This is, hands-down, our favorite quiche recipe, made with our trusty master quiche base and packed with ham, cheese, and buttery sautéed onions. It’s super simple to pull together and always gets rave reviews from friends.
For this quiche, we love using thick-cut ham steak. It brings so much flavor and a nice, hearty texture that pairs perfectly with the melty cheese and sweet onions.
The onions are what make this quiche extra special. Cook them low and slow in butter until they’re soft and sweet, then stir them right into the filling. If you’re looking for more ways to use our master quiche recipe, check out our broccoli quiche, too (coming soon)!
Key Ingredients
- Pie Crust: We love our butter pie crust recipe for this (you can see it in our photos). It’s made with butter, flour, salt, and a little sugar.
- Eggs and Cream: These make our custard base. For the creamiest, richest quiche, go for heavy cream instead of milk or half-and-half. Trust me, it’s worth it.
- Seasonings: Salt, pepper, sweet paprika, and a little Dijon mustard get whisked right into the eggs and cream. The mustard works really well with the ham and adds a little extra zing.
- Ham: Use a ham steak for this. I buy a 1/2-inch ham steak (I used one from Niman Ranch in our photos). You will slice it into cubes, which adds a lovely texture to the filling. This recipe is similar to Quiche Lorraine, but more traditional recipes call for bacon instead of ham. If you’d prefer bacon, we have included tips in the recipe below.
- Onion: Thinly slice a big onion and cook it in butter until it’s soft and sweet. I’ve tried a lot of quiche recipes, and these buttery onions are what make this one a standout.
- Cheese: Gruyère is our go-to for this quiche. I like to buy it in a block and grate it fresh. Swiss works well too, or even a good sharp cheddar if that’s what you have.
Find the full recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Quiche
Tip 1: Start with our homemade pie crust. Nearly every pie recipe here uses our butter pie crust, and for good reason. It’s reliable and delicious. If you don’t have a favorite crust yet, give ours a try!
Tip 2: Parbake your crust. While I don’t always prebake or parbake my pie crusts, I always do when making quiche. The filling is very wet, so parbaking your crust keeps everything crisp and prevents a soggy bottom. Here’s how we do it:
- Roll out your pie crust, transfer it to the pie dish, prick the bottom with a fork to prevent puffing, then line it with parchment or foil and fill with pie weights, rice, or dried beans. Now chill for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Heat your oven to 425°F, then drop it to 400°F when you put the crust in. The combo of a cold crust and a hot oven helps it brown and stay flaky.
- Once the crust is lightly golden, remove the weights and brush it all over with egg wash. Pop it back in for 5 more minutes, just until the egg wash is dry. This keeps your crust nice and crisp under all that creamy filling.
Tip 3: Make the filling. What makes this quiche so incredibly good is the generous amount of sautéed onions, which brown a little in butter and turn sweet. These plus cubes of ham and a quality cheese really do make for the best quiche.
Tip 4: Make the custard. You’ll need 5 large eggs, 1 cup of heavy cream, and your seasonings. Whisk it all together until smooth. It’ll be just the right amount to cover your filling.
Tip 5: Assemble and bake. Pile the ham, onions, and cheese into your crust. It should look nice and full. Pour the custard over the top, then shimmy the dish gently so the custard gets into all the nooks and crannies. Bake until the crust is golden and the top is set with a few golden spots, about 55 to 65 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
This ham and cheese quiche is best served warm, so once it comes out of the oven, allow it to cool for 20 minutes, then slice and serve. You can also refrigerate, and then rewarm slices in the oven (tips for reheating are below the recipe). The classic side for quiche is a light salad. I especially love fresh greens tossed with a squeeze of lemon and good olive oil. Or, use our lemon vinaigrette!
Quiche also makes a lovely addition to a brunch table alongside berry fruit salad, arugula couscous salad, fennel salad, roasted asparagus, sautéed spinach, or this lemon herb potato salad. Really, anything that’s light and fresh would be perfect.
More Brunch Recipes
Our Favorite Quiche
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This quiche is a personal favorite. It’s loaded up with thick-cut ham, melty Gruyère, and sweet sautéed onions. So simple, so classic, and always a hit.
*Note that you will change the oven temperature 3 times. These are bolded in the recipe below.
8 Servings
You Will Need
1 (9-inch) single-crust homemade pie crust, our recipe makes enough for 2 quiches, see tips
8-ounce ham steak, ½-inch thick, cut into ½-inch cubes (226 g)
1 medium onion, thinly sliced into half moons
3 tablespoons butter
5 large eggs, plus 1 egg for egg wash
1 cup heavy cream (236 ml)
1 ¼ teaspoons Dijon mustard
⅛ teaspoon sweet paprika
⅛ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons white wine or substitute water, see tips
2 tablespoons water
4 ounces Gruyère cheese, shredded, 1 packed cup (113 g)
Directions
1Prepare crust: Lightly grease a 9-inch pie plate (pie dish). Roll out the dough to be two inches larger than your pie dish (I use an 8-inch or 9-inch pie dish). Gently press the dough down into the dish to line the bottom and sides. Be careful not to pull or stretch the dough. Fold the edges of the dough underneath itself, creating a thicker, 1/4-inch border that rests on the lip of the dish. Crimp edges. (We do this in our pie crust recipe video.)
2Pierce the bottom of the chilled crust all over with a fork. Crumple up a sheet of parchment paper in your hands, then uncrumple it and use it to line the crust (or use foil). Fill with pie weights, dried rice, or dried beans. Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes.
3Preheat the oven: While the unbaked pie crust chills, preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Place a baking sheet on a middle oven rack.
4Bake the crust: Place the pie crust on the preheated baking sheet and reduce the oven temperature to 400°F (200°C). Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is light golden brown. Remove the rice, beans, pie weights, and parchement from the pie crust.
5Make egg wash: Whisk one egg with 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Brush the bottom and sides of the crust with egg wash. Bake until the egg wash is dry, 3 to 5 minutes.
6Prepare the filling: Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet. Add the diced ham, and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes.
7Transfer the ham to a bowl, then add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter to the skillet. Add the onions and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Pour in the white wine and water and deglaze the pan. Cook until all of the liquid is gone, then turn off the heat.
8Make the egg mixture: Whisk the remaining 5 eggs, heavy cream, Dijon mustard, paprika, pepper, and salt in a bowl.
9Assemble: Spread the ham, onions, and cheese in the pie crust. Pour the egg mixture over them, and then shimmy the pie dish to remove any air bubbles.
10Bake: Now, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F (162°C), then bake until the egg sets and the crust turns a light golden brown, about 55 to 65 minutes, turning once halfway. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.
Adam and Joanne’s Tips
- Storing: Keep baked quiche covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat on a baking sheet in a 325°F oven or toaster oven. Do not microwave (it will soften the crust).
- Pie crust: Our favorite pie crust recipe makes enough dough for 2 single-crust quiches or pies. The recipe above has enough filling for one quiche. You can save the leftover crust in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Wine: Only add the wine if you already have a bottle open. The quiche turns out really well with just water. If you do not use wine, use 1/4 cup of water (4 tablespoons) total.
- Use bacon: Slice 6 to 8 ounces of thick-cut bacon into strips (lardons), then cook in a skillet until crispy. Use a slotted spoon to remove them and drain on paper towels. Add the crisped bacon, onions, and cheese to the pie crust, pour over the custard, and bake as directed above.
- The nutrition facts provided are estimates.
Nutrition Per Serving
Serving Size
1 slice (8 total)
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Calories
410
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Total Fat
30.2g
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Saturated Fat
17.4g
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Cholesterol
203.6mg
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Sodium
751.7mg
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Carbohydrate
17.7g
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Dietary Fiber
0.8g
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Total Sugars
2g
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Protein
16.5g
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