This is a classic, tasty, and oh-so easy macaroni salad recipe! Made with classic ingredient staples including celery, red pepper, and onion and dressed up in a simple creamy mayo-based dressing, this is guaranteed to be a hit at every cookout and potluck this year!
Be sure to check out the easy video that shows step-by-step how to make this recipe!
We have had a non-stop week of rain here.
Zach’s first two softball games of the season have been rained out and I’m beginning to forget what the sun looks like (I’m only slightly dramatic I promise 😉). I am completely over it. I’m ready for summertime sunshine and cookout weather, and with Memorial Day weekend just around the corner I’m taking the opportunity to prepare and share my all-time favorite macaroni salad recipe, even if it is grey and gloomy outside.
I’ve shared a few of my summertime salads, including my favorite broccoli salad and ramen noodle salad, but this one may just be my favorite.
Macaroni salad is a party/potluck/cookout staple, no get-together is complete without a giant chilled bowl, and today I’ll show you how I make my favorite recipe and the perfectly creamy, slightly sweet dressing that goes along with it.
What Ingredients are in Macaroni Salad?
Different macaroni salads contain different ingredients, but my staples include:
- Elbow macaroni (obviously 😉)
- Sweet pickles
- Red pepper
- Celery
- Red onion
- Hard boiled eggs or shredded or diced cheddar cheese
- A homemade mayo-based macaroni salad dressing
You can obviously add your favorite additional add-ins or make substitutions (I know some people prefer sliced green onions to red onion and some people like to add paprika to their dressing), but this if my favorite combination and I really recommend you try it out exactly this way at least once for yourself.
The dressing I just mentioned is what really sets it apart from other potluck recipes you might have tried. It provides just the right amount of creaminess — the noodles are coated in just enough sauce and are neither dry nor are they drenched in the dressing. It’s also just slightly sweetened thanks to the addition of some sweet pickle juice and a pinch of sugar.
How long can you keep Macaroni Salad?
Macaroni salad will keep for up to five days when stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. This is a great salad for making in advance (I actually recommend chilling for at least an hour before serving) and serving at picnics and potlucks, but try not to leave it out at room temperature (or worse, in the heat!) for very long as the salad dressing base will not keep well in the heat.
This macaroni salad recipe is a favorite to serve alongside my favorite BBQ pulled chicken and a plate full of deviled eggs (you’re already going to be boiling eggs anyway, might as well make enough for deviled eggs while you’re at it!).
When I shared my deviled egg recipe, so many of you shared your favorite methods for cleanly peeling fresh eggs, and I appreciated those tips so much and have tried many of them. I’d love to keep the conversation going here if you would share your favorite egg-peeling methods in the comments!
How Do You Make Homemade Macaroni Salad?
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Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz dry macaroni noodles (227g)
- ½ cup finely diced sweet gherkins usually 4-6 sweet gherkins for me (80g)
- ¾ cup finely diced red bell pepper about ½ pepper (100g)
- ⅓ cup thinly sliced celery about 1-2 stalks (55g)
- ⅓ cup finely diced red onion (45g)
- 2 large hard boiled eggs, finely diced
Macaroni Salad Dressing
- ¾ cup mayonnaise I use olive oil mayo (175g)
- ¼ cup sour cream (70g)
- 2 Tablespoons sweet pickle juice
- 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar*
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper optional
Instructions
- Prepare macaroni noodles according to package instructions. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water, then drizzle with a teaspoon of olive oil and gently stir so the noodles don't stick together as they sit.
- In a large bowl, combine macaroni noodles, sweet pickles, red pepper, celery, red onion, and eggs. Stir until well-combined. Set aside and prepare your dressing.
For the dressing
- To prepare your macaroni salad dressing, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, red wine vinegar, sweet pickle juice, sugar, dijon mustard, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper (if using) in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk until ingredients are well-combined.
- Pour dressing over your macaroni salad ingredients and toss until well-combined.
- For best flavor, cover bowl and allow macaroni salad to chill for at least one hour. Stir once more before serving and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Lottie
I made this for a large group (14) and doubled the recipe. That was a mistake… haha! But it turned out great. I followed the recipe except substituted buttermilk for the sour cream. I also had full-grain Dijon mustard, which didn’t seem to hurt anything. I ate the salad for a week straight and didn’t get tired of it. I think more would have gone if there hadn’t been so much other food to choose from at the BBQ. I will definitely make this again for a crowd.
TaGGer77
Good recipe, however, instead of rinsing the pasta, try adding 3 or 4 Tbsp of pickle juice to the hot pasta after draining. Fold pasta with spatula till pickle juice is absorbed. Now, chill pasta before adding dressing.
Sam Merritt
I will definitely try it next time! Thank you for the suggestion! 🙂
ANNETTE WOOD
I cut way back on the sugar and sub’d some of the mayo for greek yogurt to reduce the calories. I’ll try a bit of the yellow mustard next time to amp up the umami. This is a good jumping off point for a great macaroni salad. Thanks
Patsy Hale
Made it a few days ago. What caught my eye was red wine vinegar. My mom used it quite a bit even on stacked enchiladas topped with lettuce & tomatoes so I decided to try. ♥️♥️♥️ this recipe.
B
This macaroni salad is seriously amazing! Thank you so much from me and mine! Also, your pizza dough recipe is the only one I ever use!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much! We are so happy you love them both 🩷
Raych
Oomph. Not what I was expecting. I ended up using 2lbs of pasta. And only added an extra half cup mayo. There would have been waaaay too much dressing for only 8oz of pasta. The flavor was just not what I was wanting. But decided to give it a try based on all the rave reviews. Will not make again.
Sam
Hi Raych! That’s really disappointing to hear. Is it possible something was mis-measured? I just wanted to check that you start with 8oz of dry macaroni. 2 lbs is a LOT of macaroni. 🙁
Jerry
I always follow a recipe exactly (at least the first time) unless there’s clearly an error. This one is delicious! (And it’s not too much dressing.)
You alter the recipe significantly the first time you make it (tripling the pasta!) and then are disappointed with the results. Blame only yourself.
Shelly
made it for the first time and everyone in the family loved it. 😍
Sherry Harding
Hi Sam and friends.. it is a very good macaroni salad.. however it is a very sweet one.. I did cut the sweet pickle juice in half and used 4 medium gerkins.. I still found it pretty sweet and cut with some regular mustard.. . so .. just sharing that it can hard to fix that amount of sweet.. Thanks Sam for the recipe.. will continue to use with modifications !
Rachel
I’ve been making this pasta for about 4 years at basically every family gathering. I don’t even offer it anymore, people request it! I do find red onions to be a tad too powerful in it, so not to be *that person*, but I do use yellow onions instead, but this recipe is the best!!!!
Karin Ferguson
I made this for a Mother’s Day dinner, and not much was left! I’m making it again for a potluck for Memorial Day. I combined everything in the dressing. But the macaroni soaked it all up, so I made another batch of dressing and tossed just before serving. It was perfect. You don’t like olives, I don’t like sweet pickles. Sorry, I used dill pickles. Still tasted delicious
Dee
The best macaroni salad recipe! I’ve tried lots of recipes over the years and they were just ok. This macaroni salad had the flavors wanted.
Jess
I used dill pickles instead also! This recipe has me wanting to stop buying store made. It’s delicious!
Dan
I followed the recipe to a T and it is just too sweet. Not good enough, or creamy enough.
Sam
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy it Dan! You should have plenty of sauce for this salad. Did you make any alterations to the recipe?
Terri Read
This recipe did not disappoint! Cut it in half since it’s just me and hubby and I loved it! He is a macaroni salad fan but I’m not typically but this one satisfied both of us!!! Thank you for sharing!
Eileen Gertie
I just made this and it is absolutely delicious. I did change sweet pickles for dill, added red bell pepper and bacon bits.
Lexi
Can I make this the day before? Also, can I add black olives or will that ruin the taste?
Sam
Hi Lexi! It can certainly be made the day before, but may need a quick toss before serving. I personally do not like olives so I wouldn’t add it to mine, but if you enjoy olives, I don’t see any reason why they wouldn’t work. 🙂
Diana
So yummy it is the best !
Linda
Best salad dressing very tasty just love it ❤️