Mayo, Italian dressing or what on your macaroni salad?

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
NCT Patron
When I was a kid, we always called it "macaroni" salad, used elbow macs, onion, green pepper, herbs and Italian dressing. That's the way I'm making mine for dinner with my friends tonight. Well, instead of green bell peppers, I'm subbing poblanos, cuz I like them.

Now it's called "pasta" salad and anything and everything goes!

My neighbor is making hers the way she did when SHE was a kid. She uses elbows, too, but uses mayo. I think she's topping hers with wedges of hard boiled eggs, but the rest will be a surprise for me.

How was macaroni salad made when you were growing up? How do you you make your favorite pasta salad now?

Lee
 
I don't remember my mother ever making macaroni salad, probably because my dad wouldn't eat it. She was too busy making macaroni and cheese :D. I call it pasta salad and make it with Italian dressing. I like it tangy, and like you say...everything goes...artichoke hearts, olives, tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, etc. I like to use the tri-colored pasta sometimes.
 
My mama always made hers with a mayonnaise base. I still make mine the same way. My all-time favorite was when she put tuna in it.....YUM!

http://netcookingtalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19111

attachment.php


:picnic:
 
>>Mayo, Italian dressing or what on your macaroni salad?

yes.

we're fond of pasta salads - by any name.

but mayo goes boring.
salad dressings go boring.

so we fix it multiple and many ways just to be different!
 
Mayonnaise (Miracle Whip), sour cream and ranch dressing with fresh lemon juice. I've also used Italian and balsamic vinegar but it depends on what I put into it really.
 
When I was a kid, we always called it "macaroni" salad, used elbow macs, onion, green pepper, herbs and Italian dressing. That's the way I'm making mine for dinner with my friends tonight. Well, instead of green bell peppers, I'm subbing poblanos, cuz I like them.

Now it's called "pasta" salad and anything and everything goes!

My neighbor is making hers the way she did when SHE was a kid. She uses elbows, too, but uses mayo. I think she's topping hers with wedges of hard boiled eggs, but the rest will be a surprise for me.

How was macaroni salad made when you were growing up? How do you you make your favorite pasta salad now?

Lee

Kathy's mac salad with mayo and mine with Italian dressing. BOTH excellent!

With Pearl hot dogs and Kumato-blue cheese salad for the 4th!

Lee


Kathy's mac salad with mayo.JPG

Mac salad with Italian dressing.JPG
 

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I guess it depends on the application, or the pairings.

On Hawaii, mac salad is ALWAYS mayo.

for something "garden/lite", Red wine vin, and some oil.

For something Mediterranean, do a puree of Balsamic vin, black olives, roasted red pepper, and some garlic and onion. . . oil to make it the "dressing", and crumble in a fist full of Feta. . . garnish with pepperoncini.

For Super Summer Light; White wine vin, a purred cucumber, onion, pepper, sea salt, and a pinch of sugar.

Para algo South American: mayo, dash of ketchup, mustard, and a little sugar. this "dressing" also works as a dip for Pollo A La Brassa, or Pollo Campero.

For something "all American", a little mayo, a tablespoon of miracle whip, some mustard, about 2 T of pickle juice, and blend/puree with some fresh grated cheddar cheese, making a thin cheese sauce that marries well with the noodles. Add some pepper relish for some heat.


For long noodle, I think less is more. Just something to loosen things up, so you aren't eating dry, clumped up pasta.
 
When I was growing up it was usually the common mayo-tuna salad but most of us have gotten away from that. Nowadays, macaroni salad is made with anything but mayo. I like to go to potlucks and have bbq's where everyone brings a salad of some kind. You can get so many interesting and creative ideas by trying them. My current fave is made with penne pasta, feta, olive oil and fresh herbs.
 
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