Ham balls are an Iowa tradition and for good reason, they are delicious! They are a great way to use leftover ham or a great excuse to put a ham on your shopping list.
Ham balls are the perfect mix of sweet and salty. They are also a great way to turn some leftover ham into something new entirely.
Serve them as a hearty appetizer or make them as an entrée for dinner, either way they are fabulous. The state of Iowa already knows how delicious ham balls with glaze are, the rest of the country needs to catch on!
Have you ever heard of ham balls? They are a popular dish in Iowa, which I suppose isn’t surprising given all of the pork that is produced here in the Midwest.
I actually hadn’t heard of them until recently. I blame that on the fact that my mom grew up in Chicagoland and not close enough to farmland.
Once I discovered that they are a delicacy, I had to give them a try. I am certainly glad I did.
The meatballs themselves are pretty savory. Though I have heard of folks using graham cracker crumbs, so they could have a sweet and savory twist as well.
The glaze is definitely on the sweeter side. It’s a mix of mustard and brown sugar with a bit of sharp vinegar acidity.
The result kind of reminds me of a BBQ meatball, but with a fun twist. The would be great served as a heavy snack at a party but are also wonderful for dinner.
They would make a wonderful filling main dish served with macaroni and cheese and roasted green beans. Or serve them with cheesy potatoes and a nice green salad.
I originally shared this recipe back around Easter of 2016. But I figured some of you still hadn’t heard of ham balls, so it was time to update this post and show you what you are missing!
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Original post from 2016
A couple of month’s back Val from Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids shared a recipe for Iowa Ham Balls. I had never heard of such a thing, so I couldn’t help but to share it on my Facebook page to see if I was the only one.
After all, Iowa is just 45 minutes away from me, how had these passed me by?! Our friend Lindsey’s mom, Betty, chimed in saying ham balls were a family favorite of theirs. Of course now I was even more intrigued.
Betty was kind enough to send over her recipe. It was definitely different than Val’s recipe, but had a similar idea.
In fact, they had mostly similar ingredients just put together in a different way. Now I had to give them a try!
Email Me The Recipe
I'll email this post to you, so you can easily find it later. Plus you’ll get new recipes from me every week!
I have been making a lot of ham recipes lately getting ready for our Easter open house. I want to make sure I have something delicious to serve everyone, but that means we have extra ham in the fridge already.
So I pulled some out and went to work making ham balls. It seemed a bit of a shame to grind up such good ham, but I couldn’t wait any longer. Besides, this time of year you can get real ham for about the same price as the pressed ham anyway.
So, with the help of a food processor, the ham balls really came together quite easily. The batch filled a 9×13 pan. If you like meatballs in a sweet sauce, or glazed ham you are going to love these!
You could make these smaller and serve them as an appetizer or make bigger balls and serve them as an entrée. Either way, they will be delicious!
Getting Ground Ham
If you live in the Midwest, there is a chance you can get ground ham from the grocery store. They sell it in tubes like sausage.
If your store doesn’t have ground ham, you can ask your butcher to grind some for you. Or put chunks of ham into your food processor and pulse it until you have a relatively find grind.
More great recipes that use ham
One of our favorite simple ways to use the leftovers is a simple pasta dish with Parmesan, peas and ham. It is light, tasty and a quick and easy complete meal.
Homemade pot pies are always popular at the dinner table as well. A ham, cheese and broccoli pot pie is even more popular! It’s all of our favorites together in a pastry crust.
Or try my a glazed ham loaf. It uses ground ham to make a super tasty meatloaf style meal.
Get Inspired
There is a whole collection of recipes using leftover ham, so be sure to check that out if you need more ideas.
Mustard & Brown Sugar Glazed Ham Balls
Ingredients
Ham Balls
- 2 pounds ham ground in food processor
- 1 pound ground beef
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- ⅔ cup milk
- 1 cup cracker crumbs
Glaze
- 1 cup light brown sugar packed
- ⅓ cup vinegar
- 2 teaspoons dried mustard powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F and grease a 9×13 pan.
- In a large bowl, combine ham ball ingredients until uniform.2 pounds ham, 1 pound ground beef, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, 2 large eggs, ½ cup tomato sauce, ⅔ cup milk, 1 cup cracker crumbs
- Form into balls about the size of a large egg.
- Place close together in prepared pan.
- Mix together glaze ingredients and pour over ham balls.1 cup light brown sugar, ⅓ cup vinegar, 2 teaspoons dried mustard powder
- Bake uncovered for 1 hour and 15 minutes. If you are able, baste the meatballs a couple of times during the baking time.
- Let stand for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
Video
Email Me The Recipe
I’ll email this post to you, so you can easily find it later. Plus you’ll get new recipes from me every week!
Did you try this recipe?
Don’t forget to leave a rating below and make sure to follow on Pinterest and Instagram for more!
Get social!
Recipes in your inbox
What a great idea to use up that left over ham!
They are so good!
I've definitely got to try these. My husband loves ham and this sounds like such a tasty twist.
I hope you both enjoy them!
I have never heard of ham balls. But I must admit that they sound interesting. I pinned the recipe so I can try it. Thank you for sharing.
I hope you enjoy them. They are a tasty way to use leftover holiday ham.
Girl, these are screaming my name! That mustard in the glaze would be so good, I love horseradish on ham also, maybe a horseradish sauce for dipping! This is definitely a must try!!!!
I love the idea of horseradish sauce for dipping! It'd be the whole sweet and heat thing. Yum!
Oh these sound perfect for a party! Mustard and brown sugar are the best combo for ham balls. Thanks so much for sharing at Inspiration Thursday!
Thanks, Lela!
I LOVE ham balls! One of my mothers special dinners when I was growing up in Iowa 🙂
That is so interesting! It really does seem to be an Iowa specialty. I don't know how I could live so close and not know anything about them!
That glaze sounds to die for! Looks super yummy. Is it bad I want these over regular old Easter ham dinner? 😀
I say go for it! Or make a larger ham for the leftovers 😉
What a surprise to see ground beef and tomato sauce in these. I would have never guessed that.
I'm just full of surprises!
Thus looks like a flavor party in my mouth!! That glaze, oh my!!
They are definitely full of flavor. I never even knew I was missing out all this time!
That makes two of us because I have never heard of these either. They look amazing and I do love the glaze. Thanks Carlee.
The funniest part is my grandma randomly mentioned ham balls recently… now I wonder what was in her recipe! Now we know the exist!