Macaroni salad is a great side dish ready for any summer BBQ or family dinner. even if I’m just making it for my small family of 4 I still make the whole recipe as it is a great salad to keep in the fridge and eat all week, for lunch dinner, or even a late night snack. none of this salad will go to waste.
Like any salad recipe, all ingredients can be customized to your family’s likes and dislikes, if you don’t like dill pickles you can use sweet ones or leave them out entirely. this macaroni salad recipe is also a good one to use some veggies that are in your fridge that you need to use up. add broccoli, cabbage, or anything you like really.
Ingredients you will need
- 1 box tri-colored rotini pasta
- 2 small cucumbers pickle sized
- 2 dills pickles
- 1 orange bell pepper
- 2 green onions
- 2 cans flaked tuna
- 1 juice from lemon
- 1½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ tbsp garlic salt
- 1 tsp chives
- 1 tsp parsley flakes
- 2 tsp dill weed
- ½ tbsp smoked paprika
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make Macaroni Salad
- Fill a pot ¾ of the way full with water, add salt and bring to a boil on high heat. add pasta and stir. continue to boil until pasta is fully cooked. strain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and to help stop the pasta from sticking together.
- dice pepper, cucumbers, and dill pickles. finely chop green onions and add to a large bowl.
- Add pasta and all seasonings to the bowl, squeeze the juice from one lemon and add 1 cup of mayonnaise.
- mix all ingredients until everything is fully combined add more mayonnaise if you feel that you don’t have enough (if you are making this ahead of time, even the day before make sure you add more mayonnaise that you think you will need. the pasta will soak up some of the moisture overnight.)
- transfer into a serving bowl. sprinkle enough paprika on top to just add some color.
This macaroni salad is on constant rotation with our potato salad all summer. They both make a great side dish to any burger, BBQ chicken, or hot dog. or even on its own can make a great lunch or snack.
Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 1 box tri-coloured rotini pasta
- 2 small cucumbers pickle sized
- 2 dill pickles
- 1 orange bell pepper
- 2 green onions
- 2 can flaked tuna
- 1 juice from lemon
- 1½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ tbsp garlic salt
- 1 tsp chives
- 1 tsp parsley flakes
- 2 tsp dill weed
- ½ tbsp smoked paprika
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Fill a pot ¾ of the way full with water, add salt and bring to a boil on high heat. add pasta and stir. continue to boil until pasta is fully cooked. strain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and to help stop the pasta from sticking together.
- dice pepper, cucumbers, and dill pickles. finely chop green onions and add to a large bowl.
- Add pasta and all seasonings to the bowl, squeeze the juice from one lemon and add 1 cup of mayonnaise.
- mix all ingredients until everything is fully combined add more mayonnaise if you feel that you don't have enough (if you are making this ahead of time, even the day before make sure you add more mayonnaise that you think you will need. the pasta will soak up some of the moisture overnight.)
- transfer into a serving bowl. sprinkle enough paprika on top to just add some colour.
