredients
For the dressing
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 3/4 cup milk
For the salad
- 1 package of cornbread mix (we love Jiffy!)
- 1 cup corn kernels
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- 8 ounces ham, cut into bite sized pieces
Instructions
- Mix all dressing ingredients together and set aside.
- Bake cornbread according to package directions.
- Let the cornbread cool, and then crumble into bite sized pieces.
- Put the cornbread crumbles into a serving bowl and add the corn, tomatoes and ham and toss gently.
- Add the dressing in spoonfuls, tasting as you go, until it is dressed to your liking.
- Divide among plates and serve it up!
Notes
Need to add something to your kitchen equipment to make this recipe? Below are some of the items we used in the Framed Cooks kitchen to help cook this up. These are affiliate links to things we use and love, which helps to pay for all that bacon I keep buying (without any extra cost to you)!
Thanks for using them to keep our kitchen cooking…xoxo!
Leave a Reply