Ultimate Macaroni Salad: The Perfect Summer Side Dish
Enjoy the very best classic macaroni salad with this simple recipe. It is perfectly creamy with tender elbow macaroni mixed with crisp sweet veggies, and a dressing that's so rich and flavorful, you'll be licking the spoon clean! This is the perfect side dish for summer and sure to be a hit at gatherings, so be sure to share. It's got a touch of sweetness, a hint of tang, and a whole lotta love. Perfectly seasoned and oh-so-refreshing. Follow my simple tips for making your own homemade macaroni salad.
Servings: 1 Side Dish
Calories: 349kcal
Ingredients
The Dressing
- 1½ cup Real Mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons Yellow Mustard
- ¼ cup White Vinegar
- ½ teaspoon White Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt or to taste
- ¼ cup White Granulated Sugar
The Mac Salad
- ½ cup Celery diced
- 1 Red Bell Pepper diced (seeds removed)
- 1 Green Bell Pepper diced (seeds removed)
- ½ cup Carrot grated (this is one medium to large carrot, peeled)
- ¼ cup Green Onion white and green parts, thinly sliced
- 16 ounces Elbow Macaroni Pasta cooked according to package directions - do not rinse after cooking.
Instructions
- Place a large mixing bowl in the refrigerator to chill.
- Prepare the dressing: in a medium sized mixing bowl; whisk together the mayonnaise, yellow mustard, vinegar, white ground pepper, salt, and sugar together until well combined. Remove ½ cup of the dressing and transfer to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate and reserve to freshen the salad before serving. Next, add the prepped vegetables to the remaining creamy dressing mixture and place the bowl of dressing in the fridge until needed.
- Prepare the Pasta: Cook the macaroni according to package directions until tender then drain well in a colander. Do not rinse. Grab the large bowl that has been chilling from the refrigerator and transfer the cooked elbow macaroni into the cold bowl. The chilled bowl will help cool the pasta. Use a spatula to gently stir the macaroni occasionally and allow it to sit for 10 minutes until it has cooled down.
- Dressing the Macaroni Salad: Next, add the creamy dressing mixture with the vegetables to the cooled pasta and use a spatula to stir to combine.
- Cover the macaroni salad with plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours to overnight. Overnight recommended to allow the flavors to mingle. The dressing will absorb into the pasta.
- Before serving, add the reserved half cup of dressing to the macaroni salad and stir to combine to freshen up the creaminess of the mac salad then transfer to a serving bowl or garnished platter and serve.
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Notes
See full post for ingredient variations and other options as well as serving suggestions.
Do not add the mayonnaise based dressing to hot pasta or it will be greasy. The ten minute cooling time for the pasta is an important step for good macaroni salad.
While the pasta cools, give it a stir occasionally. The pasta will be a bit sticky but the dressing will loosen everything up once it is added and combined with the macaroni.
Leftover macaroni salad can be refrigerated up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 349kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 21g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 379mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g