Macaroni Salad is one of those dishes that just says summertime. This is the perfect blend of elbow macaroni, crisp fresh veggies and the best creamy dressing.
Macaroni Salad pairs so well with BBQ meats, hot dogs, and hamburgers, it’s the perfect creamy, refreshing side dish.
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Easy Macaroni Salad
Macaroni salad is a staple American pasta salad made with tender pasta, hardboiled eggs, crunchy veggies, and a creamy dressing. You’ll find it served throughout the year to cool down grilled meats sizzling on the BBQ or to pair with a BLT Sandwich on a picnic. A perfect, minimal prep recipe for those hot summer months!
We love to serve this easy Macaroni Salad with Grilled Steak or Juicy Burgers and Grilled Corn on the Cob for the perfect summer menu.
Ingredients for Macaroni Salad
- Elbow Macaroni – Elbow macaroni is the most classic choice for macaroni salad. While you can get away with swapping in rotini or penne, nothing compares to the creamy dressing getting stuck in tiny crooks of macaroni noodles!
- Red Bell Peppers – We like to use red bell peppers for their subtle sweetness. If you can’t get your hands on them, any other color will do. Don’t like bell peppers? No problem – see the substitutions below.
- Red Onion – Red onion works best for its pop of color and strong flavor. You can also use green onions or chives instead.
- Celery – Fresh celery adds just the right amount of sweet crunch.
- Hardboiled Eggs – You can snag premade hard-boiled eggs or whip up your own using my guide on perfect boiled eggs.
Substitutions
- Veggies – Feel free to swap out any of the veggies with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peas, grated carrots, or boiled corn kernels. Black olives are also a fun add-in
- Protein – you can swap out the eggs with baked chicken breast, cooked shrimp, diced baked ham, or diced roast turkey
- Cheese – add diced cheddar cheese, or try other cheeses such as mozzarella, feta, parmesan, Colby jack, or gouda cheese.
- Pickles – try adding some diced dill pickles for a bit of tanginess. Sun-dried tomatoes are also a nice way to add tang.
The Best Macaroni Salad Dressing
This is our go-to combination for a creamy and tangy dressing with a hint of sweetness.
- Mayonnaise – Creamy, full-fat mayo is your best bet. You can use half mayo and half Greek yogurt if you like it a little on the tangier side.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – Apple cider vinegar adds just the right amount of tang to cut through the fat of the mayo. You could substitute half of the vinegar with pickle juice for extra tanginess. If you substitute with white vinegar, you may need to add a little sugar to balance the acidity.
- Sweet Pickle Relish – Use the same sweet relish as you would for hot dogs in this recipe. You can also chop up dill pickles and add sugar to taste.
- Mustard – Regular yellow mustard or Dijon mustard works best!
- Salt & Pepper – Finish the pasta salad with as much or as little salt and pepper as suits you!
- Fresh Herbs (Optional) – If you’d like, add in some minced fresh parsley, dill, or green onion for an extra pop of color and flavor.
How to Make Macaroni Salad
- Prepare the Pasta – Cook elbow macaroni according to the package instructions. Drain it through a colander and rinse the pasta under cold water and set it aside.
- Make the Dressing – In a separate bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Toss the Salad – Place the macaroni, veggies, and eggs into a large bowl. Pour in the dressing, stir to combine, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Chill the salad in the fridge for a couple of hours or serve immediately. Enjoy!
What can you serve with Macaroni Salad?
This Macaroni Salad is the perfect side dish for easy gathering, especially because you can make it ahead (more on that below).
- Picnics – Bring macaroni salad along on picnics to serve with any of our Best Sandwich Recipes like a classic Tuna Salad Sandwich or Crispy Chicken Sandwiches.
- Backyard BBQs – Serve macaroni salad alongside BBQ favorites like Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Smoked Ribs, or Shish Kabobs.
- Potlucks – Macaroni salad is one of the best dishes to bring to a potluck – it’s so easy to batch cook for a large crowd.
Make-Ahead
You will love that this salad keeps well and tastes great the next day. You can make the salad a couple of hours or up to a day ahead of time. keep it covered and stored in the refrigerator. The best part is that it will continue to develop its flavors as it marinates. Just make sure to give it a good stir before serving to redistribute the dressing.
Can I freeze it? Pasta does not freeze well and turns mushy when thawed, so I don’t recommend freezing macaroni salad.
Why is my macaroni salad bland?
Your macaroni salad is likely bland if you don’t add enough salt to the mix or balance the flavors of the dressing correctly. If you find yourself with flavorless macaroni salad, add more of your favorite ingredients and seasonings and keep tweaking it until you’re happy. Also, make sure you don’t overcook the pasta.
How do you moisten dry macaroni salad?
If your macaroni salad gets a little dry in storage, you can rehydrate it by adding a bit more dressing or stir in a splash of water or olive oil to rehydrate the noodles. This is a common issue, as pasta soaks up moisture when stored in the fridge.
This is a crowd-pleasing Macaroni Salad and it’s so easy. I hope it becomes a new favorite for you. If you put something unique into your pasta salad recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
More Tasty Salad Recipes
If you enjoyed this easy pasta salad recipe, you’ll love these reader favorites that are perfect for potlucks and parties.
- Chicken Cobb Salad
- Italian Pasta Salad Recipe (VIDEO)
- Egg Salad Recipe
- Chickpea Salad Recipe
- Caesar Salad Recipe
- Chicken Salad
- Caprese Pasta Salad
Classic Macaroni Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- 2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
- 1 cup red bell peppers, diced
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1/2 cup celery, diced
- 2 large hard-boiled eggs
- 1 Tbsp chopped parsley, optional for garnish
Dressing Ingredients
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp sweet relish
- 3 tsp yellow mustard
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp salt, adjust to taste
Instructions
- Cook the elbow macaroni in salted water according to the package instructions until it is aldente – it should be tender but firm to the bite. Drain and rinse the pasta under cold water to stop the cooking process and set it aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients together and whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Place the macaroni into a large bowl. Add the diced bell peppers, red onion, celery, eggs, and any other desired mix-ins*.
- Pour in the dressing and stir to combine. Garnish with parsley if desired and serve right away or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
- Veggies – Add or replace any of the veggies with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peas, grated carrots, boiled corn kernels, or black olives.
- Protein – swap out the eggs with baked chicken breast, cooked shrimp, diced baked ham, or diced roast turkey
- Cheese – add diced cheddar, mozzarella, feta, parmesan, Colby jack, or gouda cheese.
- Pickles – try adding some diced dill pickles for a bit of tanginess. Sun-dried tomatoes also add a nice tang.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
Eating for one you sometimes don’t want to cook complete meals. This was easy to make loved the crunch great for 1 person. Thanks Ms. Natasha
I’m so glad to hear this was perfect for you, Patty!
Classic Macaroni Salad Recipe – How much is 1 serving in grams or ounces as I live alone and make 1/2 the recipe also and am not sure how much I am eating.
I weigh my servings. Thank you
Hi Doreen, If you scroll down to our printable recipe card, most of our recipes have a metric conversion option on the printable recipe card. We are currently working on adding metric measurements to all of our recipes, but it is taking some time to add them one at a time. Thank you so much for being patient! In the meantime, check out our post on measuring which should help.
Way too much vinegar for my taste. I would start with 1 tbs. To start and add more as needed.
Sounds so much like my mother’s macaroni salad. Making it tonight! Thanks.
Sounds like a great plan, Sharon! Please update us on how it goes.
Personally, I think hard boiled eggs are an excellent addition. And when I can get to the store I’m getting everything and making this. It looks FAB!!!!
Sounds great too and yes, an egg is always a good addition to a salad. I hope you love it!
I though this recipe was fantastic! There are a million variations of macaroni salad but I really enjoyed this one. It was bright, fresh and I loved the added crunch from the bell pepper. This just might be my new go to recipe for neighborhood cookout’s. Thanks!
So glad you enjoyed this salad, Melody! Thank you for sharing your feedback with us.
I love your videos. You make cooking fun. This is almost like mine except I add cucumbers and tomatoes. I will be giving yours a try this weekend. Thanks for all your recipes. I always look to your site first when trying something new. You are great.
Thank you for your good comments and feedback, Connie. We appreciate it a lot!
I use small shell macaroni, vadalia onion, small cubed ham, and cheese in mine with Miracle Whip instead of Mayonnaise! Also put some pickle juice, and vinegar , and milk in sauce for it!! Everyone loves my salad!!
Sounds delicious, Connie!
I can’t stand Miracle Whip! The rest of the recipe looks great. Hellmann’s (or Best Foods) or Dukes would be my choice. Why would you add a new recipe when Natasha was giving us her recipe. You gave a whole new recipe.
I know it’s a shock, but some of us prefer Miracle Whip to Mayo. In reading all of the comments, it appears that many people changed the recipe a bit. It seems to be very adaptable.
When Natasha states mayonnaise, dont sweat it.
Its simply either or….
If you dont like one use the other. Simple.
Follow Natashas recipe then do your own thing when making it.
People are so confusing with
their changes..
Add Crushed Pinapple and grated carrot, or peas cold tinned, My wife makes this regularly in summer a family favorite. Love your recipies; Colin Jull NZ.
That sounds delicious! Thank you, Colin. So glad you enjoy this recipe.
medeocer at best, i find that peas work much better, and the eggs are not a good mix. should be a little cold but not like ice cream.
Hi Kristiyan, these ingredients are pretty classic for a macaroni salad but there is definitely room to experiment and change up the ingredients. It’s what we love about this recipe – it’s very versatile.
I can’t stand sweet pickles, so could you use dill relish and regular white, or even white wine vinegar instead of apple cider? I would think so, right? I hope so!
Hi Cindy, that should still work. I think there’s room to experiment with this one and make it your own.
I love mac salad, I am not a fan of eggs in these types of salads I use olives instead of eggs it’s a bit more colorful and it amps up the flavor.
I hope you try this one soon, Doug!
Good recipe, very similar to mine. Except, I add diced tomatoes and sliced green olives. I omit the pickle relish. I did make it like this and it was good, everyone liked it.
That sounds so good! Thank you so much for sharing that with me! I hope you give our recipe a try soon!
Thank you for this recipe. It sounds good. I plan to make it this weekend and take it to a pot-luck. I thought I would add some cooked in the microwave frozen corn to it. What do you think?
You’re very welcome! I think that would be fine.
I add in frozen peas in addition to the above ingredients. Adds nice bright color
Sounds great!
Similar to my mom’s recipe. She’d add diced carrot and two cans of small shrimp
Nice to know that, Liz! I’m sure your mom is a great cook too.
I will be making this for all the summer cookouts this year! Love this recipe.
Sounds great! Thank you for the review, Dana. So glad you enjoy this recipe.
I like to add diced tomatoes and cucumbers in my pasta salad
Sounds great! Thanks for sharing.
Love macaroni salad! It’s a summer staple, and this recipe is such a classic! Simple, but familiar and oh so good.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
You can also add a can of tuna fish (drained) and mix in with Your macaroni salad which is really tasty also ! Cover and refrigerate over nite for a great tasting salad …Floe
Rence
Hi Florence, thank you for sharing that suggestion with us.