Macaroni Salad
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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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
This is my new go to macaroni salad recipe! We all loved it! I didn’t have gherkins so I just used sweet relish and it worked just fine. About to make it again for 4th of July tomorrow. Thank you for a very good recipe! Happy 4th everyone!
BEST macaroni salad recipe I have found! Everyone loves this dish and I get get reviews every time I make it! I used just regular vinegar instead of red wine and it worked out just fine! Made it the night before our picnic and it was worth the wait!
Thanks so much for your review, Amy! We are so happy you love it 🙂
I wanted to love it, but it was a little too “wet” and none of us were fans of the sweet gherkins or their juice. It made it too sweet. That being said, I think leaving those ingredients out & maybe using dill pickles instead might be better for our family next time. I might also leave out the vinegar & put in some carrots.
I haven’t made this…yet, and even though I have made if for years now, I always like to google it and see if any flair has been added over the years. Yours was the first one to pop up and I was happy to see the addition of sour cream and gherkins! I make my own pickled peppers that are both spicy and sweet, and have been using those with a bit of the juice instead of vinegar and raw peppers. I also sometimes add smoked ham and cheddar cubes sometimes which almost makes it a meal! Haha. Thank you for the recipe, I have added it to my recipe box and am making it right this minute!!!
Sounds yummy, Julie! Love the idea of making it a meal too 😉 We hope you love our recipe ❤
This recipe was amazing! Flavor was everything I was hoping for and everyone at my family bbq loved it! Thank you, I will definitely be making it again 🤗.
This is just awesome macaroni salad and it’s so easy to put together. I make my eggs and macaroni in the instant pot which makes it even faster and easier. When we serve it we get rave reviews.
Very flavorful with just the right balance of sweet and tart.
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, Ed!
This macaroni salad recipe is fabulous! I’m not a fan of the store bought stuff, so thought I’d give a homemade version a try. I’m so glad I found this recipe first, because now I won’t need to look any further! I realized when putting the ingredients away that I had missed adding one of the hard boiled eggs. I could have added it in anyway, but decided to leave it out and have no regrets. Also, I didn’t have red wine vinegar, so I substituted 1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar and 1/2 tbsp sherry cooking wine. I added the mayo mixture in a bit at a time, and ended up only using about half of it, thus, happily saving the rest for another batch! Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!
Thanks for giving our recipe a try; we’re so happy you enjoyed it 😊
About to try it! Can I use 1 cup of mayo instead of adding the sour cream? I have a little one with a dairy allergy and I’d love to try this recipe dairy free! Sounds wonderful!
Hi Sarah! You can, or you can just leave out the sour cream. We hope it’s a hit for everyone 😊
Made as directed. Doubled the recipe and did half sweet and half regular gherkins. Everyone loved it.
We’re so glad our recipe was a hit for you, Crystal! Enjoy ❤
Delish; I doubled the recipe and adapted for what I hand on hand; only used 1 heaping cup of mayo and no sour cream but doubled the vinegar, pickle juice and all seasonings. We love olives so I added sliced black olives and fresh chopped parsley and dill from the herb garden. OMG, this was so good! Thanks.
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, CarolAnn! 😊
Made this recipe for Memorial Day. My guests loved it! They even came back the next day asking if I had more to share! This was a hit alongside our grilled burgers, chicken and hot dogs!
Thank you so much for trying our recipe, Madalene! Sounds like it was a huge hit 😍
This is easy and delicious
I love fast, simple and delicious!
This recipe hits all the marks!
It was definitely a crowd pleaser.
Thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much for your review, Dee! We are so happy you loved the macaroni salad 😊
Did not like this at all, sorry. I tried it because of the rating but this particular recipe is not for me. The vinegar and pickle juice was too overpowering, but that’s just for me.
Best Macaroni Salad ever!! I’ve tried 2 other recipes, but your versus is the absolute best!
Thank you so much, Sue! I’m so glad you enjoyed 🙂
Yummy! A good change up from my Greek pasta salad. Will put this in the rotation. The only thing I may do next time is less mayo and substitute . I doubled the recipe and did 16 oz of pasta etc.
I made this salad for the second time in two weeks. The dressing is spot on! Thank you so much for the recipe😊