Amish Macaroni Salad
Tangy, creamy Amish Macaroni Salad recipe is the best side dish for every meal. Simply to prepare with pantry ingredients, this easy salad is always the first to vanish.
Macaroni Salad
Summer parties were slim this year but that didn’t stop us from firing up the grill and enjoying all our favorite BBQ dishes along with the required sides.
Everything from potato salad and Cole slaw to the best macaroni salad in the world. I like to pile my plate high with side dishes next to my teeny portion of protein.
And just when the summer starts to wind down, I’ll find ways to repurpose those favorite summer side dishes to work with meals all year long. This Amish Macaroni Salad is no exception and it’s one we make at least twice a month.
I lived in Amish country for a number of years and love the macaroni salad they sell at the local grocery stores. Little did I know, my friends in Philly lovingly refer to it as Amish Macaroni Salad.
How To Make Macaroni Salad
Macaroni salad is really easy to make, it’s more in the technique and quality of ingredients that make the difference of the flavor or textures.
- Cook the elbow pasta until al dente or firm to the bite.
- Toss the macaroni, egg, onion, bell pepper and celery in a large bowl to combine.
- Whisk the salad dressing (or mayonnaise), pickle relish, mustard, sugar, vinegar, salt and celery seed until thoroughly combined.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.
- Cover and chill for 1 hour before serving.
I love that you can prepare this salad up to 24 hours in advance and it just keeps getting better. The pasta absorbs the flavors of the dressing so every bite is perfectly balanced.
If you can’t find pickle relish, you can finely chop bread and butter pickles with excellent results. For added flavor, I even add a tablespoon or two of the pickle brine to the dressing. It’s not a bad thing at all.
What is Amish Macaroni Salad
This macaroni salad is made with a light and creamy dressing that is whipped up from a heavy base of Miracle Whip salad dressing. Some people say that you can’t replace the Miracle Whip with mayonnaise but I’ve done it and my family hasn’t even noticed.
So you CAN use it interchangeably in a pinch but do try to get your hands on Miracle Whip if you can just to experience the real thing.
The dressing also includes pickle relish….sweet pickle relish is the key here and it’s what made me love Amish Macaroni Salad in the first.
The last thing you must not skip is the hard boiled egg. I already LOVE eggs in my potato salad but the egg in this macaroni salad recipe is absolutely genius and not to be missed.
The texture of the egg is very much like the macaroni but the yolk is the key…it adds a nice creaminess to the whole salad that’s just fantastic.
Altogether, you’re treated to a sweet, tangy, creamy macaroni salad that’s going to be a family favorite for sure!
Recipe Tips
You wouldn’t think there are too many things that could go wrong with macaroni salad but these tips will ensure salad perfection every single time.
- Don’t overcook the pasta. You want to cook until al dente or until it still has some bite to it so the dressing will be absorbed by the macaroni. Overcooking the elbow pasta will make your salad mushy.
- Allow the macaroni to cool slightly, but not entirely, before tossing the other ingredients. Hot pasta will cause the vegetables to wilt and lose their crispness releasing water into the salad making it watery.
- Don’t try to mix everything in just one bowl. You want the dressing ingredients to be well incorporated before adding them into the salad and tossing to coat so each bite is absolutely perfect.
Serving Suggestions
We love to serve Amish Macaroni Salad alongside our favorite grilled meats like these tender ribs and also BIG, FAT burgers!
It’s pretty versatile, as far as salads go, so it works well with Roasted Chicken and grilled steaks, too.
More Easy Side Salad Ideas
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Get the Recipe: Amish Macaroni Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
- 3 large hard boiled eggs, chopped
- 1 cup diced onion
- 3 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper
- 3 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- 2 cups creamy salad dressing, e.g. Miracle Whip or mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon celery seed
Equipment
- bowl
Instructions
- Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
- Add elbow macaroni and cook for 8 minutes, until al dente. Drain, and set aside to cool. (do not rinse!)
- In a large bowl, combine macaroni, eggs, onion, celery and red bell pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the salad dressing, pickle relish, mustard, white sugar, vinegar, salt and celery seed. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.
- Cover and chill for at least 1 hour before serving.
Video
Notes
Garnish with sliced hard cooked egg and smoked paprika, if desired.
77 Comments on “Amish Macaroni Salad”
Lovely pasta salad. I had all the ingredients handy. Had to leave out the celery seed due to diverticulitis. Subbed celery salt.
thank you so much for your comment! I’m so happy you enjoyed it.
Is 3/4 cup of sugar correct as I’ve just made the salad abit concerned this was a typo I have added 3/4 sugar tho
That’s correct, it is definitely a sweeter dressing but it works well in this recipe.
After 50 yrs of making Macaroni and Potato salads – this is the exact way I made it!!! With one exception and when I had my canned 7 days pickles – I cut up several of the pickles to add and used s.all amounts of the pickle juice to to the dressing! My base recipe was my mothers
and she was from the south! Also I usually cooked the elbows a bit more. WOW – here I was making Amish macaroni all these years! Since I can no longer cook – this is my husband of 50 years – go to macaroni salad in the store! Should I claim rights?!
Ha ha!! Yes, you can claim it if you made it in your kitchen. 🙂
Absolutely, positively, the best macaroni salad we have ever had. I have made it multiple times and am asked for the recipe every single time. Thank you for sharing it.
Thank you so much! I’m so happy you liked it!
Thank You so much for this Recipe! The great Picture grabbed my Attention, the ingredients I love, (so had to make it) and the Tips you gave made me take it to Showers, Church and Family events!! I get asked for the Recipe and refer them to your site!!
Peace to you and yours!
Maggie
Thank you so much! I love that you enjoyed the recipe and are sharing it with others. I really appreciate your support. Have a wonderful day!
I made this recipe, and it worked out great!! The only thing I did differently was substitute the real sugar for 4 pks of Truvia stevia. No one knew the difference, and it worked out great. This will now be a staple at every family event. TY
It will also save me money instead of buying Reser’s Amish Macaroni Salad.
TY
Such a money saver when you make your own! Thank you for testing out the Truvia, other readers will definitely appreciate the substitute!
I thought the dressing was extremely sweet and too much for the amount of macaroni called for.
It’s a traditionally amish dressing and tends to lean sweet. I can understand your aversion but that’s definitely authentic to the culture.
This IS the difference between regular traditional macaroni salad, and Amish macaroni salad. The addition of the sugar. But all you need to do is not put it in.
My family loves the Amish one, and we love this recipe.
Thank you so much! We definitely love our sugar here. 🙂
This is absolutely delicious! People have asked me for the recipe. This is gobble up; good.
Thank you! It’s always a hit when we make it, too.
This is the best one I ever had
Thank you, thank you!
I made this the other day and it was very good, and I never eat macaroni salad. Thought I’d give it a try and was surprised. Thank you. How long does this keep after making it?
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. It usually lasts up to 5 days in the refrigerator but we usually eat all of it before that time.
Wonderful with Barbecued ribs.
It is!
I always like sweet pickle relish in my pasta salad and potato salad. Was so happy to see this because I had forgotten the amount I use. Thank you
Thank you! It’s our favorite.
Nice recipe but the secret to our Pennsylvania Mac salad is a 16 ounce jar of salad olives and hellmans mayo. Some mustard also. Pickle juice and pickle relish and sugar is not cool. You have great recipes. But, give this try folks. You’ll love it.
They’re nice additions but I’m curious where in Pennsylvania you’re from because I grew up in Amish country and this is exactly how everyone I know makes it.
The salad turned out great! The only changed I did I used a quarter cup of sugar and added garlic powder.
Thank you so much! So happy you liked it!