This chilled Macaroni Salad with Ham has a flavorful, lightly creamy dressing. It’s an easy cold salad recipe that’s delicious with pasta, ham, cheddar cheese, pickle relish, and crunchy little bites of vegetables – perfect for holidays and potlucks!
Being on salad duty for potlucks and holiday meals is a super easy task with this chilled Macaroni Salad with Ham! I grew up on this recipe, a favorite salad from Mom’s recipe box. The lightly creamy dressing is savory-tangy-sweet, absolutely irresistible. Serve this salad alongside other popular recipes, such as my German Potato Salad and fresh Arugula Beet Salad, for a well-rounded offering of beautiful, delicious sides!
Why I ❤️ This Macaroni Salad With Ham
This simple, fresh macaroni salad has a special place at our table. Yes, it’s full of nostalgia, since I grew up on it. But it’s also just plain yummy. Here’s why I love it, and why I think you’ll love it, too!
- Excellent texture and flavor. The ingredients both complement and contrast, which is perfection in my book. There’s chewy, crunchy, and creamy. And savory, sweet, tangy, and fresh. I love it ALL!
- Chilled. A cold, refreshing pasta salad is always a welcome addition alongside hot main entrees and side dishes.
- Beginner-friendly. All you need to do is boil the pasta, whisk the dressing ingredients, and fold everything together.
- Packed with veggies. This hearty side is packed with celery, bell peppers, red onions, and sweet peas. It’s hearty with vegetables, without being glaringly so.
- Easy to prep ahead. Prep all the ingredients for this salad a day or two in advance, if you like. Then just fold it altogether before serving!
- Great for the holidays. The last thing you need is another complicated recipe for Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas – which is why this 30-minute macaroni salad is perfect.
“This was fabulous! I followed your recipe almost exactly; the only change I made was that I only used about half of the dressing. My husband and two hungry teens gobbled this up. This will be a great dish to bring to a potluck or to serve on a summer day. Thank you for sharing your recipe!”
Christina
What You’ll Need
Fresh celery, bell peppers, and spicy red onion add a wonderful crunch to every bite. Scroll to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact ingredient amounts.
- Pasta – Use medium or small-shaped pasta, such as rings, shells, elbow macaroni, ditalini, or cavatappi. Mom mostly uses small rings or small shells for this easy macaroni salad, so I often grab one of those. I used cavatappi this time because it’s one of our girls’ favorite noodles.
- Ham – Leftover cooked ham is perfect for this recipe.
- Cheddar cheese – I typically use mild or medium cheddar, but sharp works too.
- Fresh vegetables – Fresh celery, green bell pepper, and red onion add color, flavor, and crunch.
- Frozen peas – If you have fresh springtime peas, that would be a beautiful swap!
- Sweet pickle relish – This adds a tangy/tart flavor and touch of sweetness. You could also chop up Sweet & Spicy Pickles or Bread & Butter Pickles for a similar flavor.
- Mayonnaise – I prefer to use a good quality mayonnaise, but Mom often uses Miracle Whip (which will give a sweeter flavor to the salad). Use whatever you like.
- Sweetened condensed milk – This adds a unique creamy, sweet flavor and texture to the salad. There is no swap for this ingredient, although feel free to experiment with less. Do not use evaporated milk or sugar.
- White vinegar – This adds bright, tangy flavor to the dressing.
- Salt & pepper – These simple seasonings help to flavor the salad perfectly.
- Parsley – This is an optional add-in that I especially like to use when my herb garden is lush. Feel free to leave it out if you like.
How to Make Ham and Macaroni Salad
This macaroni salad with ham and cheese is a quick 3-step side. You don’t need to spend all day in the kitchen. Scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe with instructions.
- Cook the pasta. First prepare the pasta to al dente in salted water, according to package instructions. Strain the pasta and rinse it with cold water until it’s fully chilled. Set it aside.
- Combine salad ingredients. In a large bowl, fold together the ham, cheese, celery, bell peppers, onions, pickle relish, peas, and parsley. Then fold in the pasta.
- Make the dressing. Whisk the mayo, condensed milk, vinegar, and salt in a bowl until smooth.
Assemble, chill, and serve. Pour the dressing over the salad. Fold it in gently. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or until chilled. Fold again. Serve and enjoy!
Tips & Variation Ideas
This sweet-and-savory macaroni salad with ham is great for using up grilled veggie leftovers to clean out the fridge.
- Prep ahead. Boil the pasta up to 2 days in advance. Chop the veggies and ham too. You can also prepare the dressing in advance, that way you only have to toss everything together right before dinner.
- Make it spicy. Stir 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, or chili oil into the dressing for a kick of heat. You can also finely chop 1/4-1/2 jalapeño or serrano chili and add it in.
- More veggies. Mix 1 cup fresh corn kernels, chopped asparagus, or diced broccoli or carrots.
- Sweeten it to taste. Start out with half the can of sweetened condensed milk for the dressing, then add more as you like.
- Use bacon. This salad is also really good using cooked, chopped bacon instead of ham. Or use a combination of both.
What Goes With Macaroni Salad With Ham?
Macaroni salad is the chameleon of salads, fitting into nearly any meal.
Go super casual with this salad, as it’s perfect for potlucks, picnics, and backyard gatherings. It goes great with Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes, a crispy-skinned whole Beer Can Chicken, and Sriracha Honey Mustard Beef Kabobs.
Or serve it as an easy side for Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas dinners. It’s great with Mustard Pork Loin Roast, Roast Beef, and Grilled Turkey Tenderloin.
How to Store Extras
Refrigerate any leftover salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep well for up to 5 days. Serve it straight out of the fridge, cold.
More Salad Recipes to Try
Macaroni Salad with Ham & Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 pound small or medium-sized pasta (such as rings, cavatappi, elbow, rotini, etc.)
- 2 cups cubed cooked ham, about 3/8" in size
- 2 cups cubed mild cheddar cheese
- 2 cups diced celery
- ⅔ cup diced green bell pepper
- ½ cup diced red onion
- ½ cup drained sweet pickle relish
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 cups good quality mayonnaise
- 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk (use less if you want a less-sweet flavor)
- ½ cup white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, optional
Instructions
- In a medium-sized pot, boil pasta in salted water until just al dente. Transfer pasta to a colander and rinse under cold water until chilled. Drain thoroughly.
- While pasta is cooking, prepare the rest of the salad. To a large bowl, add the ham, cheese, celery, green pepper, onion, pickle relish, peas, optional parsley, and a few good cranks of freshly ground black pepper. Add prepared pasta. Fold gently to combine.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, sweetened condensed milk, vinegar, and kosher salt. Pour dressing over salad ingredients in large bowl. Fold to incorporate. Chill for a couple hours. Fold again right before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information:
This post was originally published in 2019, then updated in 2025.
I made this for a Hot Summers Day… We all just loved it! Used half the can of SCM, I just knew the whole can sounded too sweet for us. And added a tad more Miracle whip. I will make this over & over again…… Thank You
So glad you liked this salad, Mickey! Thanks for coming back to let me know. :)
Really love this, next time I’ll use less sweetened condensed milk. I did add some diced dill slices, carrots and two hard boiled eggs. It is delicious and I feel like I’ve found the secret to all the yummy Mac salad recipes. Never heard of SCM being used, but it’s a game changer for sure.
This was fabulous! I followed your recipe almost exactly; the only change I made was that I only used about half of the dressing. My husband and two hungry teens gobbled this up. This will be a great dish to bring to a potluck or to serve on a summer day. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
So happy to hear this, thanks for coming back to let me know!
Making this for my churches luncheon on Sunday. Can’t wait to try it, it looks delicious!
So I made it for church on Sunday and had to share the recipe with everyone, they all loved it! Thank you for posting this recipe.
Wonderful! So glad you liked this salad. Thank you for sharing!
This is delicious! Made it on Friday and it has been my meal for this holiday weekend. Four days. The dressing will be used for again and again. Thank you.
AWESOME. So glad you liked this salad. Thanks for coming back to let me know!
I love a great pasta salad! This one is delicious!
Great to hear, Bird – thank you!
I really enjoyed this recipe. It was easy and the tang was just perfect. I did add carrots to make it a full meal. Thank you for sharing!
Awesome, so glad to hear this!
I figured out a long time ago that if you found cooking a chore your mixing bowls where probably to small and you needed bigger bowl. I have used the hell out of my set in the last 40 years
I think that’s so true! I DO find it a chore when I don’t have the right tools. And big bowls take the stress out of many recipes. Thanks, Becky!
Love all the color.