Ham and Cheese Biscuits

Delicious Ham and Cheese Biscuits that are so easy to make from scratch using diced ham and shredded cheddar. These tender drop biscuits are a great way to use up leftover ham and are ready in under 30 minutes.

Cheese biscuits are the best kind of biscuits, if you ask me. I won’t turn away from any biscuit, but when you add cheese into the mix, you get next level deliciousness! Zucchini & Cheese Drop Biscuits, Cheddar Chive Biscuits, and even Keto Cheddar Biscuits are on a regular rotation in our home. They make the perfect grab and go breakfast or snack or an accompaniment to stews or soups.

These Ham and Cheese Biscuits are up there with our favorites. You get all the deliciousness of a cheesy biscuit with a big boost of added flavor from diced ham. It is one of the easiest ways to use up leftover ham from dinner and so delicious, you may just go out and get some ham with the sole purpose of making these biscuits.

I love making these as a grab and go breakfast. They are great on their own, but adding an egg and turning them into a biscuit sandwich is also a great option. Between breakfasts and gobbling them up as a side dish with our meals, they don’t last long around here!

I highly recommend doubling up the recipe and freezing some biscuits. Your future self will thank you.

If you have lots of leftover ham from dinner, I also recommend whipping up some Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup to serve with these. It does not disappoint!

Ingredients in Ham and Cheese Biscuits

• Flour: all purpose flour.
  
  
• Baking powder: leavener.
  
  
• Sugar: A little added to the biscuit dough enhances the flavor without making them sweet.
  
  
• Salt
  
  
• Butter: melted and slightly cooled. You can use unsalted or salted butter. If using salted butter, you can reduce the salt in the recipe if your brand is particularly salty. The melted butter is mixed with cold milk which causes some of the butter to solidify again into small little pieces. These hardened pieces help make biscuits flaky by creating little air pockets when they bake and the butter melts in the oven.
  
  
• Milk or buttermilk: cold. As described above, the milk is mixed with the butter before adding to the biscuits.
  
  
• Cheddar cheese: shredded. I like to use a sharp cheddar for the flavor it adds to the biscuit but you can opt for any type of cheddar cheese. You can even substitute the cheddar for another cheese like gouda, havarti, or gruyere, for example.
  
  
• Ham: finely diced. I like to finely dice the ham so that you get little bits distributed throughout the dough.
  
  
• Chives: finely chopped. Adds flavor. You can omit these if you do not have them on hand or aren’t a fan or replace with some finely chopped green onion.

**Note: Ingredient quantities and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.**

How to make Ham and Cheese Biscuits

1. Prep. Preheat oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
   
   
2. Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
   
   
3. Mix the wet and dry ingredients. Stir the melted butter with the milk. Let it sit for a minute or two and then mix it into the the dry ingredients.
   
   
4. Fold in the cheese, ham, and chives. Fold in the cheddar cheese, diced ham, and chives just until they are well mixed in.
   
   
5. Form the drop biscuits. Use a large cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop to scoop out batter onto the lined baking sheet, ensuring there is about an inch of space between the biscuits. You should end up with about 12 biscuits. [Alternatively, you can use two large spoons to drop the biscuit dough into mounds on the baking sheet.]
   
   
6. Bake. Bake for 15 minutes or until the tops begin to turn golden. Allow them to cool slightly before serving. Optional: brush with some melted butter before serving.

Variations and Substitutions

• Ham substitutions: If you don’t have ham on hand but still want a meat option to add to your biscuits, sausage makes a great alternative. You can use leftover cooked sausages (just chop them up as you would the ham) or if starting with uncooked sausage, you can simply remove the casing and cook it in a skillet, crumbling it as it cooks. Other meat alternatives include chopped chorizo, pepperoni, or other similar deli meats.
  
  
• Cheese substitutions: You can easily swap in your favorite shredded cheese if cheddar isn’t on hand. Havarti, gouda, and gruyere are my top choices but you can use many other varieties as well.
  
  
• Herbs: I love a sprinkle of fresh chives in these biscuits but you can simply omit them if you are not a fan. Finely chopped green onion makes a great alternative if you have them on hand but you can opt for other herbs like parsley or a little sage or even add a pinch of cayenne for some added flavor.

Storing leftovers

There is nothing like a fresh biscuit out of the oven but since this recipe makes a dozen biscuits, that leaves room for lots of delicious leftover biscuits to enjoy in the days ahead.

To store the leftover biscuits, allow them to cool completely first. Then, transfer the biscuits to an airtight container and store them in the fridge. I find they keep well for a few days stored this way. For longer term storage, I recommend freezing the biscuits.

To reheat the biscuits, I love to pop them into an oven at 350F until they are heated through. A toaster oven or air fryer is an even better option if you have one.

Freezing biscuits

To freeze leftover biscuits, once they are cooled completely you can place them in a freezer bag or a freezer safe airtight container. They should keep for a couple of months if stored correctly.

This recipe freezes well so I love to double it and have plenty of biscuits in the freezer for a quick breakfast or side when needed.

What to serve with biscuits

These biscuits are great as a snack on their own but we love pairing them with other foods to make a complete meal. Some of our favorites include:

• Stews and chilis like Slow Cooker Chicken Stew, Irish Beef Stew, or Slow Cooker Turkey Chili.
  
  
• Soups like Sweet Potato, Chili & Lime Soup, Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup, Acorn Squash Soup, or Broccoli Cheddar Soup.
  
  
• Breakfast: Add these to a classic breakfast plate of eggs and bacon or turn them into a sandwich by adding a fried egg. Meal prepping these biscuits along with my Ham, Cheese & Spinach Egg Cups makes for quick and easy breakfasts on busy days.

These tender biscuits packed with cheese and diced ham are a delicious as part of any meal or simply to snack on. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Looking for more cheesy recipes? You may also like:

Cheesy Baked Mashed Potatoes
Veggie Mac and Cheese
Brazilian Cheese Bread
Air Fryer Twice Baked Potatoes
Taco Stuffed Mini Peppers