I was determined to salvage some of the meat from my ham fail into something delicious.  Since the meat was dried out, the only way I could add flavor and moisture is using it in a casserole.

Although this dish was my salvation, you could also use the same recipe just to create a tasty meal!

The Basics

• Onion – diced
• 2 carrots – peeled and diced
• Red bell pepper – diced
• Cooked macaroni – about half a box
• Cooked ham – about 1 1/2 – 2 cups diced ham
• Frozen spinach – about 1 cup
• Frozen peas – about 1/2 cup
• 1 can of cream of celery
• 1 can of cream of chicken
• Salt and pepper
• Garlic powder
• Cooking oil – about 1 tbsp
• Parmesan cheese
• Breadcrumbs

The Rundown

Saute onions, red bell pepper and carrots with cooking oil in a pot for about 5 minutes in medium heat.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Add ham, spinach and peas until heated through.  Sprinkle a little salt, pepper and garlic powder.  Then add the creams of celery and chicken and macaroni.

Pour mixture into a casserole dish.  Liberally sprinkle breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese.  Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top begins to brown.  Enjoy!

Every year my dad cooks a ham for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Year after year, it’s always the same: baked ham.  When I was able to score a bone-in ham for less than $6, I was amped to try cooking the ham a different way.

I tried cooking the ham with it’s juices in a crock pot with pineapple juice, maple syrup and brown sugar.  I cooked it for about 5-6 on a slow heat.  It smelled delicious so I thought I was on a the road to something great. Duh-dun-dunnnnnn….

The ham turned out to be ropey and not tasty at all.  I was to salvage some of it, but I had to chuck the rest.  I don’t think I will be trying to slow boil a ham again!

My dad gave me this recipe.  My brother and I grew up eating spareribs prepared this Chinese way.  There are any a few ingredients, but it yields a lot of flavor.  It’s slightly salty, but if you eat it with rice it should balance out.

The Basics

• Pork spareribs  – Washed and separate each rib
• Fresh ginger – about 1 inch; peeled and sliced
• Soy sauce – about 2 tbsp.
• Sugar – 1 tbsp.
• 1/2 cup of water
• Black bean garlic sauce – Can be found at Asian supermarkets

The Rundown

Add all spare ribs in a deep pot.

Add 2 heaping tbsp. of black bean sauce, sugar, ginger, soy sauce and water.  Mix to combine all ingredients.

Head until just boiling.  Cover pot and let cook for about 30 minutes.  Stir occasionally to make sure the pork is cooked thoroughly.

This is what the finished product will look like.  There will be oil on top that can be skimmed off with a spoon.  Serve with rice.