Amish macaroni salad is a spectacularly hearty and creamy pasta salad bursting with flavor.

It’s made up of elbow macaroni loaded with hard-boiled eggs, red peppers, celery, onion, and pickle relish. Then, you’ll coat it in a sweet, tangy, and savory dressing.

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Not only is Amish macaroni salad delectable, but it’s also very easy to make.

Just toss the ingredients together and it’s done! All my friends and family love it so much, they ask me to bring it to every potluck.

What is Amish Macaroni Salad?

Amish macaroni salad is simply macaroni salad but with a fun twist. The secret lies in the dressing.

Unlike regular macaroni salad which uses Miracle Whip, Amish macaroni salad uses real mayo, yellow mustard, sugar, and vinegar.

The result is a sweet and tangy flavor.

Ingredients

The ingredients list is a little long, but don’t let that scare you away. It’s mostly common stuff that you probably already have at home.

Macaroni. Uncooked elbow macaroni is the standard choice for this recipe. You’ll want it uncooked because it will cook in the recipe. Also, elbow macaroni has the perfect shape for pasta salad. You could use bowtie or another type of pasta in a pinch, though.

Eggs. Dice up some hard-boiled eggs and toss them in for extra protein.

Veggies. You don’t want the salad to be too sweet. Adding diced onion, celery stalks, and red pepper helps prevent that. These veggies add a savory twist to the sweet and tangy salad. The onion also adds a bit of heat.

Dill pickle relish. Adding dill pickle relish ups the tanginess factor of the recipe.

Dressing ingredients. As mentioned, the sweet-n-tangy dressing is what makes Amish macaroni so special. You’ll make it with mayo, yellow mustard, sugar, and white vinegar.

Salt & celery seed. Use both to season the dressing to suit your tastes.

How to Make Amish Macaroni Salad

Follow these steps to make Amish macaroni salad:

1. Cook the noodles. Follow the instructions on the package for properly boiling the noodles. Then, set them aside to let them cool.

2. Mix the salad ingredients. Combine the eggs, veggies, and dill pickle relish in a large bowl.

3. Make the dressing. Use a separate bowl to mix the mayo, mustard, sugar, vinegar, salt, and celery seed. Mix well.

4. Combine. Pour the dressing over the salad ingredients, then stir in the cooked macaroni. Mix well.

5. Cover and chill. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge for at least 1 hour before serving.

Serve and enjoy once the salad is cool.

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Tips & Tricks

Here are a few final tips for making your salad the best it can be:

A longer chill time is better. Amish macaroni salad needs at least an hour of chill time. However, it tastes so much better when refrigerated for at least 24 hours. It gives the elements ample time to soak up the flavors of the dressing. This makes it an awesome make-ahead dish.

Rinse the freshly cooked noodles in cold water. Not only will this stop the pasta from cooking further, but it also rinses off excess starch. That way, the noodles won’t clump together.

Pat the pasta dry with a paper towel. Doing so will prevent the salad from drying out. The dressing will coat the noodles better; it doesn’t stick well to wet or moist pasta.

Chill individual ingredients. If you have the time, it’s better to chill the ingredients before you put them together. Refrigerate the pasta, veggies, and dressing for 30 minutes prior to combining them. This is another way to prevent the dressing from drying out.

If using Miracle Whip, adjust for sweetness. Amish macaroni salad requires real mayonnaise, but if you prefer Miracle Whip, that’s all right. Keep in mind, though, that Miracle Whip is sweeter, so you may have to adjust the amount of sugar to suit your taste preference. You can also use sour cream instead. Either way, use full-fat varieties for maximum flavor.

Make it lighter. However, if you’re cutting back on calories, you can, of course, use low-fat mayo or sour cream instead. Greek yogurt also works well!

Swap out the pasta. While this recipe calls for elbow macaroni, there’s nothing wrong with using a different type of pasta to make things more interesting. For instance, bowtie pasta and fusilli will both make such a pretty salad!

Customize it. Add your favorite veggies, seasonings, and protein to make your salad even more flavorful. A few great ideas include adding drained tuna, diced ham, chopped bacon, shredded chicken, cubed cheese, carrots, cherry tomatoes, pineapples, extra peppers, hot sauce, paprika, or garlic salt. You can also use apple cider vinegar instead of white vinegar.

Add fresh herbs. When it comes to herbs, be sure to use fresh ingredients as they have better, bolder flavors. Some delicious options include basil, chives, and cilantro.

What to Serve With Amish Macaroni Salad

Getting ready for a picnic, cookout, or just a good ‘ol family dinner? Here are some of our favorite recipes to serve with macaroni salad:

Fall Off The Bone Ribs – These ribs are finger lickin’ good.
Root Beer Pulled Pork – Add a bun and you’ve got a quick and easy meal the whole family will love.
BBQ Baked Beans – You just can’t have a picnic without these classic BBQ baked beans.
BBQ Side Dishes – Looking for more BBQ side dishes, these cookout recipes are garuanteed to delight.
Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork – Who knew a little soda could make pulled pork taste so good!
Slow Cooker Texas Pulled Pork – This classic never gets old.

How Should You Store Amish Macaroni Salad?

Macaroni salads taste best served cold, making storing leftovers a breeze. Place the leftover salad in an airtight container in the fridge.

To ensure your leftovers are as fresh as possible, reserve half the dressing in a separate container. Then, pour the reserved dressing over the salad before serving.

Mix well, and enjoy!