This is the best classic macaroni salad recipe with a creamy tangy dressing, crunchy veggies, cheddar cheese, and hard boiled eggs.
When it comes to summer potlucks, picnics, and backyard barbecues, the thing I look forward to the most is the sides. This macaroni pasta salad is a staple summer side dish. It’s creamy, comforting, and flavorful.
One of my all-time favorite summer meals is a juicy grilled burger, this macaroni salad, and fresh corn on the cob.
How To Make Macaroni Salad
Note: This is a summary. The full printable recipe card and step by step video is at the bottom of this post.
- Cook, drain, rinse, and cool some macaroni pasta.
- As the pasta cooks, prepare the veggies and start making the macaroni salad dressing.
Quick Tip
If you don’t already have hard boiled eggs, cook them with the pasta. I like to boil eggs for 15 minutes. My pasta only needed to cook for 10 minutes. So, I added the eggs to boiling water and let them cook 5 minutes. Then, I added the pasta to the water for 10 minutes. Then, drained and cooled the pasta and eggs at the same time.
- Cut the eggs in half. Pop the yolks into a bowl and chop the whites.
- Mash the yolks with the back of a fork.
- To the yolks, add mayo, milk, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Add the cooked and cooled pasta to the dressing.
- Add sliced celery, grated carrots, and shredded cheddar cheese.
- Add sliced green onions and chopped eggs.
- Stir well.
- Let it chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Stir well before serving.
Can This Be Made Ahead
Yes! This is one of the reasons I love making macaroni salad for a gathering. It’s perfect for making ahead of time. It needs to chill for at least 2 hours before serving. So, I like to make it in the morning, or even the day before I want to serve it.
How To Store
Store macaroni salad in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
If the macaroni salad starts to lose creaminess, add a little mayo, milk, or even pickle juice to loosen it up.
More Summer Side Dishes
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Macaroni Salad Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 8 oz. uncooked macaroni pasta half of a 1 pound box
- 3 large hard boiled eggs
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 Tablespoons white vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
- 1/2 cup grated carrots
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup sliced green onion
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Use a colander or mesh stainer to drain the water from the pasta. Run cold water over the cooked pasta in the colander for 1 minute.
- Cut the hard boiled eggs in half. Pop the yolks out into a large bowl and chop the egg whites.
- Mash the yolks with the back of a fork. Add the mayo, milk, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper. Whisk until well combined.
- Add the cooked and cooled pasta, chopped egg whites, celery, carrots, cheese, and green onions to the bowl. Stir until well combined.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours. As the pasta rests in the refrigerator, it will soak up the dressing.
- Stir well before serving.
Excellent