This Classic Macaroni Salad is a hit at parties, BBQs and with adults and kids alike. It comes together easily and is the perfect side dish for summer parties, making it perfect for Memorial Day and 4th of July!
*This post has been updated from 2014.
See the peas in that macaroni salad? This is seriously the only thing I like peas in. And I hate peas. But there’s something about the combination of flavors and textures that makes them fit in perfectly.
This is a favorite family recipe that my mom has been making since her home ec class in high school. It’s loved by everyone – so much so that my cousin listed it specifically in our family reunion book as his favorite food.
It’s that good.
Crunchy celery and peas, tangy pickle relish and mustard, and tender hard boiled eggs and macaroni come together with the perfect amount of seasoning and just enough mayo to keep it from drying out. My kids love it too, even with the peas and onions! Now THAT is a special recipe!
Print out this recipe and make this classic macaroni salad for your next BBQ or summer party. You can thank me later.
HOW TO MAKE MACARONI SALAD:
Classic Macaroni Salad
Print Pin RateIngredients
- 2 cups elbow macaroni 1/2 box
- 4 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons chopped onion
- 1 cup frozen peas cooked and cooled
- 4 hard cooked eggs chopped
- 2 teaspoons prepared mustard
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon salt to taste
Instructions
- Cook macaroni following directions on the package. Drain and rinse in colander and drain well. Cool to at least room temperature, or in the fridge.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine celery, onion, relish, eggs, salt and peas.
- Stir in cooked macaroni.
- Stir in mustard and mayonnaise and blend thoroughly.
- Store in a tightly sealed container for up to 5 days. If salad seems dry, add a couple of tablespoons of mayonnaise to moisten.
Love this Classic Macaroni Salad? For more delicious potluck friendly sides, be sure to check these out:
For all salads go HERE and for the Recipe Index go HERE.
Hi! I’m Kristin, the creative mind behind Yellow Bliss Road where you will be inspired by tons of easy to follow recipes, lots of free printables, and a little sprinkling of life thrown in for good measure.
Found this recipe on Pintrest. Really good pasta. I’m always looking for a good pasta salad to try and this is on my keeper list. Would not change anything. Thanks!
No instructions for the mustard ?
I know it’s still winter, but this weekend of 2/19/2017 was like SPRING! I’m not kidding. Almost 70 degrees and sunshine, not to mention a three-day weekend because of President’s Day. So, we cooked out on Sunday. It was a gorgeous day! I made one of my favorite burgers, Original Ranch Cheeseburgers, topped them with lettuce and tomato, and served this salad to go along with it. I love the simplicity of this salad. It truly is a classic. The only thing I added was freshly ground black pepper to taste. Perfection!
It’s definitely a true classic! How lucky you were to have such gorgeous weather – we’ve just been getting rain here in Southern California!!
this was the best thing I’ve ever eaten!!!!! I’m usually not fan of macaroni salad but this was amazing!!! thank you so much!!!!
I made this but added sour cream and scallions instead of onions. I also added some milk so it wouldn’t dry out. It was a big hit!
Yes with the sour cream you’d need to extra milk. With the mayo it won’t dry out but you can always add extra if you need it.
Don’t cook the peas, they will pop in your mouth
Did you just thaw them out Then? What do you mean by pop in your mouth?
I think that only works if you’re using fresh shelled ones, but I’d love to know if you can just defrost frozen peas and get the same effect!
I used the steam bag peas and only cooked them half the time called for, and Immediately dumped and cooled them in a big strainer…. I did not rinse as I didn’t want to get them wet….. mine were perfectly sweet and “pop in your mouth” tender! This recipe was the best I’ve ever had! I even had “Gramma” ask who made it! Had to print this out for her too! I also added black pepper…… ? Enjoy !!!
I so agree with you. I am not a fan of peas either but they are a must for Tuna Pasta Salad. I am going to make yours tonight. Can’t wait. Thanks!
I don’t even like macaroni salad but I liked this recipe!
SO good. The classic you remember. I added black pepper and omitted sweet relish, since that is a little closer to how we made it growing up–delicious!
I also recommend mixing the mayo & mustard together first, but you can skip that step if you don’t want the extra bowl. I also found that I wanted to add about another teaspoon of mustard for tang, but I bet if you included the relish you wouldn’t need it.
How long will this Macaroni salad last in refrigerator?
3-4 days, but you may need to freshen it up with some additional mayo.
Hi kristin. I made the macaroni salad without peas, (i didn’t have any) and its very tasty. My question is, does it call for real mayo, or miracle whip. I think it would be wonderful with real mayo. Thanks. Carol
We always use real mayo.
Excellent! Always a hit at potlucks and perfect for summertime. We love it!
This is a basic but great side dish tha t is easy to make. It is really good and complements summer meals as a good standby !
Added cheddar cheese and dill to this salad and it is amazing!!
Great salad, a keeper! I only had horseradish mustard, so I used 1/2 tsp of ground mustard and it worked wonderfully! This will be a staple for cookouts.
Hi there, Kristin. I am going to try your recipe for BEST EVER CLASSIC MACARONI SALAD this week for a BBQ I am having on Saturday. I look forward to tasting it.
I made this for a family bbq, I ran out of macaroni noodles, so I used Cellentani noodles instead….awsome!
Hello! I am planning to make this tomorrow but I’m wondering if you measure out 2 cups uncooked noodles or 2 cups cooked noodles? And do you think I could use miracle whip and stead of mayonnaise? Thanks in advance for your answers!
It’s 2 cups uncooked…about 4 cups cooked. If you are a fan of Miracle Whip, sure, you could use it. It would definitely make the salad sweeter.
I tried this today. It tastes great!
I didn’t have peas so I added corn. And black beans. I used whole wheat shell pasta instead of macaroni. I had a little less pasta. I put in only about half a cup mayo and that was more than enough for the dish. Also our relish was *eww* and I threw it out. So I put a little bit of maple syrup in the dish for sweetener. It was all very good and now I want some more! I think I will add some dill, though. It needs a little bit of a bright flavor. Or chopped baby pickles would be great.
Very good recipe. Glad I chose this one. My families Mac salad has tuna and client didn’t want tuna. They loved it!! Keeper!
forget the peas, add some pimentos or sweet red pepper and a few chopped olives, and use celery heart…add juice of 1 lime, delete salt…. salt mac water instead
Grew up with this type of salad. Mom added a can of tuna fish…OMG, so good. Never had it with eggs, gonna try that (noodles boiling and eggs are peeled)
And “Real Mayo,would be Hellmanns Or Nothing At All In My Opinion!!”
Pretty close to the way I make my macaroni salad. The difference is, I like peas, but not in my macaroni salad. I only use green onion in mine and mostly the green part and some of the white part, chopped very fine, very little mustard. I use about half a dozen eggs in mine, sweet pickle relish, salt and pepper and mayonnaise. Sometimes I like tuna fish in my macaroni salad too.
I’m not a fan of peas either, but I will eat them only in this recipe!
My family loved the Macaroni salad! Can’t wait to try lots of your recipes! They all sound so good! I will be using this site a lot more! Thank you!
So happy that you and your family loved this recipe!
Thank you for stopping by!
I made this “in a pinch” when I did not have quite enough potato salad and coleslaw for my hubby and his poker pals. They loved it! In fact, the macaroni salad was all gone, while the others went virtually untouched. And they ALL said they loved the peas in it–they really made it special. This will be my go-to macaroni salad from now on! Perfection!
Thank you Margaret! So happy that you and your family loved this recipe!