Family Favorite Macaroni Salad

Every family has that one recipe, the one that’s not just requested but enthusiastically demanded. For me, it’s this macaroni salad. This isn’t your average summer pasta salad; it’s a creamy, tangy, and perfectly textured salad that has become the hallmark of our summer celebrations. The secret, a balance of simple ingredients and a specific method I’ve tested and re-tested. Over the years, I’ve perfected the creamy dressing, figured out the ideal crunch-to-pasta ratio, and discovered the little touches that take it from good to unforgettable.
But it’s not just my family, my readers have fallen in love with this recipe as well. It brings me nothing but joy to read wonderful comments here and on social media of people who try this macaroni salad and love it year after year!
Featured Comment
“
Best macaroni salad ever…. when potlucks I always get asked to bring this macaroni salad….. I also add extra ingredients to the dressing..not change them just increase amounts…. ~Judy”

Important Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
These are the ingredients that I want to clarify or offer alternatives for, the complete ingredient list is in the recipe card:
Pasta – Choose a smaller pasta like elbow macaroni or ditalini. (I don’t recommend orichette in a macaroni salad because they tend to stick together and don’t mix evenly with the dressing.)
Herbs – I like to add some fresh parsley and fresh dill weed as well. You can omit either if that’s the preference but I recommend you try it.
Sour cream – I usually recommend using sour cream because of richness, creaminess, and tang that it provides. (If you will try to substitute Greek yogurt, the taste and texture of the dressing won’t be quite the same.)

Lyuba’s Chef Tips Before Cooking
Cooking pasta: when cooking pasta, there are two things to remember: 1 – make sure to salt the water generously (about saltiness of the ocean, I add about 1 tablespoon of sea salt to water when cooking 1 lb. of pasta). 2 – You will want to cook it al dente so that it’s not too soft when it’s done cooling and mixed with the dressing.
Cooling pasta: personally, I never recommend rinsing pasta after cooking (especially for hot dishes). Rinsing pasta takes off the starches that are important to help dressings and sauces adhere to the pasta. So simply drain off all the water and let the pasta cool, fluffing it from time to time.
I highly recommend using a large mixing bowl (and I mean large!) Nothing worse than everything spilling out, while you’re trying to mix it.
If making the salad ahead of time: while this is a good potluck recipe to make a day or two ahead of time, pasta can soak up the moisture in that time. So, you will also want to either make extra dressing or set some aside to mix in before serving.
Do take time to chill the prepare salad before serving. Take this additional time in consideration before making the salad, it will need 2-4 hours to chill in the refrigerator before serving.
When serving the prepared macaroni salad: after the salad had enough time to completely cool down, you can serve it at your gathering and leave it on the counter for about 2 hours. To leave it out longer, you will need to control the temperature by setting up an ice bath. Nest the serving dishes with cold foods in bowls or large food containers filled with ice to maintain the chill. (If you often hold gatherings, you can get something like this chilled serving dish or a similar one.)

Variations and Additions To Try
In my family, we like to keep it pretty simple but there are a few ingredients you can add to make it your own (especially if it’s your favorite):
- Vegetables – If you want more vegetables, besides the classics, you can try adding diced broccoli, peas, carrots, or cucumbers.
- More Herbs – You can try adding some basil as well. (If you love herbs, make sure to try my green goddess macaroni salad.)
- Cheese – you can always add some diced cheese like cheddar, gouda, or mozzarella. Slice and dice the cheese off the block and make sure the block is cold. Cold cheese is easier to slice.
- Adding Pickles – While I personally feel that pickles overpower the macaroni salad and the dressing flavor, some people do like to add pickles. It comes down to a personal preference whether you want to add sweet pickles or not. If you do, add 1/2 cup of finely diced sweet pickles, dill pickles, or kosher pickles.

Recommendations To Make Macaroni Salad Ahead Of Time
- Pasta salad and macaroni salads are wonderful recipes to make ahead. I actually prefer to make macaroni salad the night before because all the ingredients have a chance to mix and mingle and marinate with each other. Pasta soaks up all those tasty flavors and tastes so much better a few hours after you make it. You can make it 1-2 days ahead.
- Just make sure to keep it refrigerated until you’re ready to serve it.

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Macaroni Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb uncooked macaroni pasta
- 1/2 cup diced red onion
- 1 medium red bell pepper
- 3 short celery ribs
- 1/4 cup diced green onion
- 2 tbsp minced fresh parsley
- 1 tbsp minced fresh dill weed
Dressing:
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp salt more or less to taste
Instructions
- Cook pasta in salted water according to box instructions, until cooked al dente.
- Drain cooked pasta and let it cool until no longer scalding hot. Gently fluff it from time to time while it cools.
- Dice all vegetables and herbs while pasta is cooking and whisk all ingredients for the dressing in a separate bowl.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine pasta vegetables, and herbs and mix.
- Pour dressing into the bowl with the pasta and mix everything together until dressing is evenly incorporated throughout.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or transfer the salad into a food storage container with a lid. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
Video
Notes
- Storing: Store all the leftovers in the refrigerator. When properly stored in an air-tight container, in the refrigerator, macaroni salad should last 3 to 4 days.
- Making Ahead: You can prepare the whole salad a day or two ahead of time and store it in a refrigerator, in an air-tight food storage container.
Nutrition
Storing Instructions
Storing (refrigerator): Store all the leftovers in the refrigerator. When properly stored in an air-tight container, in the refrigerator, macaroni salad should last 3 to 4 days.
On the counter: remember that no prepared food should be left out on the counter for longer than 2 hours and only after it’s been cooled in the refrigerator. (FDA recommendation is longer but only with proper temperature controls.)
More Dishes For Picnics and Backyard BBQs
If you noticed, I like to use dill weed because of the bright and summery flavor you can use it in other picnic and potluck favorites like parmesan dill potato salad and cucumber salad.
Antipasto pasta salad is another popular summer pasta salad loaded with meats and balsamic vinaigrette.
If you love the creamy salads, my creamy corn salad is a reader favorite as well, and so as my cheddar ranch tortellini salad.
Categories:
30 Minute Meals, 4th Of July Recipes, Backyard BBQ Recipes, Father's Day Recipe Ideas, Most Popular Recipes, Pasta Recipes, Side Dishes,All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
What a wonderfully easy and delicious side dish, perfect for summer.
This was a fabulous tasting pasta salad! I will be make this often!
I am so glad you liked it!
This is THE BEST macaroni salad I have everything made. It has such a fresh taste, so bright especially for summer! I double the sauce recipe and add in more vegetables (more bell peppers, cucumber, broccoli). My family loves it!
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you and your family love it! 😍 Doubling the sauce and adding extra veggies like cucumber and broccoli sounds so fresh and perfect for summer!
I love macaroni salad and this is one of them, easy, fast and tasty. Thank you very much.
I am so glad you like it so much, Marta!