Skip to Content

Macaroni Salad

Categories Appetizer/Snacks, Easy Recipes, Main Course, Side Dish

Macaroni salad is simple to make and tastes delicious as a side dish! It’s creamy, tangy, comforting and delicious. It’s perfect for barbecues and summers and still great as a side dish in the fall, winter and spring. It gets better the longer it sits in the refrigerator, so it can be made the same day or left in the refrigerator for a day or two.

My husband loves macaroni salad and it always gets eaten at my house or when I make it for a crowd. The leftovers are even better day by day and it will stay good in your refrigerator for about 5 days.

You can make this with other kinds of pasta too, preferably ones easy to bite. I use penne or rotini sometimes and they are great too.

What you need to make macaroni salad:

Serves 4-6 people

  • 4 cups cooked macaroni pasta
  • 1/4 cup pickles – finely diced
  • 1/2 cup green onions – diced
  • 1/2 cup bell peppers (optional) – diced
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon pickle juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoons salt

Instructions

  1. Add room temperature or chilled macaroni to a medium serving bowl.
  2. Add the pickles, green onions, bell peppers and stir together.
  3. In a small bowl, add mayo, sugar, vinegar, pickle juice, black pepper and salt and stir or whisk until mixture is smooth.
  4. Add mayo mixture to the pasta mixture and stir until everything is well combined.
  5. Refrigerate until the salad is totally chilled or overnight.
  6. Enjoy!

Here are a few other salads perfect for side dishes:

Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Macaroni Salad

Classic macaroni salad!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time7 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Dinner, Lunch, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: appetizer, Barbecue, Dinner, lunch, Salad, Side dish
Keyword: Dinner, pasta, Salad, Weekend Dinner, Weeknight Dinner
Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cooked macaroni pasta
  • 1/4 cup pickles – finely diced
  • 1/2 cup green onions – diced
  • 1/2 cup bell peppers (optiona- diced
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon pickle juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoons salt

Instructions

  • Add room temperature or chilled macaroni to a medium serving bowl.
  • Add the pickles, green onions, bell peppers and stir together.
  • In a small bowl, add mayo, sugar, vinegar, pickle juice, black pepper and salt and stir or whisk until mixture is smooth.
  • Add mayo mixture to the pasta mixture and stir until everything is well combined.
  • Refrigerate until the salad is totally chilled or overnight.
  • Enjoy!
5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)