Skillet Ham Macaroni and Cheese
Skillet Ham Macaroni and Cheese is a hearty, family friendly meal that’s bound to impress every time it’s served.
A staple in the American household, cheesy, creamy, and comforting, Mac and Cheese has been loved for centuries.
As a kid, who didn’t love it when it was served? As an adult, I still love macaroni and cheese.
But with a grown up palate, I’ve started tossing in all sorts of goodies.
Enter this Skillet Ham Macaroni and Cheese. It’s simple enough for the kids to love and but jazzed up enough to satisfy the grown ups.
How to make Skillet Ham Macaroni and Cheese
To make your life easier, set the butter and cream cheese out earlier in the day to soften them. Or don’t.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place the skillet on the stove and heat over medium low. Toss in the butter and cream cheese so it can begin to melt.
Get a large pot of water to boil. Once boiling, generously salt and the add pasta.
Cook pasta one minute short of the package directions. While you’re waiting for the pasta to cook, grate your cheeses.
Occasionally pop over to the skillet and stir and encourage the cream cheese and butter to melt. The cream cheese can be a bit stubborn.
I found using a whisk makes it easier.
In a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Don’t overdo it. We are not making scrambled eggs here. We only want to break the yolk and mix it into the whites.
Stir in the evaporated milk, mayonnaise, and milk into the eggs. It will be clumpy, so don’t worry about that too much. Get it as smooth as you can, and let it go.
Gently whisk in the seasonings and hot sauce if you’re using it.
Don’t worry, the dish isn’t spicy, the hot sauce gives it some depth of flavor.
Pour this creaming mixture into the skillet, combining it with the butter and cream cheese. Stir constantly.
Don’t toss the liquid into the skillet until the last few min of the pasta is boiling. It only takes a few minutes to cook the mixture.
Can I use different pasta shapes in my Mac and Cheese?
Macaroni or elbows are the quintessential vessel for the cheese to pasta ratio, but yes, other kinds of pasta can do the job.
Stick with a smaller pasta like conchiglie (shells), farfalle (bowties), cellentani (corkscrew; and what we used here), and penne.
Once the pasta is done, at the one-minute shy of being done mark, drain it and immediately add it to the skillet.
Mix it well into the creamy liquid, making sure the pasta is thoroughly coated. Stir in the ham.
Can I add vegetables to macaroni and cheese?
Absolutely!
You can add peas, onion, mushrooms, carrots, corn, okra, diced tomatoes, or zucchini. Let your imagination come up with some yummy options like some nice roasted vegetables.
Broccoli, cauliflower, or bell peppers could be a great addition to this dish.
How NOT to add grated cheese to homemade macaroni and cheese
Now it’s time to add the cheese that you reserved.
For the love of all that is good, do not add all the cheese at once. Talk about a nightmare mess on your hands.
Add the cheese by the handful, and fold it into the pasta.
Don’t just drop a handful of cheese on top and stir either. Use those hand muscles of yours and sprinkle it all around. This will avoid any smaller cheesy clumps.
After you have folded all the cheeses and it has melted, sprinkle the reserved cheddar on top, garnish with your chopped parsley.
Cover this bad boy, toss it in the oven, and bake for 30 minutes. After the 30 minutes, uncover it and let it brown for an additional 5 minutes.
Once browned, pull it out, let it rest for 5 minutes before digging into to it. This allows the cheese to hold itself together. Serve and enjoy.
Skillet Ham Macaroni and Cheese
Equipment
- 12-inch cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 oz cream cheese
- 10 oz macaroni any pasta
- 4 cups cheddar cheese grated; divided
- 2 cups Monterey Jack cheese grated
- 1 egg large; 2 medium; lightly beaten
- 12 oz evaporated milk
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup whole milk
- ⅓ tsp salt
- ⅓ tsp black pepper
- ⅓ tsp dry ground mustard
- ⅓ tsp onion powder
- ½ tbsp hot sauce +/-; to taste; can be omitted
- 3 cups ham diced/cubed
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Over low heat, melt the butter and cream cheese in the skillet.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
- Cook pasta 1 MINUTE SHORT OF PACKAGE DIRECTIONS.
- Grate cheeses and set aside.
- While pasta cooks, lightly beat the egg(s) in a bowl.
- Add the evaporated milk, mayonnaise, milk to the egg; whisk to combine. It will be clumpy.
- Gently whisk in the seasonings and hot sauce.
- Add the creamy mixture to the skillet and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly.
- Once pasta is done, drain and add to the skillet; mix well to combine.
- Stir in the ham.
- By the handful, fold in the 3 cups of the cheddar cheese and all of the Jack cheese, stirring well to melt.
- Once all the cheese has been melted in, sprinkle the reserved cheddar on top.
- Sprinkle the fresh parsley on top.
- Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove cover and bake for an additional 5 minutes or until all the cheese has melted and the dish as begun to brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes; serve and enjoy.
Nutrition
Dutch Oven Daddy is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Easy Pasta Recipes
Everyone loves pasta and red sauce, but the mighty noodle can be used in so many more delicious ways. Here’s a few of our favorites.
- Skillet Chicken Spaghetti
- Baja Chicken Pasta from The Complete Savorist
- Skillet Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Pasta from The Magical Slow Cooker
- Dutch Oven Pizza Pasta
- Philly Cheesesteak Pasta from The Rockstar Mommy
My grandpa taught me to love extra sharp cheddar cheese so that is what I used for this dish and it was awesome.
Loved this recipe. Thank you so much!
Holy moly! This is like a skillet mac and cheese casserole, and I am so here for it! Yummo!
This was so rich and creamy! Perfect for using up leftover ham! Thanks so much for sharing.
I made this mac and cheese for dinner last night and both my kids and husband loved it! Adding to my regular rotation!
Yum!! This is a great elevated version of regular mac and cheese. I loved the addition of ham. So tasty!
I made it and loved it! It was worth all the work…ham made it so much more yummy!
Never would have thought to add Mayo!! This sounds decadent and delicious!
This mac and cheese looks amazingly delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
It’s lunchtime and I wish I was eating this right now, lol. Thanks for the great recipe. Can’t wait to try it.
Oh yum! This macaroni and cheese looks absolutely amazing. I especially love the addition of the ham and cream cheese.
I really like mac and cheese with lots of crispy bits so this recipe appeals to me. I’m also intrigued by the addition of mayonnaise. I’m going to try your recipe soon!
The combination of ingredients in this recipe works so well together! I loved the taste and the texture is so interesting.
Comfort food at its best! Delicious recipe that both the children and adults enjoyed!
We love mac and cheese and this was such a nice twist on it.