A quick and easy summer salad, shrimp pasta salad comes together quickly and is the perfect pairing for your next cookout (or anytime!). Recipe includes a how-to video!
The Perfect Pasta Salad
Today I’m sharing my take on my grandmother’s shrimp pasta salad recipe. It’s a close cousin to my popular macaroni salad with a surprisingly tasty seafood twist.
The perfect companion to your next BBQ, serve it alongside pulled BBQ chicken and ice cold lemonade (though really it can be a meal in and of itself!).
My family has been enjoying this recipe for years and I was a little surprised that it hadn’t made its way onto the blog yet (plenty of her other recipes have, like her hot milk cake and apple dumplings). Because I can’t help myself, I made a few variations to make this recipe my own, but if you’d like to see her original recipe just scroll to the bottom of the post beneath the recipe card.
What You Need (and Why!)
Basic ingredients are all you need, but let’s go over them before we dig in!
- Pasta. You can use any small pasta, but elbow macaroni is a classic choice and my preference.
- Veggies. chopped celery, onion, and bell pepper are all you need! My grandmother uses the celery leaves as well as the stalks, but I always remove the leaves, personally.
- Shrimp. Salad shrimp are the perfect bite-sized shrimp for this pasta, and I always buy mine pre-cooked (they’re usually frozen). If you can only find larger shrimp, simply chop them into bite-sized pieces before adding to the salad (and make sure you cook them first, of course!). See the notes in the recipe card for more details on how to use larger shrimp for this recipe.
- Mayo. This is the base of our dressing; choose a quality mayo that you enjoy the taste of. My grandmother’s original recipe uses Miracle Whip (and does not add sugar, vinegar, or sour cream), so that’s another option. I have used mayo made with olive oil and been happy with those results!
- Sour cream. We’re only adding two tablespoons (such a small amount I forgot to capture it in the photo above 🤫), but it adds a subtle depth of flavor that takes this shrimp pasta salad to the next level.
- Vinegar. This not only helps to thin the consistency of the dressing but also adds a slight tang that balances the richness of the mayo. I use distilled white vinegar, but white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar will work instead.
- Granulated sugar. This won’t make the salad sweet, but it does enhance the flavor.
- Spices. Celery seed is a critical flavor, do not omit or substitute. You’ll also need a small bit of ground mustard as well as salt and pepper to taste.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How To Make Shrimp Pasta Salad
- Cook the macaroni until al dente (cooked, but still firm when you bite into it). Don’t over-cook or the pasta will be mushy! Drain and rinse under cool water (to stop the cooking process and to keep the noodles from absorbing all of the sauce in the fridge, which could make your pasta salad dry!) and transfer to a large bowl.
- Chop your veggies and add them to the bowl with your macaroni along with cooked shrimp.
- Whisk together the dressing ingredients in a separate bowl. Taste test and add more salt and pepper as needed, but remember that the flavors won’t fully develop until the salad has had time to sit in the fridge.
- Combine the dressing and all other ingredients, stirring until everything is evenly coated. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. Make sure to give it a stir before you dig in!
Frequently Asked Questions
Because of its mayo-based dressing, I don’t recommend letting the pasta salad sit out at room temperature for more than 30 minutes or so. If you intend to serve this recipe outdoors or in a warm environment, keep it in a cooler or nestle the serving bowl in an ice bin to keep it chilled.
When properly stored in an airtight container it will last up to three days. Always stir before serving. I do not recommend freezing this (or any) pasta salad, as it can separate and become oily once thawed.
This recipe is easily doubled by simply doubling all your ingredients. Just make sure you have a large enough bowl!
More Recipes You Might Like
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! Make sure to check out the how-to VIDEO in the recipe card!
Shrimp Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz elbow macaroni noodles
- 4 (110 g) stalks celery chopped small (about 1 cup chopped celery)
- ½ (85 g) red or green bell pepper diced, seeds removed (approximately ⅔ cup)
- ¼ (105 g) small onion diced (approximately ¾ cup)
- 2 cups (260 g) small salad shrimp cooked¹
For Dressing
- 1 cup (230 g) mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons sour cream
- 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
- 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon celery seed
- ¼ teaspoon ground mustard
- ¼ teaspoon salt plus more to taste (I typically need a heaping ¼ teaspoon)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Cook macaroni noodles al-dente according to package instructions. Drain and rinse under cool water, drain again and transfer to a large bowl.8 oz elbow macaroni noodles
- Add celery, pepper, onion, and shrimp and stir to combine.4 (110 g) stalks celery, ½ (85 g) red or green bell pepper, ¼ (105 g) small onion, 2 cups (260 g) small salad shrimp
- In a separate bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients (mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, sugar, celery seed, ground mustard, salt, and black pepper). Taste test and add more salt or pepper as needed.1 cup (230 g) mayonnaise, 2 Tablespoons sour cream, 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar, 1 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar, ¾ teaspoon celery seed, ¼ teaspoon ground mustard, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Pour dressing over macaroni mixture and stir well until all ingredients are coated with dressing. Cover shrimp macaroni salad and refrigerate at least one hour (preferably overnight) for the flavor to fully develop before serving. Always stir before serving.
Notes
¹Shrimp
I am often able to find cooked small “salad” shrimp in the frozen section. Typically I toss these right into the salad frozen and when I go to serve the next day the shrimp has thawed and I just need to stir before serving. If you choose to thaw the shrimp first, do not drain. Alternatively you may cook/steam or use larger cooked shrimp, just coarsely chop the shrimp into small pieces. When my grandmother makes this recipe, she just uses a single (undrained) tin of tiny shrimp.²Storing
Store shrimp pasta salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. For probably obvious reasons, this salad does not do well in the heat so I recommend keeping chilled or serving on ice for cook-outs etc.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.
Christina
Didn’t know what to make tonight, tired of the same thing. Searched shrimp pasta salad and this was the first hit.. A M A Z I N G!!
I used large shrimp but cut them up after steaming them- S&P, garlic & onion powder.
I also added crab meat chunks (surmi) making it a sort of seafood pasta salad.
This will be a regular in our house and GREAT for pot lucks.
It was so simple. You saved me tonight lol, thank you 💙
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Christina! 🙂
Mcwater
Made it with twice the shrimp. Almost a shrimp in every bite.
Deborah K Lewis
I’ve made this a couple times now. I have to leave out the peppers because husband is allergic to them. We both love this recipe even without the peppers.
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoys it, Deborah! 🙂
Christine
Best shrimp pasta salad I’ve ever had! And so easy!! Everyone that tried this, loved it. This is my new go to for dish to bring to parties!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy to hear that, Christine! Thanks for giving our recipe a try ❤️
Mike
Best I have ever had
Kathy P
Great recipe. I will leave out some sugar next time. Its always easy to fins salad shrimp at Dollar General of all places.At least in the country, lol,Thanks again!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Kathy! 🙂
Patti W.
OMG, so delish that i am now making this my favorite shrimp salad. MY Mom made it with other ingrediants and i thought it was great. This is so much more flavorful. Thank you.
Andrea
I’ve been making pasta shrimp salad for years. Yestetdat I tried this recipe. My husband loved it. His comment was: I don’t know what you did differently but, this is great! Every bite is refreshing! From him, thats a big compliment. It’s a 5 star keeper for me. Thamk you for the recipe
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We won’t tell your secret, Andrea 😉 So glad you both enjoyed the recipe!
Barbara
Thank you for a wonderful recipe but more importantly for how you wrote it out. Giving the amounts of items ALONG WITH the directions is brilliant!!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you find it helpful, Barbara! We love it too 😊
Jeri Simons
Growing up, Every 4th of July our neighborhood would have block party bbq and my mom would serve her shrimp pasta salad. Her recipe was similar to this. Unfortunately when mom passed my sister had thrown away alot of moms items that she felt was garbage. I found this recipe and gave it a try. With the first bite I was flooded with beautiful loving happy memories of my mom and summer time growing up. So delicious and perfect for summer!
Tastes better if served next day and keep shrimp frozen, no need to thaw frozen cooked shrimp
when mixing shrimp and salad together. You’ll love this recipe and so will your family & guests!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Jeri! We are so very happy to hear that our recipe brought back those sweet memories for you ❤️ Enjoy!
Karen Hintz
This is the recipe I’ve been searching for because it’s so similar to how my mom made shrimp salad.
I added about 1/2c of frozen peas to it.
It’s so delicious. Thanks
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you found it, Karen! Thanks so much for your review ❤️
Dottie
I tried this recipe with a few alterations. No sugar or green peppers. Fantastic.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed it, Dottie!
Alicia H
I made this last minute for a family reunion and used bow tie pasta and dill instead of mustard seed because I didn’t have any but I had the rest of the ingredients!! It’s amazing. Ty!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Alicia! 🙂
JB
This recipe is FANTASTIC
I love the fact that you included Gram’s hand written recipe & the fact that she used undrained canned shrimp. I also use the whole can of shrimp but I don’t tell anyone because some would be grossed out
😉. I really feel it tastes better w/canned rather than fresh; but I have used both.
Again thanks for sharing ❣️
Sam
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Nina Nakhle
Can’t wait to try this. Just wanted to tell you how PRECIOUS it is that you included your grandmas original recipe. I have recipes and cook books from my mother and grandmother and it’s so sweet to go back and look at them! Thank you for sharing!
Sam
You’re welcome! I hope you love it! 🙂
Lisa
Made this with medium shell pasta. Loved it! Added to my favorites! Thank you!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you liked it, Lisa! Enjoy 🙂
Brenda
Can I use Mexican La Crema instead of sour cream? I have some that needs to be used up and I don’t have sour cream on hand.
Thanks!
Sam
Hi Brenda! I honestly am not familiar with Mexican La Crema so I can’t really say for sure how it would turn out.
Brenda
I’ve made my 1st batch and I’m letting it sit in the frig overnight to meld the flavors. Next time (and I know there will be a next time!) I’ll try sour cream. It’s a wonderful recipe and you can add several different items depending on what you like. I love having pre-made dishes that I can grab and go during the summer when I’d rather be out playing. Thank you for sharing Sam!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks so much for giving our recipe a try, Brenda! ❤️
Old Grey Mare
Maybe someone else will answer that knows for sure, but I believe it is pretty much just a thinner (so runnier) version of sour cream. It is used as a topping over Mexican food whereas regular sour cream makes big “dollops” and works better for stirring into stuff. Since you only call for 2 tablespoons it would be unlikely to make Brenda’s salad too sloppy(?) but the flavor may be a little more subtle, in which case if she used it, she might need a little more.
However, I am wondering what you think about (if using canned shrimp) also adding a can of minced crab. Do you think that would add to the flavors of the salad or detract from it?
Sam
Adding crab here would definitely add an extra layer of flavor. It could certainly be tasty. That’s just a personal preference. 🙂
Judy Hazel
This type of salad is always a winner in the summertime!! Thanks for sharing it. I love that you have your grandmother’s handwritten recipe! It’s a treasure!! I have some in my Grandmother’s and Mom’s handwriting and I treasure them!! I’ve put some in a scrapbook. I’m now 70 years old! It’s an inexpensive gift to our children and grands!!
JB
Judy,
I agree wholeheartedly ❣️
My daughter & both Grandma’s put together a recipe book for her oldest daughter as she had gone off to college & would be cooking on her own.
Bonnie Eldridge
Perfect! Reminds me of my childhood. I added some dill relish ( that was my Mom’s way). Fabulous!!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! So happy this brought back some sweet memories for you, Bonnie ❤️
Sandra Ryan
First time making this salad It tasted wonderful