Iowa Ham Balls

5 from 1 vote

Iowa Ham Balls are a delicious Midwestern alternative to classic meatballs! If you’re looking for something different (but tasty) to make for dinner, this recipe will come in very handy.

Prep Time20

Cook Time1

Total Time1 20

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Author: Jamie Sherman

Equipment

Ingredients

For the meatballs

3 ½ pounds ground ham
1 ½ pounds ground pork
3 large eggs beaten
2 cups whole milk
3 cups graham cracker crumbs

For the sauce

2 cans tomato soup, undiluted 10-3/4 ounces each
2 cups packed brown sugar
¾ cup distilled white vinegar
2 teaspoons prepared mustard

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray two large shallow roasting pans with cooking spray and set them aside.
In a large bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients.
Using a 1/3 cup measure, scoop and shape the mixture into 2-in. balls. Divide the meatballs evenly between the two roasting pans.
Combine all of the sauce ingredients then pour it evenly over the meatballs.
Bake for 1 hour, basting the meatballs frequently with the sauce.

Notes

For a less sweet meatball, replace 1 cup of graham cracker crumbs with 1 cup of Ritz cracker crumbs.
Ground pork is NOT the same as ground ham. If ground ham isn’t available where you live (I doubt you’ll find it outside of Iowa), you will need to buy a bone-in ham or a couple of ham steaks to get the correct weight. Use the meat grinder attachment on your stand mixer or use a food processor to “grind” the ham. Follow the manufacturer’s directions to use the meat grinder attachment. To use the food processor, cut the ham into 1-1/2-inch to 2-inch pieces and pulse until it is the consistency of ground beef.
These are not your typical little appetizer-size meatballs - they’re bigger!
You can halve this recipe if needed. It also is a great make-ahead dish to put in the freezer for those busy days!

Nutrition