Classic Macaroni Salad Recipe

Looking for summer in a bowl? Here it is. 

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This classic take on macaroni salad has bright ribbons of roasted red peppers, green onions, and salty black olives in a sweet, tangy dressing. The great thing about macaroni salad is that it is so easy to tailor it to your own personal tastes! Try subbing celery and egg for the red peppers and olives for a little crunch. The egg yolks will mix in with the dressing for an even richer texture. 

Tip: Plan ahead and make this the day before so that it has a chance to refrigerate overnight. This will give the flavors a chance to meld and really come alive!

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Happy Fourth of July! Check out my BBQ Bacon Baked Beans recipe to go along with this perfect macaroni salad.

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Classic Macaroni Salad Recipe

Serves 12

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Ingredients:

4 cups elbow noodles

2-3 red bell peppers

3 green onions

8 oz black olives (about 1 cup)

1 cup mayonnaise

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp milk

2 tbsp sugar

Salt & pepper

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Preheat oven to 400. Roast peppers for 20 minutes, flip over, and roast for 20 more minutes. Wrap in foil and let rest for 1 hour. 

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Bring a pot of salted water to boil, then add the noodles. Let cook until al dente (about 5-6 minutes), then drain, rinsing the noodles under cold water.  

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Remove stems, seeds, and skins from peppers, then chop along with the onions and olives. Mix the mayonnaise, vinegar, milk, sugar, salt and pepper. Combine the cooked, cooled noodles with the vegetables and half of the dressing. Cover and refrigerate overnight, then add the rest of the dressing before serving.

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The Details

Need a little more info? Let's break down each step in more detail. 

Step 1: Roast Peppers

Preheat the oven to 400 and line a sheet pan with foil. Drizzle 2 large or 3 small red peppers with olive oil and place on the pan. Roast for 20 minutes, then use tongs to turn peppers over, and roast for 20 more minutes. The skin will be browned and blistered, and the peppers will deflate a bit when you remove them from the oven. Wrap peppers tightly in foil and set on the cutting board to cool for an hour.  

Step 2: Cook Macaroni

Cook 4 cups of dry elbow noodles to al dente in salted water (should taste salty like the sea). You want the macaroni to have a bite to it, where it's not quite all the way softened. When the noodles sit overnight in the dressing, they'll absorb some of it to soften the rest of the way. This makes the noodles even more flavorful than just letting them soften all the way in the water. When you reach al dente, drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Step 3: Chop Vegetables

Chop 3 green onions all the way from white to green tops. Chop up as many black olives as you like (I love). I use the better part of an 8 oz can of small sized olives. You can be fancy and slice them properly, but I usually just give them a rough chop. 

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Take the peppers out of their foil packet and remove the stems and seeds. There will be a lot of juice, so make sure to keep it contained in the foil or on a cutting board with a juice groove so you don't make a mess. The skin should peel right off, then just chop the peppers. 

Step 4: Make the Dressing

Combine 1 cup mayonnaise, 2 tbsp Bragg apple cider vinegar, 2 tbsp milk, 2 tbsp sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. I like to put it in a small mason jar, screw on the lid, and shake it up to mix it. We'll only be using half to start, so the rest will be stored in the fridge overnight. The mason jar makes this super easy.  

Step 5: Combine

Combine the macaroni, vegetables, and half of the dressing in a large bowl with enough room for mixing. Since this is always taken with me in the car to a cookout, I don't use anything fancy and stick with my big plastic Rubbermaid TakeAlongs bowl. It's the perfect size and it has a nice tight fitting lid. Use a wooden spoon to fold everything together. It will look dry and the dressing will look too thin, but it will thicken as it chills and combines with the starchy noodles.

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Before serving, add the rest of the dressing (I like to do half of the remaining dressing first, stir, then add more if necessary. You may not use it all and that's totally okay). Give it a taste! Isn't it pure summer?