Macaroni salad: the classic creamy recipe plus 12 easy variations

The short answer: classic macaroni salad is a 1-pound box of elbow macaroni folded into about 1¼ cups of mayonnaise with vinegar, mustard and a little sugar, plus celery, onion and bell pepper. It makes 12 to 14 side servings and needs at least 2 hours in the fridge.

• Key numbers: dressing per pound: 1¼ cups mayo · 2 tbsp vinegar · 1 tbsp mustard · 1 to 2 tsp sugar · ½ cup per guest, or about 2½ pounds dry pasta for 50
• Top moves: rinse and drain the pasta well, splash it with vinegar before the mayo, chill 2 hours or overnight, and hold back ¼ cup of dressing to stir in before serving. Keep it 3 to 4 days in the fridge and no more than 2 hours out.
• Free and paid next step: get the free recipe book starter pages (we email it to you), or plan the shopping with the Meal Planner & Grocery List ($3.99).

Amounts were checked November 3, 2026. The sections below cover the classic macaroni salad recipe, dressing ratios, 12 variations, crowd math, fixes and food safety.

Classic macaroni salad recipe

This is the creamy, slightly tangy, slightly sweet version most people picture at a family cookout. It makes about 10 to 11 cups, enough for 12 to 14 side servings. Packing it for a park day? See these picnic recipes and the cooler rules that go with them.

Ingredients

Steps

1. Cook the pasta in well-salted water. Boil the macaroni 1 to 2 minutes past the package's al dente time. Cold pasta firms up in the fridge, so slightly soft pasta ends up tender instead of chewy.
2. Rinse and drain well. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking and wash off extra starch, then let it drain for a few minutes. Water left in the colander is what makes macaroni salad watery.
3. Splash it with vinegar. Toss the drained, still-cool pasta with 1 tablespoon of the vinegar and a pinch of salt. Plain pasta soaks up seasoning best before the mayo goes on.
4. Whisk the dressing. Stir together 1¼ cups mayonnaise, the rest of the vinegar, the mustard, sugar, relish, salt and pepper. Taste it. It should be a little saltier and tangier than you think, because the pasta mutes it.
5. Fold everything together. Add the celery, onion, bell pepper and pasta to the dressing and fold until coated. Gently fold in the eggs last so they don't turn to mush.
6. Chill. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight for the best flavor.
7. Refresh and serve. The pasta drinks up dressing as it sits. Right before serving, stir in the reserved ¼ cup of mayonnaise (or a splash of milk), taste for salt and dust with paprika.

Macaroni salad dressing ratios

The dressing is where most recipes differ. Use these ratios for 1 pound of dry pasta and adjust to your family's taste.

If you want an Italian-style pasta salad with rotini, olives and vinaigrette, see our pasta salad recipe. Macaroni salad is the creamy cousin.

12 macaroni salad variations

Start with the classic recipe above and change only one or two things.

1. Hawaiian macaroni salad. Cook the macaroni until very soft, toss it with cider vinegar while warm, then mix with lots of mayo, a little milk and grated carrot and onion. Skip the relish and peppers. Serve it next to teriyaki chicken or kalua pork.
2. Tuna macaroni salad. Add two 5-ounce cans of drained tuna, extra celery and a squeeze of lemon. It's a full lunch on its own.
3. Ham macaroni salad. Fold in 2 cups of diced cooked ham and a handful of cubed cheddar. This is a smart use for holiday leftovers; our leftover ham recipes have more.
4. Amish macaroni salad. Use the sweet Amish ratio, plenty of yellow mustard, eggs and celery. It's sweeter and more yellow than the classic.
5. Macaroni salad with peas and cheese. Stir in 1 cup of thawed frozen peas and 1 cup of cubed cheddar.
6. Dill pickle macaroni salad. Swap the relish for chopped dill pickles, use pickle juice as the acid and add fresh dill.
7. BLT macaroni salad. Add crumbled cooked bacon, halved cherry tomatoes and a handful of chopped romaine just before serving.
8. Chicken macaroni salad. Add 2 cups of diced cooked chicken and a little extra dressing. Our chicken salad recipe uses the same creamy base.
9. Shrimp macaroni salad. Fold in chopped cooked shrimp, a pinch of seafood seasoning and lemon.
10. Southwest macaroni salad. Mix in black beans, corn, diced jalapeño and cilantro, with chili powder and lime juice in the dressing.
11. Egg-lover's macaroni salad. Double the eggs and add a little mustard. If you like this one, try our egg salad recipe too.
12. Veggie-loaded macaroni salad. Add shredded carrot, chopped broccoli and cucumber, and use the lighter yogurt dressing.

How much macaroni salad for a crowd

One pound of dry elbow macaroni makes about 8 cups cooked, or 10 to 11 cups of finished salad once the vegetables and dressing go in. Plan on ½ cup per person when it's one of several sides, or ¾ cup when it's one of only two or three.

Scale the vinegar, mustard, sugar and vegetables by the same number of pounds. For big batches, mix in two or three bowls instead of one giant one so the dressing coats evenly. If you're organizing who brings what, our potluck ideas and Thanksgiving potluck sign-up sheet make it easier to avoid five bowls of the same salad.

Why macaroni salad gets dry or watery

Dry macaroni salad happens because pasta keeps absorbing the dressing as it chills. Fix it by making the dressing a little looser than you think, holding back ¼ cup to stir in before serving, and adding a splash of milk if it's still stiff.

Watery macaroni salad usually comes from pasta that wasn't drained well, or from watery vegetables like tomatoes and cucumbers sitting overnight. Drain the pasta for a few minutes, pat diced cucumber dry with a towel, and add tomatoes the day you serve.

Bland macaroni salad needs more salt and acid. Salt the pasta water generously, splash the drained pasta with vinegar, and taste the dressing before it goes in.

Make-ahead timeline

Macaroni salad tastes better after the flavors meld, which makes it one of the easiest dishes to prep early for a party.

• Up to 1 week ahead: Hard-boil the eggs. The USDA says hard-cooked eggs keep about 1 week in the refrigerator. Our guide on how to make deviled eggs covers peeling tips.
• 1 day ahead: Cook the pasta, chop the vegetables, mix everything and refrigerate it overnight.
• Day of: Stir in the reserved dressing, taste for salt, add any tomatoes, bacon or lettuce, and dust with paprika.

How to keep macaroni salad safe

Macaroni salad is a perishable dish, so time and temperature matter more than the recipe. Keep these rules in mind:

• Two-hour rule. The USDA warns that bacteria grow fastest in the danger zone between 40°F and 140°F. Don't leave macaroni salad out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour when it's above 90°F outside.
• Keep it cold. Set the serving bowl inside a larger bowl of ice at cookouts, and put out half the batch at a time, keeping the rest in the fridge or cooler.
• Storage. The FoodSafety.gov cold food storage chart lists egg, chicken, ham, tuna and macaroni salads at 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator, and notes these salads don't freeze well.
• Use clean spoons. Serve with a clean spoon and don't return leftovers from the buffet to the storage container.

Starter version: macaroni salad in 25 minutes

Short on time? Make this five-ingredient version and dress it up later.

It serves 6 to 7. Once you have the base down, add relish, eggs or any of the variations above.

What to serve with macaroni salad

Macaroni salad goes with almost anything off a grill or out of a smoker: burgers, hot dogs, BBQ chicken, ribs, pulled pork and fried fish. It also works on a holiday buffet next to a glazed ham; see our guide on how to cook a ham. Pair it with a crunchy side like cucumber salad and a classic potato salad if you're feeding a crowd. Want the pasta hot instead? Our homemade mac and cheese guide covers stovetop and baked pans.

Plan your cookout or holiday menu

As the oldest of three, I learned that a plan makes a busy gathering feel easier. The Meal Planner & Grocery List ($3.99) has a weekly meal planner, a dinner plan and prep page, an aisle-sorted grocery list and pantry and freezer inventories, so the mayo and macaroni are on the list before you need them. You'll find it with our other Printables. Hosting Thanksgiving? The Meal Planner & Grocery List: Thanksgiving Edition ($4.99) keeps the holiday menu and shopping in one place. Save your family's version of this salad in the Family Recipe Binder ($6.99), which has recipe cards, an index and section dividers.

Hosting more than once this season? The Holiday Season Bundle is $15.99 ($25.94 bought separately). It includes six holiday organizers, among them a holiday edition of the Meal Planner & Grocery List and a cleaning schedule for before guests arrive. You'll find it with our other Bundles. You can also grab our free Holiday Budget Starter Kit, 3 printable US Letter pages emailed to you after you join our list.