Easy Creamy Pasta with Ham and Peas

Pasta with ham and peas is an incredibly easy way to use up leftover ham from last night’s dinner and turn it into an entirely new meal. This creamy pasta uses a simple homemade alfredo sauce featuring lots of garlic, savory ham, and sweet peas..

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Leftovers are tricky business in this house.

Some of them are gone right away.

Others go to the fridge to die a painful, slow death.

While we love Easy Sweet and Savory Instant Pot Ham with Honey Glaze the day we serve, unfortunately, ham leftovers are in the second category unless we do something totally different with it like turn it into creamy pasta with ham and cheese.

You bet we all happily eat that- including the kids!

What’s not to love?

Creamy, cheesy fettuccine alfredo pasta with ham and peas is a decadent and rich dish with its velvety sauce.

It’s the more affordable option than Easy Lobster Alfredo but still super impressive.

And it is one of those dishes that seems like it would be tricky to make, but it’s not!

The hardest part about this recipe is waiting for the water to boil!

Ingredients and kitchen supplies

• Butter – We used unsalted butter, but you can use salted butter if you prefer.
• Garlic cloves – Garlic helps to give the alfredo sauce its flavor. You can add more or less if you want. Less if you are a monster.
• Ham – You can use just about any variety of ham you like, though we would avoid deli ham. Leftovers are a great option.
• Peas – Frozen peas work great because they do not add extra salt that canned peas do, but if you only have canned peas, they will work too.
• Heavy cream – For alfredo sauce, heavy cream works best, but you may be able to get away with light cream, half and half, or whole milk. Using lower fat options will create a thinner sauce.
• Fettuccine – We used fettuccine for a more genuine alfredo pasta, but other long pasta noodles, bow ties, or just about any pasta will work.
• Parmesan cheese – You can use fresh or pre-grated Parmesan.
• Salt and pepper

When you make pasta with ham and peas, you don’t need a lot of fancy kitchen gear and gadgets. Some helpful tools can make this easy recipe even easier and include:

• Gotham Steel 5 Quart Stock – We have this exact same model and it works great for cooking and straining pasta.
• Gracula Garlic Crusher – For a little fun, you can get this vampire inspired garlic press. We have this model and works pretty well and allows you to crush a few cloves at a time.
• Chef’s Knife – To slice up the ham, unless you buy the pre-cubed ones from the grocery store to save some time.
• Tongs – Tongs make it a lot easier to toss the pasta with the ham and peas.

How to make pasta with ham and peas

1. Boil the pasta.

Cook the fettucine according to the package instructions. Generally, it is about 9 minutes, give or take. Once the water comes to a boil, add in the pasta.

2. Make the sauce as the pasta cooks.

Once you throw the noodles in the boiling water, it is time to make the sauce. In a large, deep pan, melt the butter.

Add the crushed garlic to the melted butter and allow it to cook for about 1 minute or until it becomes fragrant.

Next, add in the ham cubes and allow them to thoroughly heat through – about 5 minutes.

Once the ham cooks, add in the peas and let them thaw out in the pan. This should only take about 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Bring it all together.

When the pasta is ready, add it to the pan along with 2 tablespoons of butter. Use tongs or a spoon to toss the noodles with the ham and peas.

Once combined, pour in the heavy cream and continue to toss until the pasta is fully coated and the cream thickens.

To finish, mix in the parmesan cheese.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

Storing leftovers

We highly recommend serving pasta with ham and peas fresh from the skillet, but if you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container. Place the container in the fridge for up to about 2 to 3 days.

When you heat it up, we recommend using a skillet. You may want to add a bit more butter or cream to the pan. You can do the same thing if you use the microwave. Adding butter or cream while heating it up can help reinvigorate the sauce.

FAQs

Tips and Tricks

• For best results, use heavy cream, but you can make a sauce with half and half or whole milk. It just may be a bit thinner than expected.
• Use wider noodles, such as fettucine or bow tie (if you want a shorter noodle). These noodles hold the sauce better.
• Do not rinse your pasta before adding to the pan. Rinsing the pasta will remove some of the starch that helps hold the sauce to the noodles.
• Parmesan cheese can help thicken a thinner sauce. You can try to add a bit more if your sauce is very thin.
• When reheating, add a small amount of heavy cream or butter to the pan or bowl and mix it in. This will help reinvigorate the sauce and make it creamier again.
• Want to use your Instant Pot to make it? Follow this Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo and saute the ham in garlic butter using the saute feature on the pot. Stir in the peas after cooking.

Other Leftover Ham Recipes

• Easy Ham and Cheese Panini
• Ham and Cheese Biscuits
• Easy Ham and Cheese Frittata (Ham and Cheese Crustless Quiche)

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