The Pioneer Woman’s Macaroni Salad Is the Creamy BBQ Side That Gets Better With One Easy Ingredient Upgrade
Everyone will be requesting this macaroni salad recipe at your spring and summer get-togethers!
Creamy macaroni salad is a staple at BBQs and picnics and is tastier when it’s freshly made. (Yes, you can skip the tubs of macaroni salad in the deli aisle and make it at home.) The Pioneer Woman has a macaroni salad recipe that will be a favorite at your upcoming get-togethers as it’s creamy, savory and slightly sweet. Plus, it’s so easy to prepare ahead and serve with your meal. Read on for pointers on making the Pioneer Woman’s macaroni salad recipe, including the pantry staple she adds for extra flavor!
The secret ingredient in the Pioneer Woman’s macaroni salad
Ree Drummond’s macaroni salad contains a blend of cooked pasta, roasted red peppers, black olives and green onions tossed in a mayonnaise dressing—but there’s a special ingredient that puts her twist on this classic side: pickles. Drummond’s recipe calls for sweet or spicy pickles (or a combination of the two) to add a briny kick and extra crunch to this salad. Be sure to dice them so they meld with the other ingredients for a vibrant and flavorful side.
Should you rinse pasta before making macaroni salad?
After boiling and draining the elbow macaroni, you should rinse it for a couple of reasons. First, rinsing the pasta under cold water stops the cooking process, ensuring the noodles maintain their al dente texture. This step is also key for cooling down the noodles so they don’t cause the dressing to curdle as you’re mixing the ingredients together. (Mayo dressing and heat don’t bode well when it comes to macaroni salad.) And voilà! You’ve made a macaroni salad that easily beats the store-bought kind.
The Pioneer Woman’s best-ever macaroni salad recipe
Serve this macaroni salad at your spring and summer gatherings—it’s so tasty that guests will go back for second (and third) helpings! (For main dishes to enjoy with this salad, try these St. Louis-style ribs or juicy stuffed burgers.)
Macaroni Salad
Ingredients:
- 4 cups elbow macaroni
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp red wine or distilled vinegar
- 3 tsp sugar, plus more or less to taste
- ¼ tsp salt, plus more to taste
- Plenty of black pepper
- ¼ cup milk, plus more if needed
- Splash of pickle juice, plus more to taste
- 3 whole roasted red peppers, diced, plus more to taste (can also use pimentos)
- ½ cup black olives, finely chopped
- 6 sweet or spicy pickle slices, diced (about ½ cup diced)
- 3 green onions, sliced (white and dark green parts)
Directions:
- Active: 10 mins
- Total time: 25 mins
- Yield: 12 servings
- Cook the macaroni in lightly salted water according to the package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Splash in enough milk to make it pourable. Splash in pickle juice for extra flavor. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Set aside.
- Place the cooled macaroni in a large bowl and pour in three-fourths of the dressing. Toss and add more dressing if you’d like. (The dressing will seem a little thin, but it will thicken up as the salad chills.)
- Stir in the roasted red peppers (or pimentos), olives, pickles, and green onions. Add more of any ingredient if you’d like more stuff going on! At the end, splash in a little more pickle juice and stir.
- Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Sprinkle with sliced green onions to serve!
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