Name: Creamy Ham and Pasta (Ready in 30 Minutes!)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 pound pasta (shells or your favorite shape); 4 tablespoons butter; 1 cup onion (diced); 1 teaspoon garlic (minced); 2 cups ham (cubed); 2 cups hevy cream; 1 cup Parmesan cheese (grated); salt and pepper to taste

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This Creamy Ham and Pasta dish is super-easy to make and your entire family will love it. Diced ham and pasta coated in a rich garlic-parmesan cream sauce. This is a perfect weeknight meal that’s ready in just about the time it takes to boil a box of pasta.

I’m always on the lookout for quick and easy weeknight meals that will squeeze into our family’s busy schedule. After a long day at work and a rough NJ commute home, I don’t have the energy to make a whole 5 course meal.

But I also don’t want to order pizza or Chinese food 5 nights a week (who can afford that??), so a simple recipe that can be made in 30 minutes is just what this hangry dad needs. And this ham and pasta dish is perfect.

Ingredients Needed

All you need to make this creamy pasta dish are a few everyday ingredients:

Pasta – I prefer shells for this dish, but feel free to use your favorite pasta shapes. Bow ties, cavatappi, and rigatoni are all great options
Ham – If we have leftover holiday ham or some of my double-smoked ham, I’ll use that. But if not, I just pick up a couple of ham steaks at the supermarket
Onion and Garlic – Plenty of flavor!
Butter – To sauté the onions and add an extra richness
Heavy Cream – The base of the cream sauce
Parmesan Cheese – I strongly recommend you use a microplane to grate the Parmesan yourself rather than using the pre-grated stuff from the store (You’ll taste the difference!)

Substitutions and Variations

Sneak some veggies into dinner by adding some peas or broccoli florets
You can use milk instead of heavy cream, but the sauce won’t be as thick and rich
If you don’t have leftover ham or a ham steak, you can always slice some cold cut ham and toss it in
Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with extra grated Parmesan and a sprinkle of crushed red pepper for those who like a little more kick

Pan full of ham and pasta ready to be served

How To Make Creamy Ham And Pasta

This whole meal comes together in less than 30 minutes. Here’s how simple it is:

Step 1: Cook the pasta

Boil your pasta in a large pot of salted water until just shy of al dente. You’ll want to pull it from the water while its still slightly undercooked because it will finish cooking in the sauce. If you boil the pasta until its completely done and then cook it more in the sauce, the pasta will end up mushy.

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Reserve some of the pasta water before you drain the pasta so you can add it to the sauce later. Or, if you have a spider scoop you can just scoop the pasta right from the boiling water and into the sauce and you should get enough of the starchy water with it. And you’ll still have the rest of the water in the pot in case you need extra.

Step 2: Sauté the onions, garlic, and ham

While you’re bringing the water to a boil and cooking the pasta, use a separate skillet to melt the butter and get the onions cooking until they start to soften. Then add the garlic and ham and sauté for a few minutes until warmed through (remember it’s already cooked!)

Step 3: Make the cream sauce

Add the heavy cream, then bring to a simmer and let cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the cream reduces and thickens slightly. Add the grated Parmesan and stir to melt the cheese into the sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Three images showing the progress of me making my creamy ham and pasta

Step 4: Combine the pasta and sauce

Add the pasta and a few splashes of of the pasta water to the cream sauce. Cook for another 3 or 4 minutes, stirring to mix everything together. Remove from the heat and let sit for about 5 minutes so the sauce can tighten up a bit, then garnish with fresh parsley and stand back while everyone digs in.

Storage And Reheating

This is literally one of my favorite meals to have as leftovers because it heats up so well. Sometimes I purposely cook extra just to make sure we have leftovers that I can pack up and take for lunch during the week.

Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days if kept in an airtight container. Just pop it in the microwave for a few minutes to reheat and it will taste like you just made it fresh.

Simple to make and great for leftovers, this dish is a perfect option for meal planning!