If you're looking for a quick recipe to use up leftover ham - this is the one! A simple dish with boiled potatoes, green beans, and ham. It's incredibly easy to make, and fantastic comfort food.
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Combine green beans, ham, and potatoes to make this incredibly simple, yet delicious dish. It only requires a few minutes of preparation in the kitchen, and you can double or triple the recipe if you need to make a large batch.
Why you'll love it
- Easy recipe to use up leftover ham
- Healthy comfort food
- Adjust the seasoning and flavors to suit your preference
- You can adapt the recipe to use the ingredients you have on hand
- Stores well in the fridge or freezer
Ingredients
Ham: You can buy diced ham in most supermarkets. I like to use leftover ham from a holiday roast dinner, but canned and frozen ham can usually be bought all year round. You can also use ham hocks, and a ham bone if you have it available.
Potatoes: Any potatoes will work well in this recipe. I like to use Maris Piper, new potatoes, Yukon Gold potatoes, or Russet potatoes. Red potatoes are also a great choice.
Onions: These add a little extra flavor, but are completely optional. I prefer to use brown or white onions.
Garlic: Optional, but added for flavor. Use fresh garlic cloves or garlic paste.
Green beans: Fresh green beans or frozen green beans are best in this dish. Avoid using canned green beans, as they will become mushy when boiled. Make sure to clean them thoroughly before use.
Chicken broth: This flavorful liquid is the perfect base for the liquid in this dish. Alternatively, you can use vegetable stock or water with a bouillon cube.
Instructions
You can find full instructions + ingredient measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of this page
One: Warm up some olive oil or canola oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add diced onion, and saute until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic, and saute for another minute.
Two: Add diced ham, green beans, peeled and diced potatoes, and chicken stock to the pot. Bring the liquid to a boil, and reduce it to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 15-25 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft enough to easily pierce with a fork. Serve immediately.
Top tips
- Keep an eye on the dish while it simmers to prevent the ingredients from overcooking.
- The dish is cooked when the potatoes are soft enough to easily pierce with a fork.
- This dish is traditionally made without any added seasoning, but you can certainly add some if you wish. See the Variations section below for suggestions!
- If you don't have leftover ham, you can dice some sliced deli ham, or even use canned ham.
Serving suggestions
Serve your ham, green beans, and potatoes as a hearty one-pot meal for lunch or dinner. I love this on cold winter evenings or the day after a large ham roast dinner.
If you'd like to pair the dish with a side I recommend serving it with some toasted bread or garlic bread. You can also serve it with some roasted broccoli or roasted corn on the side.
Variations
Change the meat: Instead of ham, try using leftover shredded chicken, shredded roast turkey, diced smoked sausage, or diced beef. You can stick to the timings suggested in the recipe as long as your meat of choice is precooked.
Added veggies: Feel free to add any vegetables you like. Cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, rutabaga (swede), or kale would all be excellent additions to this dish.
Add beans: White beans like cannellini beans or butter beans would be a fantastic addition to this dish. Add the beans at the same time as the other ingredients.
Change the seasoning: This dish doesn't contain much in terms of seasoning, as most of the flavor comes from the chicken stock, onion, garlic, and key ingredients. To add more flavor, feel free to add any spices or herbs that you like. Try for example dried parsley, Italian seasoning, or a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Storage
Store leftover ham, green beans, and potatoes in a sealed container in a refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in a microwave or on the stove until it's thoroughly warm.
You can also freeze any leftovers for up to 6 months. Defrost and reheat the leftovers before serving. I recommend freezing the dish in individual portions to use for future quick and easy dinners.
Frequently asked questions
Absolutely! To make this dish in the slow cooker, simply add all the ingredients, and cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 6-8 hours. The dish is done when the potatoes are soft enough to easily pierce with a fork.
Ham and green beans are best served with crusty bread, bread rolls or some toasted garlic bread.
You might also like these recipes
- Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup
- Ham and Cheese Frittata
- Crockpot Cabbage Roll Soup
- Instant Pot Vegetable Beef Soup
- Slow Cooker Green Beans
- Instant Pot Ham
If you make this recipe, make sure to post a photo to Instagram with #hintofhealthy!
Recipe
Ham, Green Beans, and Potatoes
Equipment
- 1 Pot
Ingredients
- 1 large onion (or 2 to medium)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 pound potatoes
- ½ pound green beans
- 2-3 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups diced ham
- 1 teaspoon olive oil (or other cooking oil)
- 1 pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Warm up some olive oil or canola oil in a large pot over medium heat.
- Add peeled and diced onion to the pot, and saute for a few minutes until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add finely diced garlic, and saute for another minute.
- Add diced ham, green beans, peeled and diced potatoes, and chicken stock to the pot. Bring the liquid to a boil over high heat, and reduce it to a simmer over medium heat. Add additional chicken stock if you want more broth in the dish.
- Allow to simmer for 15-25 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft enough to easily pierce with a fork. Stir occasionally.
- Add black pepper, and optionally salt, to taste. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Adjust the amount of broth used to suit your preference. More broth will make the dish more like soup.
- Feel free to add more seasoning if you'd like. Dried herbs, a bay leaf, or a pinch of cayenne pepper would be great additions.
- You can also add extra vegetables if you want. Try adding diced carrots, peas, cabbage, broccoli, or kale. Drained and rinsed canned white beans are also a great addition.
Nutrition
Food safety tips
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
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