Macaroni Salad
For a great deal of Filipinos, the dish Macaroni Salad holds a special place in their hearts. This is well known for being a party favorite, and is brought to every special gathering to spread a bit of flavor and love in one gloriously bright and colorful dish. As for me, the recipe is also…
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For a great deal of Filipinos, the dish Macaroni Salad holds a special place in their hearts. This is well known for being a party favorite, and is brought to every special gathering to spread a bit of flavor and love in one gloriously bright and colorful dish. As for me, the recipe is also one I cannot forget because it is my wife’s food of choice. And because of that, I prepared this alongside my daughters for mother’s day.
You could also utilize your cooking skills to let the people around you know how much you love them. And in my opinion, Macaroni Salad is one of the simplest, but also most delicious ways to do just that!
What does Macaroni Salad taste like?
Among the first impressions you will probably get upon biting into this dish is that it is so satisfyingly creamy. And that’s because we use a lot of mayonnaise. There is also a ton of cheesiness and savor from the likes of shredded cheese and chicken breast. But I think a pretty great factor behind the taste of the macaroni is the usage of the same water we had for boiling in cooking the macaroni. This really helps pack in a bit of meatiness in the pasta, and give it that edge in terms of taste.
We welcome quite a couple of flavors in this dish. There is also a really delightful sweetness from our pineapple tidbits and raisins. You may work with a lot of kinds of food for this dish, but there’s no need to get scared. Once you are done with the prep, assembling everything is a piece of cake! Let me prove it to you— just try making this Macaroni Salad with me by following the steps listed below!
How to Make Macaroni Salad
1. Cooking the macaroni and chicken
- Boiling the chicken breast – Take 8 ounces of chicken breast, and put this in a pot with water. Boil the chicken for 15 minutes. Afterwards, you should just let it sit for some time until it cools. When it is no longer hot, you must shred the chicken into tiny pieces for mixing with our macaroni salad.
- Preparing the macaroni – Now we have to get our macaroni nice and soft by cooking them. The time of cooking may vary based on the brand you are using, and so you should just follow the instructions stated on the package for this step. You will likely need water and your pot for this. As I mentioned earlier, it would be best to use the same water we utilized for getting the chicken ready.
2. Mixing all of the ingredients together
- Combining the components – Get your cooked macaroni and shredded chicken from earlier. Put this in a container alongside 1 ½ cups of Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise, ¾ cup of shredded cheese, 5 tablespoons of sweet pickle relish, ¼ cup of minced carrot and ½ cup of raisins. Also incorporate 8 ounces of pineapple tidbits, and 1 red bell pepper and 1 green bell pepper— both of which you’ve minced. Toss everything together until you have blended them perfectly.
- Adding the last seasoning – Just sprinkle in some salt to your taste. And then you just have to place the dish in the fridge. This will need a minimum of 2 hours to get cold enough so do not serve it until then.
After that, all you have to do is get ready to eat up! You have the perfect plate to serve to your guests. But don’t throw your apron into the laundry basket just yet. If you want to complete the meal, I have a few suggestions as to other dishes you may want to try having with our Macaroni Salad.
What to Serve with Macaroni Salad
Chicken Lollipop
For my recommendations, you will be able to make the most of any extra chicken you still have. After all, these smoky, salty and crisp Chicken Lollipops are a perfect addition to the mix. This presents a much easier, and more fun way of having the classic fried chicken because of how tiny it is. That’s why you may see this quite a lot in parties, which makes it an even better match with our Macaroni Salad.
Chicken Empanada
The deliciously toasted exterior of Chicken Empanada provides a nice contrast to the tender texture of our macaroni. You can also expect the flavor to shine through just from the first bite. There is a beautiful variety in its filling from carrot to potato to oyster sauce. And like our main recipe, this is a pretty fun recipe to try cooking with the kids at home!
Chicken Macaroni Soup
And just to add a bit of warmth to our dinner setting, why not go for some Chicken Macaroni Soup? This is great for a simple energy boost, while providing a mild savor from minimal seasonings.
I hope you had fun recreating my Macaroni Salad recipe! Tell me your favorite stories about eating this classic dish by commenting below.
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag us on Instagram at @panlasangpinoy or hashtag #panlasangpinoy so we can see your creations!
Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb. elbow macaroni
- 1 ½ cups Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise
- 8 ounces chicken breast (note 1)
- ¾ cup shredded cheese (note 2)
- 5 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- ¼ cup carrot minced
- ½ cup raisins
- 8 oz. pineapple tidbits (note 3)
- 1 red bell pepper minced
- 1 green bell pepper minced
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Cook the macaroni based on the package instructions. Set aside.
- Boil the chicken breast for 15 minutes. Let it cool down and the shred it into pieces.
- Combine cooked macaroni, shredded chicken, Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise, and all other ingredients in a large bowl. Toss until well blended.
- Season with salt. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
- Serve. Share and enjoy!
Notes
- Remove skin off the chicken breast and for 12 to 18 minutes and then shred it into pieces once it cools down. You can also dice the boiled chicken if preferred.
- I use shredded cheddar cheese for this recipe. You can also use other types of cheese that goes well with your taste.
- Canned pineapple tidbits are the ones that I used. Feel free to use pineapple chunks or even fresh pineapple. Also, you can add around 3 tablespoons or more of pineapple juice for best results.
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