Deviled ham salad
After a full day in the kitchen, I like to take a walk to clear my head. On a recent stroll, I spotted a friend holding court in a neighborhood Southern restaurant. He had just moved to New York and as I hadn’t seen him in a while, I popped inside and said howdy. We decided to order some light snacks and saw deviled tasso listed on the menu. What’s that, we wondered? We ordered it and after one bite, I realized it was nothing more than a variation on my old favorite, deviled ham.
Deviled ham also made an appearance at a Derby Day party. A friend had found a can of Underwood’s Deviled Ham and brought it to share with the other guests. She’d never eaten it before but was intrigued by the iconic white can with the grinning devil. (Does anyone know what deviled, when applied to food, actually means?) I hadn’t seen that can in years, but I instantly remembered how much I loved deviled ham and pickle sandwiches when I was young. I decided it was time to make a batch of my own.
I didn’t have to look far for a recipe.
At Christmas, my cousin Susan brought her famous ham salad to our family gathering and the big bowl of it was gone in about a minute. We spread it on buttery crackers, a perfect vehicle for the ham salad that was filled with flavors spicy, tangy and sweet.
I asked her for the recipe and she laughed and said she didn’t have one. Of course, she didn’t! That happens so often in my family—we just throw together ingredients and taste until everything is balanced. And I’m not complaining—that’s certainly my favorite way to cook.
She did, however, give me her list of ingredients. There was ham, of course, along with pickles, mustard, and peppers. And like a detective I took these clues and tried to solve the mystery of her famous ham salad. It actually wasn’t difficult—if you have any experience making protein-based salads such as tuna salad, chicken salad or even pimento cheese, you get a feel for how much of each ingredient should belong. This time, however, I kept notes of just how much I was adding so I could pass it on to you.
Ham salad is versatile as you can stuff it into celery, spread it on crackers, scoop it onto an iceberg wedge, or layer it on buttered bread. And while it’s perfect for warm days, I find that it’s pretty much appreciated at any time of year.
Deviled ham salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped ham
- 1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1/4 cup onion, finely diced
- 1 large dill pickle, diced
- 1 jalapeño, seeded, stemmed, and diced
- 3 tablespoons mayo
- 3 tablespoons mustard
- 1 teaspoon pickle juice
- Salt
- Black pepper
Instructions
- In a food processor, mix all the ingredients together until blended but not too smooth as you want a bit of texture. Taste and adjust any seasoning or add more mayonnaise and mustard if you like. Keeps in the refrigerator for a few days.
My mother-in-law make a family favorite of deviled ham. I've never tried it but very politely thanked her when she made it – and it was always GONE! before I had to try it. Now I regret missing out! 🙂 I think I'll give this a whirl and see if it meets her tastebuds. She is, afterall, one of my best friends. Yes, I have an awesome set of in-laws. *HURRAY!* Below is an article on the history of 'deviling' regarding food. So interesting! Thanks for spurring on my curiousity. You ROCK!
WOW. Your blog reminded me that I ate this as a kid!! I haven't thought about it in years, and now I'm craving it smeared on a cracker…. Thanks for a pretty well-buried memory.
Lisa.
I get the connotation of "deviled" meaning also a lot of chopping, blending, stirring and shredding. Bedeviling it. But that's just me.
Anon–Ah, good to know! Thank you for the explanation.
Lawyer Loves Lunch–Welcome and thank you! We Texans sure do know how to eat!
Lea Ann–I find that most salads such as this are usually made without a recipe. A little bit of this and a little bit of that. And they always taste great! And homemade is much better.
The Runaway Spoon–I'm sure the canned deviled ham could survive anything!
Anon–Roman Meal bread! We used to eat that, too!
Henna–Ha! Maybe!
Anon–Bologna? Hmm, I don't know about that! No wonder the students revolted!
Ina Pickle–I find it's best when it's a little sweet and a little savory. And yes, the canned stuff is great for power outages and the ike.
Jennifer–Thanks for the link–very interesting!
Queen of Cuisine–It's wonderful on crackers.
Jumper–Now that's something I hadn't heard before but it could work.
I'm glad someone else mentioned "ham" salad made with bologna. That's how my mom and grandma both made it when I was a kid. I remember being disappointed when I discovered it wasn't really ham, but I still liked it!