Now that summer is in full swing, I want to share a pasta recipe that requires hardly any prep time and reflects those sunny summer vibes. I can make this recipe ahead of time and serve it with just about anything that comes off the grill. Can you tell how excited I am for this weekend’s grill out? 😆 You don’t need fancy ingredients to make this macaroni salad taste amazing. And I know you’ll fall in love with my mayo mixture here. It has sweet relish and mustard to create a perfectly balanced flavor. I even use this mayo mixture as a spread for my sandwiches! Sooo good! 😋
Recipe Ingredients
How to Make Macaroni Salad
Prepare Ingredients
Cook macaroni following directions on the package.Drain and rinse well.Cool – Let it cool while working on the sauce. After cooling, refrigerate until ready to use.Make Dressing – Whisk together mayonnaise, sweet relish, vinegar, and mustard in a small bowl. Set aside or refrigerate until ready to use.
Assembly
Add the Extras – Once macaroni has cooled, place it in a bowl with the sliced celery, cut-up eggs, chopped green and red bell pepper, and the diced onion.Dress It – Add the prepared mayonnaise sauce to the bowl and mix thoroughly.Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley, if desired.
Recipe Variations
Tips and Tricks
Make-Ahead Instructions
This dish was made for making ahead! I recommend making macaroni one day ahead of time. It boosts the flavor and saves you time too. 🙌
Serving and Storage Instructions
As I mentioned, you can serve this salad right after you assemble it when it is still warm or serve it chilled. Garnish with parsley to give it an extra pop of color and flavor. Store in a tightly sealed container in the fridge, and it will keep for 4-5 days. Since this salad tastes amazing chilled, you can simply scoop out a portion of your leftovers and eat it straight out of the fridge. Alternatively, you can freeze macaroni salad, just don’t expect the veggies to have the same texture.
What Goes with Macaroni Salad
It’s a classic side for grilled meals. Try it with crispy grilled chicken wings or Hawaiian grilled chicken thighs. It also pairs well with grilled shrimp kabobs or grilled New York steak. Heck, go ahead and grill both of those up to make it surf and turf with some delicious salad as a side!
More Southern Salad Recipes to Try
Conclusion
Got a few minutes to spare today? Then whip up some macaroni salad! And be sure to leave a recipe rating below to let me know how much you loved this recipe. 🙏
Watch How to Make It
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”codmsrY7″ upload-date=”2022-06-20T12:22:56.000Z” name=”MACARONI SALAD.mp4″ description=”Macaroni Salad is a classic with few simple ingredients yet delivers big time in flavor. An easy comforting side dish to your fried chicken, barbecue, and other picnic meals!” player-type=”collapse” override-embed=”false”] This blog post was originally published in July 2018 and has been updated with additional tips, new photos, and a video.
title: “Macaroni Salad Recipe” ShowToc: true date: “2024-11-09” author: “Angela Galarza”
Have you ever wished to chow loads of pasta with veggies? This simple macaroni salad is the answer to all your carb-laden dreams wrapped with colorful vegetables. It is a purely vegetarian, kid-friendly salad that is perfect for outdoor picnics or as a BBQ side dish for large gatherings. This salad recipe could be a game-changer for all the macaroni that’s stashed away in your kitchen waiting for a cheat day to arrive.
The Vegetables
Macaroni can be paired with a variety of crunchy veggies to yield a very sensorial salad. The softness of its texture makes it a perfect accompaniment to the crunch of vegetables. Nothing can ever make up for wilted greens or dried-up old tomatoes when you’re putting together a salad. Remember, it’s all about freshness. Start off with choosing your vegetables for the salad: Red bell pepper, green capsicum, yellow bell pepper, purple cabbage, regular cabbage, broccoli, sweet and tender carrots, bright red cherry tomatoes, boiled sweet corn, olives, onions, cucumber… whatever you fancy. You can add some greens like parsley, coriander, kale, baby spinach, mint, or basil leaves. Basil leaves pair very well with any kind of pasta salad. For a sweet and savory pasta salad, pineapple, apple, or blueberries are also a great addition.
The Protein
In case you want to add some kind of protein to your pasta salad, then here are a few interesting choices: Add in some cooked tofu chunks or some extra firm fried tofu to the salad (vegan) Try macaroni salad with eggs it tastes amazing Small cubes of boiled chicken or slices of cooked sausages can be added Garnish with some fried crisp bacon for a great texture and taste If you are a seafood lover, add pan-grilled prawns to the salad
The Salad Dressing
The deal-breaker for this heavenly pasta salad is a finger-licking good dressing. Hope you know about my 6 Homemade Salad Dressing Recipes. We have used the classic Italian dressing for this macaroni salad. Or you can use my vegan cashew sauce as a base for the dressing to make a dairy-free pasta salad. Here is what you need for making the salad dressing:
plain mayonnaisewhite wine vinegar extra virgin olive oillemon juiceparmesan cheesecrushed/grated or garlic powdersalt and black pepperoregano
Serving Suggestion
One really doesn’t need an excuse to make this pasta salad because it’s that addictive. But if you’re looking for inspiration, here are some ideas: Serve macaroni salad as a side with some whole wheat sandwiches for office lunch or for kid’s school lunchbox (it’s guaranteed to come back licked clean). Take it on a summer family picnic or potluck. Pasta Salad makes an excellent choice for the high tea party.
Storage Suggestion
If the macaroni salad is stored in the fridge in an airtight container, it can last for 3 – 5 days.
Avoid adding salt before refrigeration so that vegetables don’t release their juices and the salad remains fresh.
At room temperature, salad packed with cheese and mayonnaise spoil very fast. It is best to consume it within 2 hours.
You can use the leftover boiled macaroni pasta to make my Indian-style masala macaroni stir fry pasta or the classic minestrone soup.
More Vegetarian Pasta Recipes
Basil Pesto Pasta Makhani Sauce Pasta Vegetable Stir-Fry Pasta 20 Minute Red Sauce Spaghetti Instant Pot Pumpkin Sauce Pasta Subscribe to our weekly newsletter or follow us on Youtube for video recipes.
